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About

IMG_0985-For-About-Me

Diane Dahli and
Still the Lucky Few

I am a “pre-boomer”, born before the population wave that dominated western culture since 1945. The oldest members of that generation are now approaching 90, and I am in the middle of the decade leading to my 80s. In Canada, where I live, this population group started out small, and is growing smaller. There were only 11,382,000 of us 1940. Compare that to 19.32 million people in Canada in 1964, when the baby boom finally subsided!

In this Blog, I write about what made our generation unique and why our place in history is so important. And how, even though our children dwarfed our numbers, and rolled right over us, we were influential, and some of us still are.

I live in a community of condos on a bluff overlooking the beautiful and famous harbour in Victoria, British Columbia, Canada. My husband Bob, who I refer to frequently in this blog, is a talented piano maestro who, at 81, directs and produces Broadway musicals in this city. My daughter lives here, and is my technical adviser. My son and his wife, and my only grandchild live across the Georgia Straight in Vancouver. My husband’s four children and one grandchild live close by. I came to the West Coast in 1966 from the Canadian prairies, where I grew up in a family of seven children. All of my siblings are alive and in frequent communication.

I have had a long and healthy life, filled with work and family and a great variety of interests. Some years ago, I retired from a long career in teaching, and never seemed to slow down.

I identify very much with my generation, and want to use this blog to express what I know and learn about it, and to share these ideas with you. Maybe in some way, this blog will bring more understanding of the past, and shed a light into the future.

The young child on the masthead is the author Diane on the family farm in a field of daisies in the Peace River Country in the 1940’s.


 

Who Are The Lucky Few?

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The lucky few are those of us born between 1926 and 1945. If that includes you, WWI bypassed you, and you came of age just in time to miss WWII. But that’s only part of it. You were the first generation to be indulged as children, you became teenagers just as the western world was emerging from the depression, and later, from the privations of a devastating war.

As you were growing up, you were privy to an explosion of wealth and economic stability. Let’s say, for instance, you were born in 1930, and turned 18 in 1948—western economies had just started to boom. When you graduated, the world teemed with opportunities. You could have your pick of jobs. Like Woody Allen said several years later, all you had to do was “show up”.

And this trend didn’t stop. Because there were so few of you, labor markets competed for your labor, and rewarded you with higher wages. In his book, Birth and Fortune, Easterlin says that a typical young man’s wage by the time he was 30 was more than the average wage for men of all ages —and that he could live better than most retired elders.
Oh, my—tell that to the average beleaguered Generation X worker, who struggled for years under the shadow of the Boomers!

This blog is dedicated to the study and commentary of the Lucky Few, sometimes referred to as the Silent Generation. It covers issues that were relevant in those times, some of which affect us today. References are used extensively and are disclosed as accurately as possible. Links and citations are included whenever available.

44 thoughts on “About”

    1. Thanks, Jane. I discovered your site on Ronnie Bennett’s list at Time Goes By. Loved your blog! Will visit regularly. Thanks for commenting.

  1. Just want to thank you for stopping by and visiting and subscribing to my blog. I haven’t been writing lately, but you make me think that it’s time to resume. There are so few of us elders who are blogging. Now I have subscribed to yours.

  2. Hi Diane. Delighted to make your acquaintance. Born in 1943, I’m also of the Silent Generation, or a “war baby.” Definitely pre-Boomer.

    Thank you for stopping by my blog. Now I’m off to explore yours …

    1. Thank you! As you will be able to tell from my blog, I am experimenting with a new name for our generation, “The Lucky Few”. I believe our generation was truly blessed in opportunity and benefits (Do you remember university grants—we certainly haven’t seen those for decades!) We had the best of all worlds. Doesn’t mean we all did well. Our group certainly has its share of poverty and misfortune. But for the most part, we had many opportunities no longer available to this new generation. Hope you enjoy my blog!

  3. Hi,
    Thank you for taking the time to read my blog. I am very interest in reaching other bloggers over the age of 60. So, I am so glad that you found me and I will be happy to read more of your writing. I visited Victoria a few years ago. It is one of the pretties places on earth. Lucky you to live there.

    Bernadette

    1. Thank you Bernadette. I think I found you through another person’s blog. Bloggers over the age of sixty are establishing quite a community of common interests. I am planning to start a list of favorite bloggers so we can see each other’s sites more easily.

