Dust storms that shut down all activities were usually fairly brief events. After them the sky would clear, the sun would shine, and normal life would resume. The wind might not die completely, but residents of the plains were used to ordinary winds that ranged from gentle breezes to steady blows.

Most people got used to having some dust in the air, too, even on calm days. But with plenty of work to do, no one sat around and thought about it for too long. Terry Clipper of Dustin, Oklahoma, explained:

We never sat down.... We were up early in the morning and gone till late at night, especially my dad and I. The girls... had to get up early and milk and they'd milk at night. On rainy days if we weren't in school especially on a Saturday or Sunday when we couldn't...