General Discussion

Systematic Chaos

(8,601 posts)

30. 3 video games or pinball machines in the lobby of every 7-11 store.

Wed Nov 21, 2012, 03:41 PM

Nov 2012

Making mix cassette tapes from the FM stations on the little stereo in your bedroom.

Sunday morning cartoons which were actually good and lasted the whole of Saturday morning.

Connecting to CompuServe on your Atari 800 or Commodore 64's blazing 300 baud modem (1200 if you were cutting edge) and watching largely useless text slowly scroll down your screen for the low, low price of $6 per hour on off-peak times. Fuck if I remember what the peak rate was.

Atari 2600 and Intellivision games being blown out of K-Mart, Kay Bee Toys and other locations for as little as $3 - $5 each. Good ones; in many cases the coolest and newest games. The market crashed hard in 1983, so it was a fire sale trying to get rid of all that overstock. If you were a video game nerd and had a few extra dollars to spend, you made out like a bandit, and some of those games go for $50 or more today.

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Fun pub discussion last night - things your kids will never know or experience [View all] titaniumsalute Nov 2012 OP

Out all day in the summer get the red out Nov 2012 #1

Man that is a good one... titaniumsalute Nov 2012 #3

Yep we had to be within distance of my dad's piercing whistle. JimDandy Nov 2012 #39

It was my girlfriend's mother's piercing whistle that we listened for 3 blocks away. beveeheart Nov 2012 #74

it was my mom's boat whistle - loud! n/t KT2000 Nov 2012 #181

I raised both of my sons as free-range kids. FSogol Nov 2012 #8

Too funny. AnotherMcIntosh Nov 2012 #126

We HAD to walk, in my day! With crossing guards, of course! WinkyDink Nov 2012 #324

Amen. We rode our bikes *everywhere*, then threw them down in the front yard overnight... Romulox Nov 2012 #138

I couldn't be separated from my bike in the summer. susanna Nov 2012 #191

We used to go on "bike hikes" in the summer. ashling Nov 2012 #262

You must be just a little older than me. dchill Nov 2012 #307

No, I'm only 60 ashling Nov 2012 #345

I'm surprised you remember before zip codes. SheilaT Nov 2012 #414

We were in postal zone 55 ashling Nov 2012 #422

Interesting. Only some larger cities, if I recall correctly, SheilaT Nov 2012 #433

I think you are probably right about the zones ashling Nov 2012 #440

Ahhh the Gas Wars! PoliticalBiker Nov 2012 #409

Must have been a looser dress code where you were ashling Nov 2012 #423

Ahh, I've never ever owned a car with a gas tank that SheilaT Nov 2012 #447

Well, come on over to my neighborhood. glowing Nov 2012 #241

Sounds really nice! I enjoyed reading your post. nt Romulox Nov 2012 #347

YES....and we had to come in at night when the street light came on Laura PourMeADrink Nov 2012 #185

LOL, we could play in the backyard until 10 if it was summer. gkhouston Nov 2012 #300

Me too! Ligyron Nov 2012 #340

Metal ice cube trays! Yes! gkhouston Nov 2012 #380

A separate handle, or integrated with the tray? RC Nov 2012 #393

integrated with the tray... Rider3 Nov 2012 #426

I liked the separate handle better also. RC Nov 2012 #442

Yep. That was our rule, too. nt Romulox Nov 2012 #348

At ten years old I was an amateur astronomer... ChisolmTrailDem Nov 2012 #367

+1 10-mile bike rides, on our own, to a local lake. day-long wanderings through the local woods. HiPointDem Nov 2012 #192

thanks ! Had forgotten about the homemade skate boards ! And so true about walking everywhere Laura PourMeADrink Nov 2012 #311

at 16 we were at the local bowling alley musette_sf Nov 2012 #390

"the mass culture experience, where everyone gets the same news, watches the same tv shows, " dixiegrrrrl Nov 2012 #354

So funny..."some kind of ceramic figure" with a doily. haha. It also reminded me that everyone Laura PourMeADrink Nov 2012 #475

"a crocheted toilet paper cover in the bath." dixiegrrrrl Nov 2012 #483

OMG here's a pic of TV with ceramics on it Laura PourMeADrink Nov 2012 #490

hahaha Crocheted Toilet Paper cover pic ! Laura PourMeADrink Nov 2012 #491

OMG...I DO rememeber those! dixiegrrrrl Nov 2012 #495

Take away the crank phone at summer camp... ChisolmTrailDem Nov 2012 #371

I read an article once about roaming kids spinbaby Nov 2012 #315

When I was a kid in the late '60s and into the '70s my range ChisolmTrailDem Nov 2012 #372

