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Pull Tab Chain Belt

As a child we didn't have the amount of toys the Sears catalog showed me what I couldn't have.  As children we made use out of everyday things and through effort and imagination transformed them into stylish wear ables or toys.

The first and most ingenious of these were homemade chain belts.  During the early in the 70s, mini skirts and metal chain belts made of round metal circles were all the rage.  Being young and not allowed to get such things, we walked around like the little recyclers we were and made our own.  How do you ask?  During this time, soda cans had detachable pull tabs (larger and more "Y" shaped than the cute ones you see today.)   People left these pull tabs for naught around the street.  You would walk up and down collecting as many of them as you could.

To "make" a chain belt you simply attached one pull tab into another pull tabs ring until you had one continuous line.  Keep going until you have your waist length and then some to dangle.  Who says you cannot have a chain belt?  These could only realistically be worn at play as they would never be allowed for school or church as they smelled of soda and beer.  No bother, it was all in the attitude and fun of being able to do and make something you weren't allowed to have.

The Versatile Clothesline

Is was common during nice weather for clotheslines to pop up and see sheets and bedspreads become instant tents. An old blanket could be equally draped and the bottoms affixed to the ground with rocks.   A clothesline is also used for a jump rope, just tie a knot at the ends.  You would always get the reject not a brand new one bought especially for you but it was new in your life so you ran and told all your friends you had a new jump rope.  Nobody cared that is was used as long as it was still useful.

A small gold safety pin can make a fishing pole

Remember the smallest safety pins were colored gold?  Cute Barbie size pins, the adults didn't like them because they were too difficult to use.  We lived near a pond left over from construction.  In the summer there were bullfrogs, catfish, and sunfish.  We would tie our small gold safety pins to fishing line and a long found stick and some day old bread and go fishing.  We would smush a small ball of white bread to the end of an open gold safety pin and a crude fishing pole would be born..poor fish would be somewhat shish kabobed with this unkind hook but oh well, it's what you had hence you had to have the white bread bait in order to catch anything.  You would simply yank it when you had a bite.  Only a few kids had a real fishing pole with a reel.  In the excitement of catching fish nobody really cared who had what kind of fishing pole you used. I liked catching sunfish and would get help unhooking the catfish as they had "stingers."  We threw all the fish back.  A cheap thrill to be part of the action being resourceful.