Posts

Showing posts from October, 2013

The Norelco 6955XL

Briefly--I bought a new Norelco model #6955XL triple header from the Amazon web site for a paltry 35 bucks American.  For reference purposes, I consulted the inflation calculator again and found that my current 35 bucks American was worth $5.49 in 1968.  I only made a dollar and a quarter an hour at the gas station I worked at then, but still.....The overall price of a Norelco rotary head shaver has declined and the shave is better.  A good deal for me. When I joined the Army in 1968, I was paid a gross sum of $102.00 a month (that’s equal to $650 today)--currently, an Army private gets $1467.00--But on payday, I only saw about 80 dollars.  I guess the rest of it went to taxes or something.  Payday in the Army was the first of the month.  We stood in line and saluted the Pay Officer (who was also the Executive Officer of the company), and recited “Sir, Private Young reports for pay”.  Unless your name wasn't Young.  Whereupon we were paid in cash. Cash. American currency and

Norelco Shavers and Inflation

Image
I’ve been using Norelco rotary head shavers for most of my life.  Of course, when I started shaving, I used a double edged blade like most others of my ilk.  I started shaving in the early 1960‘s, so that will sort of give you a time-stamp reference.  I did discover, however, that I really carved myself up with a blade, so I made the switch to electric. The hot deal when I was a teen-ager was Norelco rotary head shavers, so that was the ticket for me.  I had a job and income, so I bought one in 1967.  A dual head shaver.  It had a flip-top for ease of cleaning, a handy pouch to carry it around, and it was battery operated.  It used 4 penlight batteries. What??  Never heard of a penlight battery?  No idea at all?  OK then, we’ll talk batteries for a little while.  “Flashlight batteries” were what we called flashlight batteries back then.  In today’sworld, the cool kids call them “D” cells.  Smaller batteries were called “penlight” batteries, and that’s what you asked for at the West