Things in living memory which seem very anachronistic now

[JamesT]

Interesting. My recollection is that when milk normally came in bottles delivered to your home, some people opened them by picking at the edge of the foil lids while others jabbed through the foil. Both methods were widespread. Removing the foil in one piece leaves you with a lid you can put back on top. The jabbing method leaves you with traces in the milk of whatever might have been on the finger they used, and a bottle which isn't completely covered.

I don't think the jabbing method is "instinctive" to anyone. (Sounds like the way IT persons misuse "intuitive".) It may be habitual for some people, while for me the habit is to remove the foil in one piece.

You don’t jab through the foil, you push it so it deforms. This still leaves it in one piece for reuse.

 

[MotCO]

But you used to jab it through with a straw when drinking the 1/3rd bottles of milk at school!

 

[Tester]

You don’t jab through the foil, you push it so it deforms. This still leaves it in one piece for reuse.

This is the correct answer!

And, related, we used to put a line across the lid of each bottle with a fingertip, each time the new day's bottles were added - a rudimentary form of stock rotation (most lines - use first). I don't know how widespread that was.

 

[dgl]

Funnily enough I was showing one of my young relatives my recorder collection yesterday.
I guess the problem is that the price point of the plastic ones means schools buy one of the worst sounding choices (both pitch and material).

Yes, people don't realise the range of recorders that are made, here is every product recorder related that Thomann sell, there are a few items there!

Thomann Blockflöten kaufen bei Thomann

Blockflöten + Zubehör online kaufen bei Europas größtem Musikhaus ✔ Schneller Versand ✔ 30 Tage Money-Back ✔ 3 Jahre Thomann Garantie

www.thomann.de

(used the German site just in case there are products they can't sell outside the Germany/the EU).

There was recently an auction of the late ex. Kraftwerk member Florian Schneider's estate, the range of wind instruments he had in his collection was impressive.

 

[JKF]

You don’t jab through the foil, you push it so it deforms. This still leaves it in one piece for reuse.

Exactly. Press down gently and it pulls the foil from the edge breaking the seal, then pop back on after. No jabbing or tearing involved.

 

[WesternLancer]

You still see them in certain high-end tea rooms...such as the Betty's chain in North and West Yorkshire.

Saw some on a trad hardware shop today.

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This is the correct answer!

And, related, we used to put a line across the lid of each bottle with a fingertip, each time the new day's bottles were added - a rudimentary form of stock rotation (most lines - use first). I don't know how widespread that was.

We do this now! Other halves mum used to do it. It’s a good idea.
We still have milk delivered in bottles. From Milk and More. All ordering on line in a digital manner.

 

[DelW]

There is a nother thing you don't see now... small cup top tea sieves.

I have an infuser - like a little steel-mesh reusable tea bag. The two halves are hinged with a clip to hold them closed. Means I can use loose tea (usually better quality), but I can still make a single mugful. (I also have an infuser teapot for bigger brews.)

But you used to jab it through with a straw when drinking the 1/3rd bottles of milk at school!

We had a purpose made device, like an oversize bottle cap with a spike projecting downwards, for bodging the holes, done in advance by the milk monitor. I don't suppose primary age children would be allowed that (unsupervised) now!

 

[philthetube]

And, related, we used to put a line across the lid of each bottle with a fingertip, each time the new day's bottles were added - a rudimentary form of stock rotation (most lines - use first). I don't know how widespread that was.

we just used to slide it up the fridge door, furthest from the hinge was the oldest.

 

[Jimini]

You don’t jab through the foil, you push it so it deforms. This still leaves it in one piece for reuse.

My only deviation from the other posts above is that we used to use our index finger knuckle to push the foil down (rather than thumb), thus rendering it reusable as a cap.

Wild times we lived in eh

 

[david1212]

And, related, we used to put a line across the lid of each bottle with a fingertip, each time the new day's bottles were added - a rudimentary form of stock rotation (most lines - use first). I don't know how widespread that was.