  4. Hi Diane,
    I’m looking forward to reading more about your generation. I have my Mum, who is 87, and my husband who is 70 both born in the years you are looking at. I am a baby boomer. My husband emigrated to Australia and just walked into a job using much the same description as you gave above. It will be good to gain further insights into life in those times and compare the differences you had in Canada to those my husband had in the UK and my mother in Australia. I am also a memoir writer so life stories hold a particular fascination for me. Glad you visited.

    1. This is an area of great interest to me, so there will be many more stories and articles coming! Baby boomers are a tremendously influential group, but I’m attempting to point to the generation preceding them, since it set the stage for the increased population surge, and also the progress that ensued.

  5. I think this is such an interesting subject and will follow along with keen anticipation. Being brought up in England and moving to the States as a single person, born in the fifties all such a time period of change and transition.

    1. Thank you, Christy. I was intrigued with your story, and hope you find my view of history useful. I enjoyed reading your blog, and have subscribed so I don’t miss any posts.

  6. Thank you for thinking up an appropriate name for our generation: I am one of you. Born in 1940 in Canterbury, New Zealand, I’ve grown more and more aware of the sheer luck of those two simple accidents of birth, time and place. Free university education, simple healthy food and a sense of freedom. All things were possible to our generation. I feel a certain responsibility for this reason to stay healthy and useful as possible, since our grandchildren have a tough prospects by comparison.

    1. Hi Rachel. I am so happy you found me! I love your philosophy about ageing, and your practical, positive views! I visited your blog, and love what I see. I’ve pressed “follow”, so hope I receive updates every time you post. I am a few months older than you are. Grand, isn’t it?

  7. Thank you for visiting my blog and for your kind comment. I’m undeniably pleased you liked my story.
    Nice to meet you. Nice place you have here. I will be back. <3
    I'm Canadian as well . Think vicinity of Toronto but not T.O.

    1. Nice to see your comment! As you already know, I love your writing, and will visit your blog again to see what you have done. This is a great community, eh? (That was a Canadian “eh”!

  8. Glad to find your blog as I, too, am part of the generation you describe. I take issue with some of the ways in which it has sometimes been characterized by other generations. I do agree with some of your assessments, but not all. For example, though I did not serve in the military I certainly don’t think of WWII passing me by. In fact, I was quite impacted by that war. The perspective of life during that time is relative, probably based on one’s personal experience and not everyone had an easy time. As with every generation, there were many positives during those years and I’m delighted to read of them here in such a positive upbeat manner. Also, I’m interested in the view of others who lived during those years and in other nations — especially our good Canadian neighbors! There are fewer of us left every year and I’m one of few in my family. I’ll look forward to visiting here and welcome you to visit “Along The Way” where I occasionally have reflected on those years.

    1. I was delighted to read your comment! I haven’t read my “Who Were the Lucky Few” post for a while, but will re-visit it with new eyes. I lived in a remote northern farming community, and since farmers were encouraged to stay home and produce food, our community was not affected by having droves of young men leave to fight.I was born in 1939, and by the time I reached an age of awareness, the war was long over. Economically, my community had a very hard time during the war, although we did produce much of the food we needed, so in that way, we were fortunate. Yes, there are fewer of us left each year, and it is important that we connect. I am so appreciative of this online community, and the people I have met. I will visit “Along the Way” immediately. Thank you!

  9. Love your blog. I too was born in the 1940’s (1940 to be exact). I started blogging to share with others that are now retired or contemplating retirement how much fun retirement can be if we but put our minds to always looking at the positive side of things instead of negative aspects pertaining to our age group. There is enough negativity going on in the world around us and not enough positive things being said about how great it is to be at this point in our lives.
    I try to share with others funny stories, wild and crazy things I learn by reading various forms of trivia and also share some of my own families crazy adventures. Anything to get people smiling.
    OK, I have rambled on long enough – just wanted to say thank you for sharing your life with those of us attempting to make each day a happier one and one that has purpose. Until next time!

    1. Thanks, Irwin. I’m quite tech-challenged, so I’ll be asking my helper to add your link. Thanks you for the great comment!

  10. I have no idea how you found my page, but I’m glad you did;and I thank you for the kind remarks you left me 🙂 and now I have another youngster to follow.
    I’m a mid 1930’s bloke who grew up in London until emigrating to Australia in 1951; so I think I’m pobably luckier than most.

    1. Still the Lucky Few

      I subscribe to several blogs. One blog leads to another, so I’ve forgotten which one took me to your blog, which I enjoy very much! Thanks!