I used to ride my Buzz bike to neighboring towns Art_from_Ark Nov 2012 #450

We had our adventures, didn't we? And if a kid did that today, not only ChisolmTrailDem Nov 2012 #466

so different. i think the historical perspective is important to have, to keep people HiPointDem Nov 2012 #406

Collecting soda bottles to sell for 2 cents each The Blue Flower Nov 2012 #334

Yes. After breakfast Mom would throw us out the door and lock it. sarge43 Nov 2012 #353

Home for lunch!! Yes get the red out Nov 2012 #356

I've made it to seventy and sixty years ago I pulled off some hair raising stunts n/t sarge43 Nov 2012 #359

This is truly tragic... ChisolmTrailDem Nov 2012 #365

"I only hope that there are kids in some small town ..." dixiegrrrrl Nov 2012 #499

A month with below average temperatures. nt Speck Tater Nov 2012 #2

Sorry, But No ProfessorGAC Nov 2012 #314

Clarification: GLOBALLY, not locally. Speck Tater Nov 2012 #383

Yep. I used to go ice skating in my youth (NJ) and one hasn't been able to skate on a lake .... MichaelSoE Nov 2012 #328

Ice fishing on Thanksgiving Viking12 Nov 2012 #496

Rabbit ears wryter2000 Nov 2012 #4

Raising and lowering the cars antenna by hand! JimDandy Nov 2012 #40

Wind wings! n/t VOX Nov 2012 #111

I had a 96 Subaru Legacy... Agschmid Nov 2012 #157

OMG I hated those little bastards. You had to stand there and hold them just right. nolabear Nov 2012 #97

a broomstick that was a 'remote control' for the tv Whisp Nov 2012 #118

Yeah, kids nowadays could not live without remote controls. RebelOne Nov 2012 #470

I still wear a wind-up watch DollarBillHines Nov 2012 #123

Hire me! gateley Nov 2012 #151

You betcha, gately! DollarBillHines Nov 2012 #156

No hire me! Caretha Nov 2012 #336

i would if i could find one for a decent price. i'd use a wind-up alarm clock, too. HiPointDem Nov 2012 #199

enjoy! NMDemDist2 Nov 2012 #206

thanks! HiPointDem Nov 2012 #210

here's another ebayer to check out, i love his watches NMDemDist2 Nov 2012 #247

interesting. i wonder if he has a website, i'm not that keen on ebay. i see a watch HiPointDem Nov 2012 #259

Holy shit! I have that first one: friendly_iconoclast Nov 2012 #239

I think I had a Baby Ben alarm clock. Ilsa Nov 2012 #255

We still have rabbit ears. Shrike47 Nov 2012 #137

A student smoking section in the high school cafeteria. Nevernose Nov 2012 #147

+1. also, people smoking in the grocery store, at work, and in many public buildings. HiPointDem Nov 2012 #200

heh...one my older memories was my dad walking into a newberrys... tjwash Nov 2012 #219

it seems so odd in retrospect, even if you lived it. HiPointDem Nov 2012 #229

Yeah, and people used to smoke in hospitals...incredible, it seems now. nt raccoon Nov 2012 #373

Newberry's....wow, that's a blast from the past ! Laura PourMeADrink Nov 2012 #313

Yep. tjwash Nov 2012 #403

Even small towns had locally owned departmment stores eridani Nov 2012 #437

Only the bigger corporate stores forbid smoking by checkers. At any small store the person running brewens Nov 2012 #308

For some reason, smoking in public had rules for a woman. dixiegrrrrl Nov 2012 #358

There was a general consensus SheilaT Nov 2012 #415

I sort of "knew" that "rule" dixiegrrrrl Nov 2012 #419

It was a sufficiently embedded idea in our culture, SheilaT Nov 2012 #434

Smoking at the movies! In the hospital! In the doctor's office waiting room! nt MADem Nov 2012 #463

Little ashtrays in the arms of the chairs at beauty salons. A highlight I now brewens Nov 2012 #306

Along the same vein, listening to AM radio at night... LVdem Nov 2012 #159

AM radio at night peachcobbler Nov 2012 #165

Thought It Would Last Forever garagedoor Nov 2012 #220

We used to listen to CKLW in Cleveland. Doremus Nov 2012 #265

listening to lots of different kinds of things on radio, not just top 10 playlists. with HiPointDem Nov 2012 #201

OMG, yes, remember that too. WBZ Chicago - you could pick it up everywhere. Laura PourMeADrink Nov 2012 #312

I had no idea others were doing this! And this was an ChisolmTrailDem Nov 2012 #374

living in NYC musette_sf Nov 2012 #391

My favorite station was WWL, New Orleans Art_from_Ark Nov 2012 #449

I assumed that everyone listened to Beaker Street! DawgHouse Nov 2012 #501

with supplemental tin foil Laura PourMeADrink Nov 2012 #188

Rabbit Ear Antennae... JHB Nov 2012 #5

Adjusting your car's carburetor with a screw driver until the fuel mixture "sounds right." FSogol Nov 2012 #6

