Have you seen the Pioneers of American Industrial Design stamps issued by the US Post Office last June? I am totally in love with them. Maybe because the sleek modern lines – with a few art deco flourishes here and there – soothe my soul. Or maybe because the Fiestaware pitchers, the black rotary dial phone, and the box camera stir up the kind of sweet childhood memories I like to carry around with me the older I get. Whatever the reason, I’m toying with the idea of purchasing a lifetime supply of these new Forever stamps.

The stamps also got me thinking about a new Forever Stamp idea. I settled upon a collection of household innovations developed during the lifetime of Baby Boomers. The featured items in that category will be near and dear to anyone – male or female – born since 1950 (give or take a few years) who’s in charge of making a house run smoothly. Here are the innovations on my top ten list.

Top Ten Household Innovations

10.   Automatic car lock fobs – While these are not actually in the house, anyone who has
tried to use a key to lock a car while carrying groceries knows it belongs on the list.
9.    Liquid hand soap for the home – How come it took so long for this one to move from
schools, rest stops, and gas station bathrooms to the home?
8.    Baby carrots – No explanation needed on this one.
7.    Stackable washer and dryer – Again, why did this take so long?
6.    Reusable grocery bags – I know, Europeans have been using these for decades, but
the bags took a long time to get across the pond. If the Beatles had used them on
the Ed Sullivan show in the early 1960s, plastic grocery bags might never have been
invented.
5.    Pampered Chef nut chopper – No explanation needed on this one, either.
4.    Pampered Chef and/or Tupperware can openers – I’m not endorsing Pampered Chef,
but these can openers have prevented cuts from the jagged metal piece left by
traditional can openers, they make the list.
3.    Self-stick stamps – No, I didn’t add this one to ingratiate myself with the Post Office
come stamp selection time. But, eery time I plop a self-stick stamp on an envelope, I
remember the horrid taste of the gummed stamps that required a quick lick to stick
and offer a prayer of thanks.
2.   Post-It Notes – Love ’em.

And now, for the top household innovation since 1960…..

1. DOUBLE ROLL TOILET PAPER – Need I say more?

That’s my top ten list. But, let’s go for the top twenty. Leave a comment to add your favorite household innovation since 1960.

This is gonna be fun!