Interesting: 76 would make one a post war boomer. Stuff started changing fairly quickly after the war ended. Rationing off and so on. I was growing up in those years and picking up bottles for the two cent return deposit was a thing. As I recall getting the two cents back on a ten cent bottle was about the best we could do. Things started changing fast in 1960: burgers didn’t cost a quarter any more. Same with milkshakes. And gas inched up over 30 cents.
Our old man would get mad at us kids for doing that to get a little bubble gum card money, said he didnt want his children running the neighborhood like tramps.
Maybe if he gave us a small allowance we would not have bothered and gone fishing instead?
He was President of his own company, we were not poor he was just a mean man! Anyway, we were doing something good for the ecology cleaning up those pop bottles for recycle!
My uncle is a 1940 born “Silent Generation” baby.(1928-1945) Sounds like you are too ? I came about in 49.
His father was a WW1 Vet. His two older brothers were in WWII.
His father was most proud of him of all the sons, as he’s the one that enlisted.
I remember scrounging for bottles for the deposit back...it was a big deal....as it bought the penny candy...