Cameras you had to look down into JHB Nov 2012 #19

And Polaroids bhikkhu Nov 2012 #235

And flashcubes Canuckistanian Nov 2012 #271

Weren't those flash cubes disposable??? You just jogged my memory! Wow! adigal Nov 2012 #92

I had a archeology course once and we were excavating a supposedly unmolested area of FSogol Nov 2012 #512

in my childhood i remember 10, then 12, then 15-cent funnybooks, & then i got HiPointDem Nov 2012 #212

omg.. the smell of a flashbulb! annabanana Nov 2012 #342

Cassettes Seeking Serenity Nov 2012 #7

Charles Chips is back! FSogol Nov 2012 #10

I want some....did you try and order?....they need some work on the Laura PourMeADrink Nov 2012 #318

Yes, but it took 4 weeks to get, because they only make small batches FSogol Nov 2012 #319

Thanks for Posting Sherman A1 Nov 2012 #453

Milk delivery still exists here in Colorado. It's called Royal Crest Dairy Panasonic Nov 2012 #20

Grew up in Lakewood, when much of it was new, madamesilverspurs Nov 2012 #208

How dare you! Those are MY memories! Auntie Bush Nov 2012 #486

We had a milkman who delivered milk, eggs, cottage cheese, and bread! nt MADem Nov 2012 #331

We had a bakery that had home avebury Nov 2012 #363

Add to that milk delivery ICE delivery. broiles Nov 2012 #48

Car vent windows, tape recorders, correction fluid, carbon paper, fountain pens. rzemanfl Nov 2012 #9

I was thinking crank handles in a car and...oh my gosh...physically locking a car door. NT titaniumsalute Nov 2012 #13

I have a Jeep which has both. When I drive other people's kids around, they often do not FSogol Nov 2012 #23

I actually got trapped in my car once notadmblnd Nov 2012 #243

Ha--I still do both! Hand crank windows, two keys for the car; door/trunk and ignition! MADem Nov 2012 #506

God, carbon paper. I would never have been a writer in the age of carbon paper. nolabear Nov 2012 #99

I still use correction fluid a lot. I white out all the marybourg Nov 2012 #261

I was enslaved on my grandfolk's dairy farm iemitsu Nov 2012 #275

Bringing guns to school during bird and deer hunting season Kaleva Nov 2012 #11

My son is 26. He's used outhouses plenty cali Nov 2012 #12

Hi Cali titaniumsalute Nov 2012 #15

hey titaniumsalute cali Nov 2012 #31

Hi Cali....you didn't have electricity? wow. Laura PourMeADrink Nov 2012 #190

It was cool. For light we had kerosene lanterns built into the walls cali Nov 2012 #316

the point, as i'm sure you know, is that your son's experience is no longer the HiPointDem Nov 2012 #203

Hmmm. Of course globally flush toilets are not 'the norm' so most kids today do Bluenorthwest Nov 2012 #357

not sure what your point is. the op is about what american kids today will not HiPointDem Nov 2012 #408

Huffing mimeograph vapors arcane1 Nov 2012 #14

LOL!! We love to tell our kids about that one LeftInTX Nov 2012 #55

The great smell of freshly mimeograqphed handouts in school. JimDandy Nov 2012 #58

Handed out while still warm and damp arcane1 Nov 2012 #59

My students thought that was the best thing about taking a test - the fumes from the paper. beveeheart Nov 2012 #78

I'd give my hat & front seat in hell just to smell those purple-printed sheets again! japple Nov 2012 #169

OMG, I loved that smell! gkhouston Nov 2012 #225

Yes! Mild minty fresh smell. JimDandy Nov 2012 #504

YES! So_Blue Nov 2012 #252

If you got an opportunity to operate the "Gestetner Stenciller" you could get a noseful MADem Nov 2012 #469

Computer command cards JHB Nov 2012 #16

That was the new "modern way" we registered for classes at Berkeley... villager Nov 2012 #21

Floppy disks that were actually floppy. backscatter712 Nov 2012 #56

Dot matrix printers that screeched as they printed. backscatter712 Nov 2012 #60

Manually typing in programs in BASIC out of a magazine, then saving them onto a cassette tape. backscatter712 Nov 2012 #62

