The Good Wife's Guide...

[HokeyReligions]

This is sort of a spin-off from the One Income thread. I read that and it made me think of this. I received it in my email - the scanned article from May 1955. Read it, and after you've finished laughing ladies - pass it on to other women who could use a laugh! Guys--> don't get any ideas - it's NOT going to happen! (and before any youngsters out there who don't already know this - the word 'gay' used to mean light and happy, not homosexual)

 

The Good Wife’s Guide

An actual 1955 Good Housekeeping Article

 

• Have dinner ready. Plan ahead, even the night before, to have a delicious meal ready, on time for his return. This is a way of letting him know that you have been thinking about him and are concerned about his needs. Most men are hungry when they come home and the prospect of a good meal (especially his favorite dish) is part of the warm welcome needed.
   
  
• Prepare yourself. Take 15 minutes to rest so you’ll be refreshed when he arrives. Touch up your make-up, put a ribbon in your hair and be fresh-looking. He has just been with a lot of work-weary people.
   
  
• Be a little gay and a little more interesting for him. His boring day may need a lift and one of your duties is to provide it.
   
  
• Clear away the clutter. Make one last trip through the main part of the house just before your husband arrives.
   
   
  
• Gather up schoolbooks, toys, paper, etc. and then run a dust cloth over the tables.
   
  
• Over the cooler months of the year you should prepare and light a fire for him to unwind by. Your husband will feel he has reached a haven of rest and order, and it will give you a lift too. After all, catering for his comfort will provide you with immense personal satisfactions.
   
  
• Prepare the children. Take a few minutes to wash the children’s hands and faces (if they are small), comb their hair and, if necessary, change their clothes. They are little treasures and he would like to see them playing the part. Minimize all noise. At the time of his arrival, eliminate all noise of the washer, dryer or vacuum. Try to encourage the children to be quiet.
   
  
• Be happy to see him.
   
  
• Greet him with a warm smile and show sincerity in your desire to please him.
   
  
• Listen to him. You may have a dozen important things to tell him, but the moment of his arrival is not the time. Let him talk first – remember, his topics of conversation are more important than yours.
   
  
• Make the evening his. Never complain if he comes home late or goes out to dinner, or other places of entertainment without you. Instead, try to understand his world of strain and pressure and his very real need to be at home and relax.
   
  
• Your goal: Try to make sure your home is a place of peace, order and tranquility where your husband can renew himself in body and spirit.
   
  
• Don’t greet him with complaints and problems.
   
  
• Don’t complain if he’s late home for dinner or even if he stays out all night. Count this as minor compared to what he might have gone through that day.
   
  
• Make him comfortable. Have him lean back in a comfortable chair or have him lie down in the bedroom. Have a cool or warm drink ready for him.
   
  
• Arrange his pillow and offer to take off his shoes. Speak in a low, soothing and pleasant voice.
   
  
• Don’t ask him questions about his actions or question his judgment or integrity. Remember, he is the master of the house and as such will always exercise his will with fairness and truthfulness. You have no right to question him.
   
  
• A good wife always knows her place.
  

[tanbark813]

This was already posted on here months ago. Get with the times, Hoke'.

 

[HokeyReligions]

There were different people here months ago, Tan. Oh, sorry - I shouldn't have questioned you! Here, give me your feet and I'll light a fire, uh - did I combine a couple of those bullet points?

[tanbark813]

There's a good girl.

[superconductor]

I'm trying to see why I should laugh here.

 

Isn't this all just basic stuff that a man can expect from his wife?

 

And where's the sex part? Hmm???

 

[HokeyReligions]

I'm trying to see why I should laugh here.

 

Isn't this all just basic stuff that a man can expect from his wife?

 

And where's the sex part? Hmm???

 

 

Oh definately expect it! Sex part? That's not a requirement of a Good Wife -- I think that's where the staying out all night comes into play. Of course, while you are out all night the wife is home and nothing was said about her staying home ALONE!

[superconductor]

Oh definately expect it!

Most excellent.

 

Now, where might I find one of these precious jewels that takes such advice to heart?

[HokeyReligions]

Most excellent.

 

Now, where might I find one of these precious jewels that takes such advice to heart?

 

Got a Delorean with a Flux Capacitor handy?

[Moose]

Have dinner ready. Plan ahead, even the night before, to have a delicious meal ready, on time for his return. This is a way of letting him know that you have been thinking about him and are concerned about his needs. Most men are hungry when they come home and the prospect of a good meal (especially his favorite dish) is part of the warm welcome needed.

Ummm....I'll take a cold beer first whilst I go outside and burn the rest of the daylight mowing, building flower gardens, and knocking off your, "honeydo" list will you feed the kids and make sure they do their homework....

Prepare yourself. Take 15 minutes to rest so you’ll be refreshed when he arrives. Touch up your make-up, put a ribbon in your hair and be fresh-looking. He has just been with a lot of work-weary people.

Get of the couch long enough to clear a path through the formal living room to the fridge and thento my office so I can dock the laptop and change into yard clothes.

