Long Live Tupperware!

Have you heard the terrible news regarding Tupperware?  After all these years of being a household staple, it looks like they may be closing their snap-top lids forever. The company has been losing sales, especially to the younger crowd, and stock prices are significantly down. A world without those containers will be a drab place indeed.  

Tupper, a chemist, developed the plastic originally for use in radar, and later came up with a much  broader use, selling his lightweight, non-breakable bowls in 1946.  Sales were reasonable but not fantastic as many prospective buyers did not understand the full potential of bowls that needed to be burped. The product was good but needed some interpretation.

 

  Along comes Brownie Wise, who was a 1950s marketing genius.  Keep in mind that the norm was that a woman's first priority was to cook, clean, and take care of the children and husband.  Brownie created the home party method of sales, and Tupperware became a household name. Women were given the opportunity to make their own money selling these useful products through networking family and friends.  They learned sales techniques and party games and knew that if they needed help, the Tupperware sales community had their backs.  Those invited to these parties had fun, refreshments, and the occasion to earn prizes for themselves and the hostess.  The ladies demonstrating the products received good money and incentives to attain goals for additional rewards.

  

  Did I personally attend any of these parties?  Yes, I was dragged to a few of them and have to admit they were fun.  1968 was my year of Tupperware overload.  Jerry and I were getting married and my mother attended a party along with one of my aunts, intent on supplying us with items necessary for a happy life together.  I was gifted with a plethora of products, some of which I still use like my canister set and juice pitchers; I think I still have a Jell-O mold as well. Oh yeah, some large cupcake holders are in the basement along with a cereal keeper that’s missing the top.  I do miss the plastic stick that I won as a prize that was used to clean the grooves in the Wonder Bowl covers.

  I do hope something can happen to keep Tupperware going. We’ve lost so many things that were  important to us when we were young.  Mini skirts.  The Beatles.  Movie theaters that charged less than a dollar admission.  Jell-O.  I say that only because it was a safe place to put pineapple and cottage cheese and it was fun to watch it wiggle. 

  

  Perhaps a number of us have lost faith in the future.  We look ahead and only see an unstable economy, the beginnings of a new Cold War, and increasing violence on the streets and in schools; sometimes it’s hard to find the bright side of life. Life in the heyday of Tupperware wasn’t perfect; no time in history was.  But, so many families all across the world knew that if you put your leftovers in a Tupperware container and pushed down on the lid, the burp you heard gave you confidence that the food would be safe in the fridge for another meal, another day. Maybe there’s still hope for the future if we just hang on.

BTW  Brownie Wise would be fired from the company in 1958.  Mr. Tupper was selling the company to Rexall and was afraid her agressive sales techniques might disrupt the sale.  

Sharon

Turning Back Time

Some random thoughts

Cher said it best when she recorded If I Could Turn back Time. If, that two-letter word has been repeated many times this year.  IF we had known about the Pandemic sooner we could have been better prepared.  IF the leadership of all countries could have communicated with each other, regardless of politics and other differences, information could have been shared.  IF sane and responsible leadership had trickled down to include every city and town, no matter how small.  IF we had listened to our mother and washed our hands more often and learned it’s not good to cough in other people’s faces.

Let’s face reality.  The world was caught completely off-guard with this Pandemic and we all were clueless as to what to do.  With schools closed and social distancing, many of us have been able to slow down and think.  For some, that translates into new ways to support the family, catching up on home projects or maybe just spending more time with the kids. For others, it may be a time of self-evaluation with hopes of coming out of this situation a stronger, better person.

Then we have those who spend their time finding things to complain about.  Finding wrongs and attempting to fix them is an admirable cause but only it is in concurrence of acceptable and workable solutions. Dialogue and compromise must be part of the process.  Dialogue entails words and thoughts that are not shouted or accompanied by threats. No government on this planet is perfect. No law enforcement agency, judicial system, or health care system is perfect.  I can’t think of one person, living or dead that would or could fit that description.  Maybe if we tried to repair things instead of destroying them we’ all come out of this better.

If people generations before us had been more perfect, more socially conscious, more caring – you know, like we are today – the world would be a different place.  Unfortunately, we’re stuck with what we’ve got and we can’t just turn our backs on the past.  History is a little like an old brick house and changing or ignoring the past is equivalent to pulling the bricks out one by one.  Eventually, the structure will collapse and leave all those residing within homeless. Let’s try to settle our differences and keep our house intact.

Truth is, we all need a breather.  Let’s take a break from this virus, violence, inequality, and politics and go back in time when none of this existed.  Yeah, right.  When you find it, let us know!!!

Seriously, we can’t turn back time but we can try to make a better future.

In other news… Folks have been checking if there is another Survivalist book in the works.  As you know, starting with number thirty, they were a joint project of Bob Anderson and me.  When Bob passed away this January I just had to step away for a while and regroup.  I wasn’t ready to think about working on it without Bob.  He loved the series, had some crazy ideas to move the story forward, and was a superb wordsmith. Mostly he was a good friend and I will miss him.  I’m ready to move on now and after a few other projects are completed, Survivalist #37, Ride the Dragon, will be in the works.   The Rourke gang still has a lot of trouble to get themselves out of. I’ll keep you posted.

Sharon