Our family's first computer was a Commador 64 liberal_at_heart Nov 2012 #288

Mine was an Atari 400. backscatter712 Nov 2012 #293

I worked at two of those magazines Silent3 Nov 2012 #361

Some of those games were awesome. backscatter712 Nov 2012 #376

Yes! We did that too! ReasonableToo Nov 2012 #378

Yep. It took fifteen minutes to load a program. backscatter712 Nov 2012 #379

Yes, I remember those 8" floppies. I thought I had died & gone to heaven japple Nov 2012 #172

you just reminded me of when we asked someone in another office to send us a copy of Laura PourMeADrink Nov 2012 #187

I thought those were a miracle! And when they came out with the 3 and a half inchers, I MADem Nov 2012 #507

They're called Hollerith cards TrogL Nov 2012 #145

I can't believe those cards have a name other than punch cards. snagglepuss Nov 2012 #397

"Do not bend, fold, staple or mutilate." n/t madamesilverspurs Nov 2012 #213

Those instructions were widely ignored when they were "stuff in the back of the storage room" JHB Nov 2012 #238

Watching someone you dislike dropping a deck of cards. gkhouston Nov 2012 #227

My First Exposure To Computers. . . ProfessorGAC Nov 2012 #317

I don't know if "more advanced" is the right term... JHB Nov 2012 #351

Now every time people hear the word "chad", they think of Florida... backscatter712 Nov 2012 #377

We called those "IBM cards", because they were the only computer company. eppur_se_muova Nov 2012 #494

Freedom from government intrusion into their personal communications. woo me with science Nov 2012 #17

...and reasonably predictable weather villager Nov 2012 #24

Weather is more predictable than ever. gcomeau Nov 2012 #82

interesting point. I suppose I meant in a more "Farmer's Almanac" vein villager Nov 2012 #132

a slide rule.. oldhippydude Nov 2012 #18

Dad has one of those.. Panasonic Nov 2012 #25

easy.. i can still remember... oldhippydude Nov 2012 #224

I still have mine. The Velveteen Ocelot Nov 2012 #49

I put together a nice collection of slide rules, when hand calculators first became available. meti57b Nov 2012 #87

LOL, I won a trophy in slide rule at a math competition. Total geekdom. n/t gkhouston Nov 2012 #230

I have one. Still know how to use it Ilsa Nov 2012 #257

I showed mine to my nephew once eridani Nov 2012 #439

Black and white photography nadinbrzezinski Nov 2012 #22

Did that in high school in '92 Panasonic Nov 2012 #27

Actually, it's still a hobby with a good following among younger people. Scootaloo Nov 2012 #45

Good old Panatonic-X ASA 64 defacto7 Nov 2012 #454

Encyclopedias in book form (nt) jeff47 Nov 2012 #26

World Books! Panasonic Nov 2012 #28

Going on vacation on all two lane roads. longship Nov 2012 #29

Long Sunday drives and NO freeways. dixiegrrrrl Nov 2012 #485

3 video games or pinball machines in the lobby of every 7-11 store. Systematic Chaos Nov 2012 #30

And floppy disks Seeking Serenity Nov 2012 #43

Ashtrays in the doctor's office Canuckistanian Nov 2012 #32

Yes. And if you were hospiltilized, you could smoke in your room in some sitiations. Kaleva Nov 2012 #35

In the bank and the grocery store! louis-t Nov 2012 #66

Smoking in movie theatres. Smoking everywhere! SMOKING, SMOKING, SMOKING. japple Nov 2012 #173

It did seem to be the national pastime back then Canuckistanian Nov 2012 #268

Farting around online has replaced it! MADem Nov 2012 #508

I never smoked buy my parents and relatives did. I remember the wide variety of ashtrays. snagglepuss Nov 2012 #399

Funny to see old clips of Senate hearings and they are all smoking Laura PourMeADrink Nov 2012 #194

Over-head projectors. JoePhilly Nov 2012 #33

Art History classes garagedoor Nov 2012 #222

Having to have someone paged in a crowded store, airport, event center etc. yankeepants Nov 2012 #34

Oooh. Good one. Can't remember the last time I heard someone paged. Hassin Bin Sober Nov 2012 #101

I was paged for a phone call once at the Flamingo Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas TeamPooka Nov 2012 #119

halloween thanksgiving and christmas being separate holiday seasons. ;-) JustFiveMoreMinutes Nov 2012 #36

+1000. It used to be special to ride the bus downtown to see all the decorations. gkhouston Nov 2012 #302

setting the points on a distributor onethatcares Nov 2012 #37

VW Rabbit quit on us on a country road in Montana in about 1976. The Velveteen Ocelot Nov 2012 #52

Your car doesn't burn through a set of distributor points every 20,000 miles anymore, either... Thegonagle Nov 2012 #98

Places that were all field Initech Nov 2012 #38

Getting slapped around by a teacher, then being sent to the principal to be beaten by him. Kaleva Nov 2012 #41

yep. Teachers could hit the kids. still can in same states. Liberal_in_LA Nov 2012 #61

