What was going on when I was born?

Negotiators in the Legislature have agreed in principle to delay the imposition of a nickel deposit on beer and soft-drink containers sold in New York State. The deposits were originally to be required as of July 1. But under legislation being discussed, the sale of non- deposit bottles and cans would be permitted in the state until Sept. 12, a week after Labor Day. ''Implementing this bill in the middle of the summer season creates serious problems,'' said Assemblyman G. Oliver Koppell, a sponsor of the original bottle-deposit law. The delay is opposed by environmental groups and supported by the industry.

CANDINHA SILVEIRA had three things in mind when she and her husband, Joaquim, set out to buy their country place. ''I wanted an old house,'' she said, ''I wanted it on a hill and I wanted a waterfall nearby.'' After visiting more than 90 far-flung farm properties, she satisfied all three wishes here in the southeastern region in the midst of Brazil's original coffee-growing area. ''We are very active, we are always doing something, and we wanted a place to retire that would also keep us busy,'' she said. The 125-year-old Barra do Peixe plantation, which encompasses 4,000 acres and cost $1.6 million, met that challenge too.

''The first duty of a sovereign nation is to control its borders, and we don't.'' - Senator Alan K. Simpson, sponsor of immigration bill. (A1:6.)

Braniff International's secured creditors decided at a meeting on Monday to reject the latest offer made by Hyatt International to put some of Braniff's planes back into service, but the creditors left the door open for future discussion with Hyatt, a lawyer who was at the meeting said yesterday. The main point of disagreement, the lawyer said, was the amount that Jay A. Pritzker, the chairman of Hyatt, was willing to pay for monthly rental of the 30 planes that would be used. Mr. Pritzker has reportedly offered $75,000 a month for each plane, but many of the secured creditors, who hold leases on the planes and would receive the rental fees, reportedly believe that they can do better by selling the planes outright. The lawyer at the meeting, who asked not to be identified, said that although no formal discussions were under way now between the secured creditors and Hyatt, there was a good chance that such talks could take place soon. Another source close to the secured creditors said that they may come up with a counterproposal that would then be presented to Mr. Pritzker, who has sweetened his proposal four times in the past two months in an effort to win agreement to restart the airline. Braniff closed down last May and filed for protection from its creditors under Federal Bankruptcy law.

The chairman of the City Council's Finance Committee said yesterday that an increase in real-estate taxes, as Mayor Koch has proposed, would not be necessary to balance the budget for the fiscal year 1984. But in response to the Councilman, Edward L. Sadowsky, a Queens Democrat, Mayor Koch said that according to his office's most recent calculations, an increase would be required, particularly since it seemed unlikely that his tax proposals would receive legislative approval in Albany. At issue in the city's proposed $16.7 billion budget is $100 million that Mayor Koch says must be raised in taxes and that Mr. Sadowsky says can be accounted for through surpluses and increases in city revenues as a result of improvements in the nation's economy.

EARLY in this century the decorator Elsie de Wolfe had no problem recommending flooring materials for a New York town house. Marble made the most elegant floor for a foyer, she advised, and for the main rooms, dark, highly polished wood was proper. In the 1950's wall-to-wall carpeting was favored for living and dining rooms, although wood floors were not uncommon. With carpeting, fashion followed function in this period, since postwar building practices often allowed few other practical choices. The most common flooring for bathrooms was ceramic tile, and for kitchen, linoleum or vinyl asbestos tile. Today flooring choices are more varied and more personal - and also harder to make. No single style prevails, and in the most popular materials (carpet, wood, ceramic tile and vinyl), there is a wide range of colors, designs and prices. Each choice involves a trade-off. A ceramic tile floor may be noisier and more expensive than sheet vinyl, for example, but these disadvantages may be outweighed by its elegance, durability and the many possibilities for individualized designs.

Senior Navy officials have discussed a longrange plan to interrupt production of F-14 Tomcat fighters and A-6 Intruder attack aircraft, according to Navy, industry and Congressional officials. The planes are made by the Grumman Corporation on Long Island. The proposal calls for halting the output of F-14's during the fiscal years 1986, 1987 and 1988, a period that would begin on Oct.1, 1985. The A-6 production halt would be for two of those three years, but which years was unclear. Such a production halt would be a severe blow to Grumman. Last year, more than half its $2.1 billion in revenue came from F-14 and A-6 production. The Navy is expected to spend more than $12 billion on the aircraft from 1984 through 1988.

Federal and state officials said yesterday that the problems with the emergency plans for the Indian Point nuclear power plants could not be solved by the June 9 deadline set by the Federal Nuclear Regulatory Commission. Even so, they said, the N.R.C. might be satisfied by progress toward a solution. Dr. David Axelrod, the State Health Commissioner and official in charge of emergency planning, said he was encouraged by recent actions of Westchester County. ''The County Executive has taken some major measures that go a long way to address the problems,'' he said. Cuomo Won't Seek Extension He was referring to Andrew P. @O'Rourke's initiative to offer bus drivers equipment and training for driving into an area threatened by radiation.

International Syria rebuffed President Reagan, rejecting his appeal to withdraw its forces from Lebanon and announcing it would not receive an American special envoy, Philip C. Habib, to discuss the issue. The Syrians also hinted they might close their entire border with Lebanon. (Page A1, Column 3.) Margaret Thatcher opened her drive for re-election as Prime Minister, announcing a Conservative Party program that she pledged would improve living standards and enhance Britain's stability. The program calls for further curbs on the power of trade unions and the removal of one layer of local government. (A3:1-3.)

The House of Representatives voted today to cite Rita M. Lavelle, former head of toxic waste programs for the Environmental Protection Agency, for contempt of Congress for failing to comply with a subpoena to testify before a House subcommittee. The vote was 413 to 0 with one member, Representative George C. Wortley, Republican of New York, voting present. He said he found the subpoena redundant because Miss Lavelle had testified on the same issues before other Congressional committees. Miss Lavelle, along with the agency's Administrator, Anne McGill Burford, and a dozen other senior officials, left the E.P.A. earlier this year amid Congressional investigations of alleged mismanagement of the agency's $1.6 program to clean up toxic wastes.

Economic downturns in Latin American countries are causing serious financial trouble for many businesses here. Latin tourist traffic to southern Florida, once a reliable hedge against domestic recessions, is in a slump and it is unclear when an upturn may occur. Foreign investment in real estate in the area has dropped and is expected to decline further. Two international banking agencies have announced plans to close as financial transactions have diminished; others have reduced staff and hours. Some believe the alarm is exaggerated. ''The general concern is that Florida is going down the drain with Latin America,'' said Peter Genero, chief of the Latin American Trade Office of Florida's Department of Commerce. ''There are ups and downs and things like that, but it's not catastrophic.''

The municipal bond market - in some ways the most archaic securities market in the country despite its rapid growth and popularity among individual investors - will take a big step into the modern era on July 1, when all new issues must be sold in registered rather than bearer form. The size, shape and back-office procedures for new bonds will change dramatically, though their safety and merit as an investment will not be altered much. In fact, many securities dealers say that, after some initial confusion, the use of registered bonds will benefit the market by cutting the cost of issuing and trading bonds. ''It's a good thing for the industry, and the market would inevitably have demanded it,'' said Arch W. Roberts, president of a St. Petersburg, Fla., municipal bond firm of the same name. Bearer bonds, as their name suggests, are the property of the bearer, who is presumed to be the owner. Such bonds are vulnerable to theft or loss but are easy to trade. Bearer bonds are also known as coupon bonds because the holder must clip the coupons attached to them and present them to a bank or paying agent to receive interest.