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These would be seriously depressing if they weren’t so funny

..Or is it the other way around?

UPDATED:  No, on second glance I take it all back.  There is really absolutely nothing funny about these soul-destroying little glimpses of hell.  Jesus wept. 

women's household magazine cover

John of A Hole In The Head scanned and posted pages from some of the most depressing magazines I have ever seen:

Some time ago at a yard sale I came across a pile of magazines called “Woman’s Household”. At first glance they just looked like your run of the mill woman’s recipe and crafts magazine, but with each one I picked up I was stunned; I had never seen such despair wrapped up in so much yarn. The woman running the sale, gave them all to me for a dollar, saying “Take them all, they are just going in the garbage.” I knew I’d do something with them someday, I guess this blog is it.

“Woman’s Household” was a monthly crafts publication which sold for 25 cents an issue. Their slogan was “Meet Other Friendly Woman Just Like You”. The key phrase being ‘just like you’; middle aged women isolated in small towns across America. Every month readers were encouraged to participate in the writing of the articles, such as My Pet Peeve, or Words I Live By, My Diet or just to write a poem about Christ or their cat. Subscribers were able to read fascinating articles about fellow crafters such as in the column “Her Creative Busy Hands” …  

Read the whole thing (and abandon all hope, ye who enter) here.

5 Comments on “These would be seriously depressing if they weren’t so funny”

  1. #1 MNObserver
    on Nov 20th, 2006 at 10:34 am

    You know what’s odd? The “Queen of the Weight Watchers Club” that is featured in the magazine sitting there with a crown still lives up in Baudette, Minnesota.

  2. #2 Tild
    on Nov 20th, 2006 at 3:00 pm

    And how is it that you know this?

  3. #3 MNObserver
    on Nov 21st, 2006 at 11:21 am

    The Observer knows everything.

  4. #4 Tild
    on Nov 21st, 2006 at 11:29 am

    Ah.

  5. #5 charlieq
    on Nov 21st, 2006 at 2:49 pm

    I have a sweet little booklet somewhere in the archives from Zondervan Press, a religious publisher. It presented planning tips for successful bridal showers.

    30 years later, I can’t recall the object of the “word game” it suggested as part of the festivities, but I do remember the example it gave. Women were supposed to throw out synonyms for a supplied word, in this case “cry.” Sob, wail, boo-hoo…

    The whole book was full of oppressive litle activities.

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