some people who have very little money, but have the ability
to use it in the right place at the right time and get a great deal more
out of it than others. I suspect that the person that had the highest
standard of living with what they had to do with was respected more than
any one thing."[274]

Farmers from the Floris area also held private entertainments, such as
the Peck family reunion of 1927, or the bridge parties which became so
fashionable in the late 1920s and 1930s.[275] On rare occasions they
travelled to Washington to see a show or to shop. More often they went
to Herndon which had long catered to the farmer's needs. Stores, grain
companies and mills, blacksmith and livery stables built their business
on fulfilling the farmer's everyday requirements, while ice cream
parlors and movie theaters provided pleasant distractions. The latter
was an especially popular form of entertainment for young couples on
dates. Frances Simpson recalled the excitement of going to the movies
and the unique personality of the Herndon theater:

What a fascination was that theater or 'movie hall' as it was
called.... It was a real treat to go with our friends to the movies
at the movie hall, not that we always saw one when we got there.
Sometimes the reel would break, other times a tremendous storm
would come up and the electric power would be shut off, leaving the
player piano to carry on alone in the darkness while we crept home
with flashlights, and more than once an angry skunk sought refuge
under the movie hall causing the audience to disperse in three
minutes flat. Still, it was great fun.[276]

All of these community events--ice cream socials, fairs, Community
League meetings, and school events--were attended by the whole family.
Social activities were less strictly drawn along age lines than they are
today; young and old enjoyed the same amusements. The ladies chatted
while preparing the dinners at Farmer's Club meetings, and the children
came along and played together. Funerals and weddings were also family
events for children were expected to learn of life's joys and sorrows
through participation. This too encouraged community cohesiveness, as
all parts of the society were included in its rituals, and children
learned at an early age that they played an active role in the
neighborhood's well-being; there was a place for them within the
community which would last the length o