Where did you grow up? AverageJoe90 Nov 2012 #244

Upper Michigan. That's the way things were done back then. At least where I lived. Kaleva Nov 2012 #248

I can't help but be reminded of how many blacks were often treated under slavery. AverageJoe90 Nov 2012 #250

Being able to be fairly certain you weren't on some security camera Blandocyte Nov 2012 #42

Cars with no seat belts. Escorted air travel for children. Ditto copying machines. ancianita Nov 2012 #44

my grandkids probably won't learn cursive writing in school backtoblue Nov 2012 #46

i bought a record player this summer.. it has a cassette deck, cd, and radio in it too. dionysus Nov 2012 #47

The typewriter, but it sure wasn't fun. LeftInTX Nov 2012 #50

I still have my Dad's old Smith Corona portable from about 1946. The Velveteen Ocelot Nov 2012 #54

Typing your college papers Freddie Nov 2012 #64

If you made a mistake (which I did, often) The Velveteen Ocelot Nov 2012 #72

I was a pretty good typist (despite hating it) Freddie Nov 2012 #77

I actually had a whole course on correcting mistakes on the typewriter! Awknid Nov 2012 #100

You got to erase? I'm retroactively jealous! madamesilverspurs Nov 2012 #223

Eaton's "Corrasable bond" paper--a modern miracle! Beat the hell out of white out! nt MADem Nov 2012 #509

+1. white-out & erasable paper. when knowing how to type 30 wpm would get HiPointDem Nov 2012 #202

I took an IBM Standard with me to college forty years ago. Manifestor_of_Light Nov 2012 #217

I enjoyed reading your post. Maw Kettle Nov 2012 #430

Gas station attendants who pumped your gas and washed your windshield tblue37 Nov 2012 #260

Lawn Darts... Volaris Nov 2012 #51

Rather young myself, so... Scootaloo Nov 2012 #53

Automobiles... Libertas1776 Nov 2012 #341

X-ray machines in shoe stores The Velveteen Ocelot Nov 2012 #57

pulling, with all your might, an 8 track out of a stereo. Liberal_in_LA Nov 2012 #63

Smoking weed that was so mild - you had to use your imagination to get stoned !! RagAss Nov 2012 #65

Maybe that's why I was never impressed with weed and Cleita Nov 2012 #80

Gas station attendants. JimDandy Nov 2012 #67

Still there in Oregon at least Scootaloo Nov 2012 #70

Yes, and the gas is cheaper in Oregon than it is in other states where Cleita Nov 2012 #83

And in NJ too. smokey nj Nov 2012 #322

Lucky duck! The gas fumes are the worst thing about filling up. JimDandy Nov 2012 #505

And free stuff when you bought gas. beveeheart Nov 2012 #88

S&H Green Stamps--and the things you could trade them for! nt tblue37 Nov 2012 #264

I saved S&H green stamps No Vested Interest Nov 2012 #305

And don't forget Blue chip stamps. Both my Grandmothers saved them for me and when I visited them kimbutgar Nov 2012 #405

Free dishes that came in laundry soap boxes dixiegrrrrl Nov 2012 #375

How about elevator operators? snagglepuss Nov 2012 #167

my sister's first job! KT2000 Nov 2012 #189

Playing High School football in this.... RagAss Nov 2012 #68

Collecting soda pop bottles for the 2 or 3 cent deposit Trailrider1951 Nov 2012 #69

now that's a business for people. TeamPooka Nov 2012 #120

for homeless people, and not much of one. stipping wires for copper, stealing bricks HiPointDem Nov 2012 #205

On a positive note: Pretty soon all kids under 8 won't have experienced a white President mucifer Nov 2012 #71

Cruising the main drag, "American Graffiti" style. apocalypsehow Nov 2012 #73

cruising the Sunset Strip in L.A. is illegal and they will cite you. TeamPooka Nov 2012 #116

that sucks! ejpoeta Nov 2012 #160

Roller skates with metal wheels that clamp on to your shoes. n/t Cleita Nov 2012 #75

And wearing the key on a string around your neck. n/t rzemanfl Nov 2012 #174

in this song... DBoon Nov 2012 #428

Considered suggestive back in the day. n/t rzemanfl Nov 2012 #471

I still have my pair. I used to go down hills in them and to this can't i did it. snagglepuss Nov 2012 #395

Segregated public schools jberryhill Nov 2012 #76

Carbon paper. I hated that stuff, especially when one part was more used catbyte Nov 2012 #79

You reminded me of the old fashioned typewriters with the strike keys. Cleita Nov 2012 #86

Yeah. I remember when the IBM Selectrics came out & you could actually change the font, lol catbyte Nov 2012 #96