  11. I’ve been reading your wonderful blog, and surprised that I hadn’t left a message here. I was born in 1952, so just miss the ‘lucky few’ connotation, but I appreciate exactly what you’re saying here. I also think that those 60 and over should keep up our voices – I’m finding that ‘seniors’ are discounted in many ways, and yet, our wisdom is unbound.

    1. We are wonderfully wise, and amazingly ignored. It’s always been that way, in recent times, at least! So glad you found my blog. Please drop in anytime!

  12. Very funny story! I’m fascinated by what this says about facial recognition in children. Do some people get better at this as we grow older? I sure get fazed when people change their hair or glasses, but ignored their needs by adding splash of red and black to the grey. Now that’s low maintenance.

    1. The children were young, and anyway, I think they knew it was really me, but saw an opportunity to take advantage—and that comes naturally! Thanks for reading, Rachel, and I love your red hair!

  13. Have written & produced a musical show called ‘Sh-Boom, Sh-Boom: Notes from the Silent Generation’ & now re-writing it & thinking of re-renaming it ‘ Sh-Boom, Sh-Boom: Notes From The Lucky Few’. Still having some difficulty with finding the right theme to hit….going on about being ‘lucky’ gets old. Interestingly, I have found that very few of us in Canada made MacLean’s list of the 50 greatest Canadians. Could be we put our heads down, worked hard, and raised out kids and moved our country along that way. ….though that isn’t exactly an attention grabber. So, I keep writing as I wait for inspiration.

    1. Hi Larry, I applaud your project! About time someone wrote a show about us! You may have already clicked the link ‘About’ on my site—I’ve outlined my rationale for my blog, and in the process, included some interesting facts about our generation. I’m sure nothing I’ve said will be news to you, but you may find my perspective interesting. If you scroll to the very early articles I wrote (spring, 2015) you will see that I dedicated most of my writing to exploring “The Lucky Few”. I think we were remarkable in how we foresaw the importance of laying down a social safety net in our country, and how we cared for our children, the fortunate “Boomers”. Please email me through my ‘contact’ link if you think I can help with ideas. Let me know where I can connect (Facebook? Blog?) Good luck to you, Larry!

  14. Hi, Diane – Nice to meet you here. I saw your recent comment on Tom Sightings last post and thought that I would wander over and check out your blog. It looks like we have many things in common. I am also a blogger on Vancouver Island…and I have retired from a long career in Education/School Administration.
    I look forward to reading more of your posts.

    1. Hi Donna,
      I was bowled over by the picture on your blog—I think it’s called the header. It’s a stone’s throw from where I live! What a small. small world. I subscribed to your blog, and hope to have many happy times reading it. We do have many things in common. I am delighted that you found me! Thanks, Donna

    1. Welcome, Maggie! My location is Victoria, BC. Not too many bloggers here, but I think I’ve found at least one. Thanks for connecting!

  15. Well, I join you in this age bracket. I still feel around the age of my children and the calendar has something else to say about that. Thanks for stopping by my blog and I’m sorry to have been remiss in checking comments.

    We have a lot of wisdom to lend to the world and I love being an elder in experience and a younger in attitude.

    xxoo

      1. Love your attitude and thoughts about our generation (I was born in 1940 and my wife in 1938).
        Will continue following your blog looking forward to whatever you comment about next.

  16. Ah! You’re in Victoria. It’s one of my favorite cities. When I was a child, my motger and I use to take the ferry from Seattle to visit family and friends. I remember the sight of the Empress Hotel as the ferry docked. Beautiful! And having tea there. Best butter I ever tasted! And the Buchart Gardens. Breathtaking!

    1. Yes, it’s a gorgeous city, Teri! I’m not saying it’s perfect though—we do have our share of problems, one of which is homelessness. We just haven’t handled that very well. The cost of living is expensive, as well. Bob and I walked through the Empress Tea Room yesterday, and didn’t even stop to ask how much it costs now. I imagine it’s prohibitive! But there is so much to love…I’ve been here for years and would never leave.

  17. So delighted to find your blog and read your intro.. Planned a trip which includes Victoria BC. It will begin this July 24th, and looking forward to it. Love our Canadians and wishing I could pretend to be one. Embarrassed by our offensive president put in office by Putin’s misinformation on twitter, Facebook, etc. Please don’t assume all U.S. citizens are rude and vulgar. Although, too many unfortunately are. Cheers to our moral and courteous neighbor!

    1. Still the Lucky Few

      Thank you for all of this, Helen! I appreciate your candid comment regarding all things political—don’t worry, we love Americans, and hope avidly that things will work out!

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