I'm disturbed by how many of these I find normal.
Airing stuff - normal. I don't do it because I don't have an airing cupboard. But we grew up in a place with freezing winters and nothing ever dried out properly so it makes sense.
Ironing everything - again, I don't do it, but it would help dry everything.
Fruit in curry - I love it. I don't care if it's 70s or naff or anything else, I think it's delicious. Potato in curry is very normal imo, even in Asian countries, but especially in the UK where we can't grow a lot of types of vegetables.
Cutting up old clothes to make dusters - again, why not? Saves money, saves it going into landfill. Underwear too. It's been washed.
Shouting/eating in the street - I honestly can't stand when people do this. I wouldn't go so far as to say it's common, but it's sloppy.
The stuff that amazes me about my mum, and many women from that generation, is the constant cleaning and up-keep of the house. My mum always dusted then polished. The windows got windolened. The cooker never had a build up of gunk like mine. Things were baked even though she wasn't much of a cook. We were never allowed to slop about in pyjamas all day, whereas me and my husband have specific lounging pyjamas. She was horrified that I would nip out to the car in my dressing gown.
And the money-saving. We were absolutely never allowed to stop at cafes or whatever on a trip to the beach. It was always soggy sandwiches and flask coffee. Me and my husband think nothing of buying two coffees just because we're passing somewhere. And never paying full price for anything (something I struggle to do these days, I am ALWAYS in the sales area of websites, I hate feeling like I got ripped off.) Everything liquid getting water added to it to make it last, washing liquid, hand soap, shower gel etc.
And all the stuff kept for 'best'. The 'good' china (that never gets used, not even at Christmas, because then we have the Christmas china.) The 'good' spoons. The 'good' curtains that were expensive. The 'good' pillowcases that my grandma got on her wedding day that were never used because they're 'too good'. A much less disposable culture, but one that is sometimes a bit melancholy I think.
Never ever ever complaining for bad service, someone could have spat in our food in front of us and my mum would have said it was delicious.
Yes, all the washing line stuff, things have to be placed in a certain order and in certain directions (a tshirt hung by the hem?? You'll get peg marks on it!). Leaving washing out overnight? Unthinkable.
She also has a deep hatred of anything remotely vintagey because to her it just looks like all the stuff she grew up with, whereas I think the MDF of my childhood looks shit.