The dairy that delivered to us back 40+ years ago stamped a letter A-Z onto the foil cap incremented each day. I have presumed all did this but from this post I guess not.

 

[GordonT]

The dairy that delivered to us back 40+ years ago stamped a letter A-Z onto the foil cap incremented each day. I have presumed all did this but from this post I guess not.

Our current glass milk bottles have the words Use By followed by an abbreviated date such as 22 Jan embossed on the green foil cap.

== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: 18 Jan 2026 ==

Anyone recall vibrating exercise belts which were quite popular in the 1970s for "passive exercise" but they largely died out presumably because they weren't very effective.

 

[JamesT]

Anyone recall vibrating exercise belts which were quite popular in the 1970s for "passive exercise" but they largely died out presumably because they weren't very effective.

They’ve sort of morphed into different products. There’s TENS devices which use electrical impulses to stimulate muscles. Many gyms seem to have vibration plates for exercising on. Then there are massage guns using vibration to soothe muscle aches.

 

[norbitonflyer]

Our current glass milk bottles have the words Use By followed by an abbreviated date such as 22 Jan embossed on the green foil cap.

So do ours, but the embossing is quite faionts and once you've pressed the foilto open it you can't read it any more

== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: 19 Jan 2026 ==

You don’t jab through the foil, you push it so it deforms. This still leaves it in one piece for reuse.

If you don't leave the foil on the bottle, you can't tell which is skimmed and which is semi skimmed. (I have enough trouble remembering which is which anyway......)

 

[GusB]

On the subject of glass milk bottles, latterly our local dairy began supplying them with colour-coded plastic tops rather than the foil caps that I was used to in my childhood.

I miss the doorstep deliveries but I wasn't prepared to put up with 500ml bottles being substituted for pints with no reduction in the cost!

 

[Tester]

I miss the doorstep deliveries but I wasn't prepared to put up with 500ml bottles being substituted for pints with no reduction in the cost!

Interestingly Australia went the other way - changing from pint to 600ml bottles.

Before my time so I can't comment on pricing!

 

[norbitonflyer]

I can remember a couple of businesses that had numbers ending 999, which were changed. Also, the car registration VD for Luton was withdrawn in 1974. OO is an Essex registration and cars with number plates spelling BOO, LOO and POO disappeared.

OO and WC were only issued in 1961, (WC only as part of three letter combinations), after Essex ran out of registration marks. Suffix marks ("year letters") started to be issued in mid-1963, but were not universal until 1965 - this was done because the new 7-character marks needed smaller characters, but there were substantial stocks of the larger ones to use up.

Ther registrations didn't disappear - vehicles already having those registrations did not have to be changed - but no new registrations with those marks were issued.

 

[Harpo]

OO is an Essex registration and cars with number plates spelling BOO, LOO and POO disappeared.

LOO reappeared later with LO prefixes. I had a LO08 plate. In that same year I wonder if anyone regretted thousands of BJ 08 plates?

 

[WesternLancer]

On the subject of glass milk bottles, latterly our local dairy began supplying them with colour-coded plastic tops rather than the foil caps that I was used to in my childhood.

I miss the doorstep deliveries but I wasn't prepared to put up with 500ml bottles being substituted for pints with no reduction in the cost!

Glass milk bottle in my fridge has 568ml moulded into the glass.

Don't think I have ever seen a 500ml glass milk bottle. Sounds like some dairies / deliverers must operate differently.

I think they may even still do Gold Top - not sure if that is the same as gold top back in the day

 

[cb a1]

Then there are massage guns using vibration to soothe muscle aches.

Which are absolutely not used for any other purpose. I just happened to fall on it when I slipped getting out of the bath, Doctor.

 

[Mogz]

Interestingly Australia went the other way - changing from pint to 600ml bottles.

Before my time so I can't comment on pricing!

Our glass milk delivery bottles are 568ml which is exactly one pint.

