Thursday, March 18, 2004
Openings in the Olden Days
I mentioned a removable ring top pop top beer can to one of my fellow workers yesterday. Sigh… she had never heard of them. Remember when a pop top actually came off? Did you used to fold them in half and slip them back into the hole in the can because you didn’t want to throw it on the ground? The little buggers were sharp weren’t they? Nothing like stepping on one when roaming around a sandy beach. I guess the non-detachable pop top came out in 1974.
OK, next question. How many remember having to use a “church key” to open your can of beer? Or how about remembering the problems opening up a bottle of beer when you didn’t have a church key handy? Were you lucky enough that the seat belt clip in your car fit a bottle top? Or maybe you had a P-38 attached to your key ring. You know -- the kind you needed to open a can of C-rats? I was always amazed at how well something so small and simple worked so well.
Do any of you carry a scar from winding up that long strip of steel when opening a can? Not only was the strip sharp, but so was the edge around the lid. And how many of you tried to use that goofy can opener with the pointy end that looked like a miniature halberd? I don’t think I ever mastered the use of that.
2fers: Pop top beer cans and Church Key
