93 years young and still cooking the best blueberry pie
May 30th, 2012
Freida Cocks is 93 years old today. Born in Kurow in the desolate deep south of New Zealand’s South Island, Freida has witnessed the invention of every modern home appliance since her birth in 1919.
As a child nothing in her house was electric, let alone automatic. In the 1920s in remote NZ her principal home-keeping chore was gathering firewood, an essential energy source for cooking and cleaning. Over the decades Freida has marvelled at the “wonderful” appliances that have helped her in the home.
“Back then we needed wood for the open fires and for the range,” Freida says speaking from NZ. “We used a bit of coal in the range as well, where we roasted just about anything and baked cakes and pies.”
Bread? “Not bread! At least the baker did the bread,” she says laughing.
Wood was also needed to fire the copper for the washing.
“It was a copper bowl surrounded by cement in a fire box – this is before I got married, when I was a child still.
“You’d put the clothes into the copper with water carried from the Waitaki river, boil the water and stirred it with a wooden stick. It would take a while to boil the clothes in the tub, rinse them and then put them through the wringer….oh yes, and blue them. This was a bit like a blue rinse, but it was actually a whitener. Then we’d use the stick to lift out the clothes and put them in tubs, galvanised iron tubs.
“The whole thing took…well, long enough!”
Monday was washing day – all day. What about the kai, then?
“We didn’t have to worry about fridges in Kurow – it was fairly freezing in the winter and well, we didn’t need to preserve much food anyway. We ate it fresh!”
Frieda celebrates 93 years in a home complete with modern appliances
Animals from the farm, fresh eggs or then preserved in ovaline, vegetables and fruit from the gardens, and preserves.
“We used Agee preserving jars. We also had what they called a cold safe buried in the ground or hung up in the outside wall with netting. Then in the summer we buried the safe into the ground where it was cooler.”
This changed after the war, where she met her husband in 1941 in the Air Force.
“We still didn’t have a washing machine, but we did have an electric copper. I remember using this in 1946 when I married John.”
The move to Christchurch has been remembered with a decision.
“Change was slow. We didn’t have much money but we had choices. I had to choose between a washing machine or a fridge,” she recalls. “So we got a fridge when Lois was born. I think I must have been thinking about the milk for her.”
Modern appliances made their way into the home and Freida’s load was lightened, especially with three young girls.
“You appreciated them all right. After the fridge the washing machine was the next most important thing, of course we had an electric range by then, it was much cleaner and easier since we didn’t have to clean it out the ashes all the time.”
“Electric irons, food mixers, vacuums, nothing like that! A vacuum!” she says chuckling and shaking her head. “You had a broom and a mop and then an old carpet sweeper. They still have sweepers you know, my daughter has just bought one and thinks it’s wonderful for the in between cleans.”
“I’ve had a good life, but it’s the next generation that I think have lived a privileged age – from nothing to computers and no wars.”
Cool article!
Tasted like black current to me!
oops I mean currant