 

[Ediswan]

Our glass milk delivery bottles are 568ml which is exactly one pint.

Not exact, but close enough for milk bottles.

 

[PeterC]

On the subject of glass milk bottles, latterly our local dairy began supplying them with colour-coded plastic tops rather than the foil caps that I was used to in my childhood.

I miss the doorstep deliveries but I wasn't prepared to put up with 500ml bottles being substituted for pints with no reduction in the cost!

Modern Milkman still uses pints. You can buy coured plastic stoppers for use after the foil cap is removed.

 

[ic31420]

We have glass pints, well 568ml bottles, the foil caps are not embossed with anything. Being proper farmers they don't agree with spending brass where it can be avoided so buy second hand milk bottles. So we get bottles with all sorts of dairy branding from all over the country.

The Milk is unhomogenised and if left will settle out. The milk is from cows that run with their calves and are milked once daily I can see the cows in summer from the back window of my house (across the valley).

The milk woman is some sort of memory monster and can remember everyone's orders details holidays kids names and bits and bobs.

It's delivered 4 days a week for 78p a pint which is cheaper than aldis pint bottles.

The real saving is not having to pop out to get a pint of milk and ending up spending a tenner on stuff you don't need at the shop.


Another local farm supplies milk in 1ltr glass bottles with screw lids.

While another has a pukka old fashioned milk float.

 

[WesternLancer]

We have glass pints, well 568ml bottles, the foil caps are not embossed with anything. Being proper farmers they don't agree with spending brass where it can be avoided so buy second hand milk bottles. So we get bottles with all sorts of dairy branding from all over the country.

The Milk is unhomogenised and if left will settle out. The milk is from cows that run with their calves and are milked once daily I can see the cows in summer from the back window of my house (across the valley).

The milk woman is some sort of memory monster and can remember everyone's orders details holidays kids names and bits and bobs.

It's delivered 4 days a week for 78p a pint which is cheaper than aldis pint bottles.

The real saving is not having to pop out to get a pint of milk and ending up spending a tenner on stuff you don't need at the shop.


Another local farm supplies milk in 1ltr glass bottles with screw lids.

While another has a pukka old fashioned milk float.

Sounds excellent. Can I ask where this impressive location is?

 

[Jimini]

Sounds excellent. Can I ask where this impressive location is?

1984?

 

[ic31420]

Sounds excellent. Can I ask where this impressive location is?

Overlooking the ELR

Park Farm Ramsbottom | A family business with family appeal

Park Farm Shop Ramsbottom, tearoom, Bury, Bolton, farm shop, BL0, BL8, BL9, tea room, grocery shop, fresh produce, eggs, plants, fruit, vegetables, cafe

parkfarmshopramsbottom.co.uk

The other farm with 1ltr glass bottles is

Doorstep Deliveries - Smithills Open Farm

www.smithillsopenfarm.co.uk

 

[WesternLancer]

Overlooking the ELR

Park Farm Ramsbottom | A family business with family appeal

Park Farm Shop Ramsbottom, tearoom, Bury, Bolton, farm shop, BL0, BL8, BL9, tea room, grocery shop, fresh produce, eggs, plants, fruit, vegetables, cafe

parkfarmshopramsbottom.co.uk

The other farm with 1ltr glass bottles is

Doorstep Deliveries - Smithills Open Farm

www.smithillsopenfarm.co.uk

Thanks.

 

[Mogz]

Not exact, but close enough for milk bottles.

True, true.

In some places on the continent, a “pint” is slang for half a litre and a “pound” is slang for half a kilo.

I imagine that’s what they will become here in time.

 

[PMH]

True, true.

In some places on the continent, a “pint” is slang for half a litre and a “pound” is slang for half a kilo.

I imagine that’s what they will become here in time.

Remember the Metric Martyrs? What a good use of everyone's time and energy that was. Metric Martyrs

 

[EYFanatic]

At the risk of getting a warning...

"Things in living memory which seem very anachronistic now"

A President of the United States you could respect