Mercurochrome was for WIMPS! That was the pain free cut stuff.
You got that right ! the other option in our medicine chest was "tincture of Methiolate" yowzah ! that stuff burned the germs out, i'll take mercurochrome anyday.
Heck i'm only in my 40's but I got a few more from growing up rural.
There was so much writing on the blackboard in school that someone got to dust the erasers outside every day. First day of school in the early grades you got a new double ruled tablet and a pencil , that was for penmanship practice.
When you cut the grass there were no weedwackers , if there was trimming you used grass shears on your knees. If you were smart you edged the sidewalk with an axe , needed trimmed less then.
When you had a snow day from school you went around and shoveled all the older folks out (usually a gang of kids) you didn't charge , they paid in baked goods and hot Hersheys cocoa or Nestle's quik. Of course those folks usually sent Christmas and birthday cards to all the kids in the gang with a little something in them.
There weren't 48 kinds of cereal on the shelves , Wheaties , Corn Flakes , Cheerios and that was about it for brand name stuff, it was a real treat the first time I tried Rice Krispies, milk was on the porch first thing every morning , you could also order eggs , bread, butter, cheese and orange juice from the milkman , just leave a note in the milkbox the day before or catch him to get something off the truck. Mom and pop little grocery in town and a Ben Franklin , next town over had a McCrory's and an A&P - woohoo A&P was a big store.
Then there was the Fuller brush man and a few other traveling salesmen , going to the mall wasn't an option - no such thing for 100 miles in any direction, there were dept stores in the nearest big town/small city , but they were downtown , each in their own building, almost all of them had a cafeteria too. You parked the car and walked around , winter or not, driving two or three blocks was rediculous.
Ray