Be a little gay and a little more interesting for him. His boring day may need a lift and one of your duties is to provide it.

Do this, and I'll drill you with what drugs you got a hold of, or who you've been talking to lately....

Clear away the clutter. Make one last trip through the main part of the house just before your husband arrives.

No need to be redundant, we covered this already....

Gather up schoolbooks, toys, paper, etc. and then run a dust cloth over the tables.

If I catch you doing this instead of the kids, I'll be kicking some scrawny lil' azzez.....

Over the cooler months of the year you should prepare and light a fire for him to unwind by. Your husband will feel he has reached a haven of rest and order, and it will give you a lift too. After all, catering for his comfort will provide you with immense personal satisfactions.

HAA! First, don't ever try to operate our fireplace again since the first house we had one, and you didn't know what a damper was......geeeeezzz....

Prepare the children. Take a few minutes to wash the children’s hands and faces (if they are small), comb their hair and, if necessary, change their clothes. They are little treasures and he would like to see them playing the part. Minimize all noise. At the time of his arrival, eliminate all noise of the washer, dryer or vacuum. Try to encourage the children to be quiet.

Make sure they throw their supper down their throat, and get their homework done.....by this time, I have a mental list of crap for them to do for out here in the yard...their chores should already be done too...

Be happy to see him

Be happy I came home.

Greet him with a warm smile and show sincerity in your desire to please him.

Warm smile, yes, otherwise, "stay out th' way"....

 

The rest, I totally agree with.....No arguement here....

[chrissy123]

Wow please tell me this is meant to be a joke and no man in there right mind actually expects a women to be this way.

 

 

Wow that is just the most offensive, degrading, sexist, retarted thing I have EVER read in my entire live. To think a women might actually be this way manke me feel very sad for my gender.

 

Again please tell me you guys were joking.... if not then I am VERY grateful to my boyfriend at the moment.

[HokeyReligions]

Wow please tell me this is meant to be a joke and no man in there right mind actually expects a women to be this way.

 

 

Wow that is just the most offensive, degrading, sexist, retarted thing I have EVER read in my entire live. To think a women might actually be this way manke me feel very sad for my gender.

 

Again please tell me you guys were joking.... if not then I am VERY grateful to my boyfriend at the moment.

 

 

This came out of a 1955 Magazine and it was serious at the time. Women WERE expected to be this way back then. That was the role of the wife. Study some recent history (1955 wasn't THAT long ago!) about gender roles and the family unit back then. This was probably more accurate pre-WWII because after the war, when women found out they could go to work and do a good job, they began questioning their roles on a larger scale and stepping outside the role of Wife-Mother-nurse-secretary as their only career possibilities. Put in context of the time. Go back and read the top of the first post. Yes, the rest of us are joking around with this.

[chrissy123]

Yeah I went back and reread your post.

Sorry if I overreacted a bit. I am just sensitive on this issue because my boyfriends cousin is always telling him he needs to leave me and find a "real women".....(meaning one who cooks and cleans for him)

[Moose]

Yes.....I'm joking as well....although I did portray a little about the happenings arounds here on a daily basis with a little more, "Alpha", than the usual......

 

That's for you A!

[Guest]

I saw this same 1955 'Guide' posted here a few months ago. I'm glad people can see how backwards and repressive expectations for women were back then.

 

You basically were expected to be a servant to your husband and kids and that was supposed to be enough. Women with career aspirations were considered nerdy misfits and women with opinions were radical feminists who hated men.

 

Unfortunately, too many people still cling to some of these expectations, although they are probably less vocal then they might have been back in 1955.

[alphamale]

This was already posted on here months ago. Get with the times, Hoke'.

no doubt! If I had a nickel for each woman who's sent this out in mass emails.

 

Hey TANBARK! Was that you who went on the SUV hit & run spree yesterday in San Fran?

[Kinger25]

OMG!!

 

A friend e-mailed me the Good Wife's guide a few months ago for a laugh.

 

Stupidly, I took it home to show my BF who now insists that it is pinned up on our pin board and read by me religiously every week!!!! We actually have a laugh about it and I've returned the favour by writing him a Good Boyfriends Guide!!! Here's a snippet:

 

A good boyfriend should be prepared to account for his whereabouts every minute of the day, including an explanation as to why he was away from the phone when she tried to call or why he were unable to chat with her for twenty minutes when she did get through. You must always put her interests first, and be mindful of her natural suspicion about her husband's activities. A good boyfriend knows that men can't be trusted, and that a girlfriend has every reason to believe you will hurt and humiliate her

 

Its ok for a bit of a giggle but My God have times changed!!!

[blind_otter]

[*]Have dinner ready.

 

If you stay at home, whether you are the man or the woman, this is part of your job.

 

Prepare yourself. Take 15 minutes to rest so you’ll be refreshed when he arrives. Touch up your make-up, put a ribbon in your hair and be fresh-looking. He has just been with a lot of work-weary people.

