The Undeniable Glamour of Life Before the Virus .....

The Virus burst upon us without as much warning as we would have liked and immediately changed our thinking. There seems to be no argument about that.

In 2020 our lives have been on display more blatantly than any other time in history. Not simply rites of passage such as weddings and christenings and 21st birthday parties, but casual catch-ups with school friends, new shoes and holidays diligently documented, snapped and photo’d relentlessly so that all and sundry might be made aware how over-flowingly bounteous our lives were! Possibly not surprising since it would appear that the young at least are blessed with more disposable income than those of previous generations. Where their parents might have rewarded themselves with a regular Friday evening curry or pizza, their sons and daughters add breakfast out on Sunday mornings into the mix without a thought. As a result today’s four and five year olds have become totally familiar with Eggs Benedict served with a side of Prosciutto. What culinary progress has been made – and there was I back in the 1960s congratulating myself for exposing my first born to a very occasional Sunday lunch at Isows in Brewer Street. The tots breakfasting in style in Parnell Road, Auckland, New Zealand would undoubtedly look askance at such a meagre treat. Predictable since we oh so easily become accustomed to extravagance.

We know all this because it seems that every meal taken outside of the family home is almost guaranteed to end up on Facebook or similar social media sites together with a cryptic comment ensuring that friends and family can be reassured that the consumer and their offspring are still enjoying a life of ease and abundance. Even the stalwart few still given to throwing occasional lunch parties have been seen to furtively photograph the food before calling guests to the table.

When I was a child the most fortunate among us took holidays at Butlins or a rented chalet in Sheerness whilst our less prosperous neighbours were glad to spend a few days stripping raspberries or picking cherries and small black and white snaps of any of such eventualities would invariably appear at some later stage to be passed around and admired. We more sophisticated enthusiasts of the swinging sixties opted for weekends in Paris or Amsterdam and made sure Kodak in Colour recorded every detail with easily identified landmarks in the background. Meanwhile those we hoped were green with envy stayed at home and took shots of each other posing languidly against recently acquired second hand family cars. Although we now apprehensively ate out occasionally we were disinclined to ensure there was photographic evidence of the event no matter how much we would have enjoyed the final result to display to the world.

We undeniably expected to be envied for our fast lane lifestyles, keenly evidenced by the advent of Slide Evenings thrown by those who had invested in the kind of photographic equipment that now lies abandoned under the stairs of ever second newly converted terrace house from Bristol to Brighton. Newly married cousin Margaret who had recently discovered Continental travel was an early fan of the Slide Soiree and those invited were treated not only with undeniable proof of her exploration of the sights of Paris and Brussels but also cubes of cheese and pineapple on toothpicks together with glasses of sweet sherry. My mother was never known to turn down an invitation to the smart new house in Vicarage Drive but at the same time commented that these days Margaret seemed to have more money than sense and that was a fact. At the same time the Slide Shower remained her favourite niece and her dedicated aunt became the family baby sitter with enormous enthusiasm.

In New Zealand in the 1970s Fast Lives went to a different level as I witnessed the young families who thought nothing of flying off to Pacific Islands for Winter Breaks or perhaps unencumbered by small fry, jetted to Sydney to shop and take in a show. The realization that these lavish lifestyles deserved to be on display was rapidly apparent somewhat later when all and sundry acquired video cameras with which to document their children’s progress through ballet school or violin classes.
The advent of the internet together with phones equipped with cameras brought a leap forward of unprecedented proportion, allowing every morning coffee and croissant to be recorded for posterity.

Oh what untroubled lives we led before the Coming of the Virus!