I could change the cartridge ribbon in my electric typewriter. badhair77 Nov 2012 #149

I also remember when the first ones with a memory came out. You could save 5 whole letters catbyte Nov 2012 #179

The first IBM memory typewriter cost $5,500 in the early '70s. rzemanfl Nov 2012 #214

WOW catbyte Nov 2012 #215

I was making $7000 a yr as a teacher then. badhair77 Nov 2012 #228

Early handheld calculators cost $200--just very tblue37 Nov 2012 #267

In 1971 I paid $750 for a used mechancial printing calculator that would multiply and divide. n/t rzemanfl Nov 2012 #472

Just yesterday I found a carbon credit card receipt from 1993. So_Blue Nov 2012 #254

Adjusting the Horizontol on the tv to stop those lines. snagglepuss Nov 2012 #81

Bang on the side of it... jberryhill Nov 2012 #85

lol You must have had the same make. snagglepuss Nov 2012 #90

Now I can watch THIS in 1080i HD jberryhill Nov 2012 #144

Adjusting ANYTHING on any screen. DireStrike Nov 2012 #91

LOL, remembering overadjusting the vertical and getting a screen that rolled up gkhouston Nov 2012 #299

Relatively recent, but treestar Nov 2012 #84

Towels or glasses that came inside boxes of laundry detergent. snagglepuss Nov 2012 #89

Or given to customers at a gas station with a fill-up! VOX Nov 2012 #105

hmmmm Locrian Nov 2012 #93

As my daughter mercuryblues Nov 2012 #94

Pre-teens being allowed to walk alone to a neighborhood store to buy milk and bread slackmaster Nov 2012 #95

Or pre-teens being allowed to walk on their own to the store to buy cigarettes Kaleva Nov 2012 #104

When I was about 9 or so my mom would give me a quarter and send me to the bakery The Velveteen Ocelot Nov 2012 #107

Black & white TVs. hobbit709 Nov 2012 #102

Getting up the change the channel on it also (nm) Rambis Nov 2012 #108

I still have a little black and white TV. The Velveteen Ocelot Nov 2012 #114

And TV stations that went off the air and you woke up with the buzzing Laura PourMeADrink Nov 2012 #323

Cap guns. Brody knobs. Chemistry sets. Leaving doors unlocked overnight... VOX Nov 2012 #103

chemistry sets - wow badhair77 Nov 2012 #152

I just have to disagree with the well built American cars doc03 Nov 2012 #216

Yep. They don't make them like they used to, SheilaT Nov 2012 #416

I had one car that rusted thru in 18 months and I paid extra for rust-proofing doc03 Nov 2012 #420

And I'm willing to bet that your pick-up has a lot more SheilaT Nov 2012 #435

Brody knobs????? dixiegrrrrl Nov 2012 #384

Are you saying that cap guns have gone the way of the dodo? snagglepuss Nov 2012 #400

Never having a house key because we never locked our doors Kip Humphrey Nov 2012 #106

Fountain pens Kingofalldems Nov 2012 #109

We're in suburban Chicago- and our forest preserves have hole-in-the-ground 'outhouses'... BlueMan Votes Nov 2012 #110

Actually Vinyl records are making a comeback.. SomethingFishy Nov 2012 #112

so do some hipsters DBoon Nov 2012 #429

I actually saw a bunch at "Fry's" SomethingFishy Nov 2012 #431

Fry's is awesome! DBoon Nov 2012 #436

Sex before AIDS came into play. and admiring someone without being hit with a sex harrasment charge graham4anything Nov 2012 #113

Blackboards and chalk elfin Nov 2012 #115

S&H greenstamps onethatcares Nov 2012 #117

We were talking about Green Stamps just last night DollarBillHines Nov 2012 #133

I remember buying sheets for my college apartment with S&H green stamps Neurotica Nov 2012 #266

Green spaces. Lots and lots of green spaces. Ezlivin Nov 2012 #121

xacto knives and wax for pasting up type Whisp Nov 2012 #122

Yes! And cutting film. And making stats or veloxes. xfundy Nov 2012 #411

Letraset and when being a negative stripper Whisp Nov 2012 #418

Party lines billh58 Nov 2012 #124

life without Walmart Skittles Nov 2012 #125

stores being closed on sunday. or holidays. ejpoeta Nov 2012 #161

Life without any big box stores. snagglepuss Nov 2012 #164

I Remember Traveling garagedoor Nov 2012 #236

any of the 3 Kennedy sons being alive and in the world. The football NY Jets winning Super Bowl graham4anything Nov 2012 #127

Winter and snow. sagat Nov 2012 #128

TV stations going off the air at midnight. subterranean Nov 2012 #129

Radio stations that went off at night LeftInTX Nov 2012 #140

With Larry Lujack! eridani Nov 2012 #441

I remember him. WLS rock n roll gone and turned to talk :( LeftInTX Nov 2012 #448