 

I did this when I stayed at home. I would do housework all day and shower and freshen up before my SO got home. I didn't want to look gross adn sweaty and frumpy in sweatpants!

 

Be a little gay and a little more interesting for him. His boring day may need a lift and one of your duties is to provide it.

 

I don't see a problem with this. No one wants their spouse to bring home grumpiness from work, why should you be allowed to present a nasty attitude on a plate when they get home from work? There's a difference between venting and being a jerk.

 

Clear away the clutter. Make one last trip through the main part of the house just before your husband arrives.

 

Again, IMO, when I stayed at home I thought that this was part of my job. I've been home all day, WTF else do I have to do? There shouldn't be dishes sitting in the sink, or random crap laying around.

 

 

Gather up schoolbooks, toys, paper, etc. and then run a dust cloth over the tables.

 

This is dumb. The kids should clean up after themselves.

 

Over the cooler months of the year you should prepare and light a fire for him to unwind by. Your husband will feel he has reached a haven of rest and order, and it will give you a lift too. After all, catering for his comfort will provide you with immense personal satisfactions.

 

This is excessive, but IMO the last sentence makes sense. You cater to the comfort of the person who is providing for you. That's your job if you stay at home, you keep the house functioning well and make things easier for the person who is working. It's like being a personal assistant, it's not that difficult.

 

Be happy to see him.

 

Well this just makes sense.

 

Make the evening his. Never complain if he comes home late or goes out to dinner, or other places of entertainment without you. Instead, try to understand his world of strain and pressure and his very real need to be at home and relax.

 

This is dumb.

 

Your goal: Try to make sure your home is a place of peace, order and tranquility where your husband can renew himself in body and spirit.

 

You should work to make your home that way for everyone who lives there.

 

Don’t greet him with complaints and problems.

 

hah, I learned this being a personal assistant as well. Always sugar coat the problems with good stuff or else your boss will start to hate seeing you.

 

Don't complain if he’s late home for dinner or even if he stays out all night. Count this as minor compared to what he might have gone through that day.

 

This is dumb. Actually the rest of it is dumb.

 

But IMO there are some good points here, framed through the 1950s gender roles.

[tanbark813]

Hey TANBARK! Was that you who went on the SUV hit & run spree yesterday in San Fran?

 

No, that was some crazy Afghani who apparently just got back from an arranged marriage. I guess his wife wasn't planning on following this guide.

[Woggle]

How about we update it and say that husband and wives should both treat other the way they would like to be treated?

[a4a]

No, that was some crazy Afghani who apparently just got back from an arranged marriage. I guess his wife wasn't planning on following this guide.

 

:lmao: :lmao:

 

there goes the coffee out my nose!

 

It is always the womans fault one way or the other isn't it.

[2sunny]

:lmao: :lmao:

 

there goes the coffee out my nose!

 

It is always the womans fault one way or the other isn't it.

 

a4a -

 

as a gal - I expect to take the blame for everything! :lmao:

 

of course - I take the positive credit too....

[Outcast]

BO maybe the points you agreed with in the 'guide' make sense if you're childless but when you've got kids you have to get to school and back and deal with the extracurricular things, plus homework, plus dealing with all the hassles in their lives and the witch who was supposed to do carpool today but 'forgot' again causing you to run out half-dressed mid-laundry then it's a helluva lot harder to be the Perfect Woman all freshly pressed with dinner waiting on the table and a big smile at the end of the day.

[a4a]

BO maybe the points you agreed with in the 'guide' make sense if you're childless but when you've got kids you have to get to school and back and deal with the extracurricular things, plus homework, plus dealing with all the hassles in their lives and the witch who was supposed to do carpool today but 'forgot' again causing you to run out half-dressed mid-laundry then it's a helluva lot harder to be the Perfect Woman all freshly pressed with dinner waiting on the table and a big smile at the end of the day.

 

or after you put up the new fence, chopped a cord of wood, and mowed the lawn, and helped the neighbor castrate 13 bulls.....

 

 

:lmao: :lmao:

[blind_otter]

BO maybe the points you agreed with in the 'guide' make sense if you're childless but when you've got kids you have to get to school and back and deal with the extracurricular things, plus homework, plus dealing with all the hassles in their lives and the witch who was supposed to do carpool today but 'forgot' again causing you to run out half-dressed mid-laundry then it's a helluva lot harder to be the Perfect Woman all freshly pressed with dinner waiting on the table and a big smile at the end of the day.

 

I realize this, but my sisters are both SAHMs and they also feel that certain tasks are their job - not only childcare, but housekeeping, running the household, and maintaining their marital relationship.

 

One of my sisters gets a paycheck from her H, in fact. I'm sure that, as with any job, you have your good days and your bad days. But honestly, because it's your job you have a good attitude about it and expect the best performance -- from yourself.

[tanbark813]

One of my sisters gets a paycheck from her H, in fact.

 

"Baby, that was some good lovin' last night. Expect a lil' somethin' extra in your Christmas bonus this year. Now, if you have a minute, I'd like to discuss the training we'll be sending you to in Q4."