Perfect Housewife in a modern home

I work in a big bookshop and for me it is a dream job. Being surrounded by hundreds and hundreds of books is my way of heaven. I shelf them every day and I read the back descriptions, and of course from time to time I judge them by their covers. This job has many benefits of meeting new people and authors, attending book launches and other events and of course I get the benefit of seeing new book titles that just arrived from publishers.
Now the bookshop I work in, is big and when I say big I mean it has 4 floors and covers books from children’s and general fiction, to any subsections of fiction, arts and cookery to even academic and academics is the floor I usually work on, and I like it. But sometimes I’m send to other floors and it is different, but shelving books is more fun. All the new titles and different genres makes me always find the next must read book and this is how I got my hands on a book by Virginia Nicholson “Perfect wives in ideal homes”.


This book is a collection of stories from women who were housewife in the magical time of the 50’s in the UK. For me it was eye opening, I always thought of the 50’s as a glamorous time of perfect hair, shiny pearl necklace and good food on the table. As the time of the fabulous Marilyn Monroe, notorious Bettie Page, new beat of Jerry Lee Lewis music and dinners similar to the Eddy Rocket. The reality is far away from the description above.
Women had to quit their jobs after they got married, kids were always on the check-list after you got wedded and as a wife you had to be obedient, the house had to be sparkling clean and dinner had to be on the table when “the man” arrived home from though work, plus they had to look stunning from head to toe.
As I was drifting from page to page I taught of my “Nonna” who was about 20 in the time but she lived in Slovenia which was a part of Yugoslavia. Although the country was under socialistic regime her life didn’t appear as difficult as the life of the Women in the UK or Ireland. She was well able to travel around Yugoslavian countries, she was a great mountain hiker and she was a Gymnasium graduate with a great government job working for an insurance company where she later in the years got a higher position and she was the leader of her one section. She got married to my “Nonno” when she was 27 and had two children but she was never asked to quit her job, she was never look upon as something less or underpaid because of it. The only thing that was similar was the fashion of the 50’s and my Nonna was always rocking high heels, nice dresses and the perfect hairstyle, how she did it with the busy life I don’t know.

You see I am a big vintage enthusiast and I like to dress within the 50’s style but I’m not very obedient, I swear like a mariner and my Mammy will say that sometimes I’m not very lady like.
As well I am not married (yet) and I don’t rock a big diamond on my ring finger, although I have a serious relationship of 4 years with my best friend from teenage years, I came up with a question could I be the perfect Housewife in a modern home, could I stop swearing (or at least tone it down) and could I take care of my boyfriend? Probably not, but I started this blog to find out.