Yes, indeed--and the round ones, as well.... MADem Nov 2012 #510

Glaciers. lob1 Nov 2012 #130

Hostess Twinkies. subterranean Nov 2012 #131

The first time we apent $20 at the grocery store. My mother cried all the way home. DollarBillHines Nov 2012 #134

The smell of freshly made ditto copies at school. MicaelS Nov 2012 #135

The State Recreation areas here in Michigan still feature hole-in-the-ground style Romulox Nov 2012 #136

A little older just us Nov 2012 #139

Toys in cereal boxes subterranean Nov 2012 #141

Gas stations that allow checks are going bye-bye LeftInTX Nov 2012 #142

Hardware stores LeftInTX Nov 2012 #143

Well, mine all know LaserDiscs, cassette tapes, vinyl records, and VCRs. HopeHoops Nov 2012 #146

My favorite: mrsadm Nov 2012 #148

Paper drivers licenses (no pictures), silver coins, Fizzies, car exhaust fumes jpak Nov 2012 #150

You live in a strange world muriel_volestrangler Nov 2012 #154

Unadulterated car exhaust fumes - before catalytic converters jpak Nov 2012 #158

You've never experienced real car exhaust fumes! bhikkhu Nov 2012 #242

I bicycle too and I can smell the occasional car go by Fumesucker Nov 2012 #457

LOL- Curfew sirens. Never heard of that one! LeftInTX Nov 2012 #170

9 PM - UUURRR uhh UUUURRR uhh UUUURRR uhh jpak Nov 2012 #171

The best game ever TransitJohn Nov 2012 #153

now that's good stuff fishwax Nov 2012 #253

Lol, I had the green one. nt greyl Nov 2012 #272

Social democrats in the Republican Party... leftlibdem420 Nov 2012 #155

filmstrips in class badhair77 Nov 2012 #162

Those Bell Telephone movies with the guy in the labcoat, so we'd know he was smart. gkhouston Nov 2012 #237

Yes, lab coats make people look smart. badhair77 Nov 2012 #246

"filmstrip" I haven't heard that term in ages, also forgot about those gendered snagglepuss Nov 2012 #396

Sending a telegram. snagglepuss Nov 2012 #163

Department stores that sold everything and had elevator operators. snagglepuss Nov 2012 #166

Buying gasoline for 20 cents a gallon. nt. OldDem2012 Nov 2012 #168

a strong belief that one's children would be better off than their parents zazen Nov 2012 #175

Just think...anyone under 4 years old will never see a Republican as president in America again graham4anything Nov 2012 #176

My mom once said that we wouldn't have a Republican President again for a whole generation slackmaster Nov 2012 #177

Jimmy Carter would have won reelection had the Dems come together in the general graham4anything Nov 2012 #182

No, he would not have won. If you think he would have, show the numbers JHB Nov 2012 #478

PA NJ Texas should have been for Carter, Florida too. graham4anything Nov 2012 #482

Everyone was saying that! LeftInTX Nov 2012 #204

Yes. The GOP leveraged the patriotic fervor of the nation's bicentennial, and sold its soul to... slackmaster Nov 2012 #364

Lucky for them. Cleita Nov 2012 #184

Hitchhiking. aikoaiko Nov 2012 #178

that's the first thing i thought of laruemtt Nov 2012 #273

I have a rotary dial phone as the main phone in my living room. MineralMan Nov 2012 #180

Very cool!!! mrsadm Nov 2012 #289

I have a rotary dial phone. Lasher Nov 2012 #310

I also have a rotary phone. tammywammy Nov 2012 #362

I always wanted a pay phone, complete with a booth. MineralMan Nov 2012 #370

Roller Skates you attached to your shoes with clamps & Skate Keys Sekhmets Daughter Nov 2012 #183

I'm 26, and assuming I have a kid in 2015 or so... Odin2005 Nov 2012 #186

Being hit on the hand by a nun and having the phone ring and not knowing who it is Laura PourMeADrink Nov 2012 #193

Riding on the speaker shelf in the family car n/t LadyHawkAZ Nov 2012 #195

White Go-Go Boots! KT2000 Nov 2012 #196

Clapping erasers on the brick wall of the school and all the chalk dust FSogol Nov 2012 #197

Canned television. Arctic Dave Nov 2012 #198

When I was a kid, we only got one TV station. Rhiannon12866 Nov 2012 #221

9 on 9 pick up Baseball games in the summer that last until the sun goes down. sarcasmo Nov 2012 #207

A teenage girls dad embarrassing you on a landline phone cprompt Nov 2012 #209

Drive-in movie theaters. Agnosticsherbet Nov 2012 #211

I know of at least 3 drive-ins within an hour's distance. Lars39 Nov 2012 #368

Mimeograph papers from the schoolteachers w/blue ink. I'd huff those papers... Honeycombe8 Nov 2012 #218

Card catalogs in libraries. Louisiana1976 Nov 2012 #226

They don't have those anymore?? madinmaryland Nov 2012 #279

Our library does!!!! dixiegrrrrl Nov 2012 #385

That win or lose, the integrity of our election system was taken for granted corkhead Nov 2012 #231

Kool-Aid after recess in elementary school. gkhouston Nov 2012 #232

The dimmer switch on the floor board Still Sensible Nov 2012 #233

Dipswitch actually. TheMadMonk Nov 2012 #290

Great info in this thread. snagglepuss Nov 2012 #398

OMG..had almost forgotten about them. dixiegrrrrl Nov 2012 #386

Waiting a year for a favorite movie to come on tv. Once. bhikkhu Nov 2012 #234

when I was a kid liberal_at_heart Nov 2012 #284

Mister Magoo's Christmas Carol always scared the crap out of me. jpak Nov 2012 #329

party lines for the phone badhair77 Nov 2012 #240

Walking over a mile to school. Bare foot, in the winter, in the snow, up hill, both ways. notadmblnd Nov 2012 #245

hahahaha. . . kevinbgoode1 Nov 2012 #369

I think it's an old Bill Cosby line. But my mother used to tell us that notadmblnd Nov 2012 #424

My kid didn't know the song, "Ten tons of greasy, grimy gopher guts." gkhouston Nov 2012 #249

"Ten tons"? We had "Great big gobs of greasy, grimy gopher guts. . . . tblue37 Nov 2012 #269

Rubber cement in school.... So_Blue Nov 2012 #251

Silence. pinto Nov 2012 #256

The anticipation... WinniSkipper Nov 2012 #258

Summers on my uncle's farm. Snarkoleptic Nov 2012 #263

Riding in the rear-facing seat of a wood-paneled station wagon with no seat belt Neurotica Nov 2012 #270

Riding in the space between the second and third seat in a station wagon. gkhouston Nov 2012 #276

We sat on the open tail gate with our legs dangling ! Laura PourMeADrink Nov 2012 #327

25 cents a gallon gas. playing hopscotch on neighborhood streets. laruemtt Nov 2012 #274

now you can't even use sidewalk chalk justabob Nov 2012 #360

Saturday night at the movies on TV, BarbaRosa Nov 2012 #277

MTV Mac Adams Nov 2012 #278

Recording songs from the radion to cassette tape and no one freaks! SaveAmerica Nov 2012 #280

Get a clear station by putting tin foil on the ends of the rabbit ears SaveAmerica Nov 2012 #281

I use to do that all the time liberal_at_heart Nov 2012 #286

Doing research papers with microfiche - what google? SaveAmerica Nov 2012 #282

Getting on a plane without being searched or body scanned DaniDubois Nov 2012 #283

A film breaking at the theater aletier_v Nov 2012 #285

Great thread! Wind Dancer Nov 2012 #287

I was very little last time all that stuff was popular... MrsBrady Nov 2012 #291

The popsicle man, and Brainstormy Nov 2012 #292

A pension jberryhill Nov 2012 #294

sad but true liberal_at_heart Nov 2012 #295

My mother was a switchboard operator Cresent City Kid Nov 2012 #296

Backyard burning barrels Spirochete Nov 2012 #297

Oh yea ! That burning leaf smell. Laura PourMeADrink Nov 2012 #330

No indoor bathroom. Lugnut Nov 2012 #298

I remember waking in the morning to frost and thin ice on the window. dixiegrrrrl Nov 2012 #388

Most of our windows were frosted and icy during the winter. Lugnut Nov 2012 #445

Bookmobiles. These days, tough shit, take a bus or car to the nearest branch or do without. gkhouston Nov 2012 #301

I was at our local Bookmobile just last month....Books To The People.... Bluenorthwest Nov 2012 #366

Neat! n/t gkhouston Nov 2012 #381

Riding your bike to school with your mitt on your handlebars. n/t brewens Nov 2012 #303

Movies for 20 cents. No Vested Interest Nov 2012 #304

45 rpm 7" singles. dchill Nov 2012 #309

I'll add card catalogs. nt Bonobo Nov 2012 #320

THE Drive-in Laura PourMeADrink Nov 2012 #321

absolutely loved the drive-ins newspeak Nov 2012 #389

Drive ins still exist--many still have the old speakers, but they don't repair them when they break. MADem Nov 2012 #462

Some of these answers refer to "grandkids." Heh. WinkyDink Nov 2012 #325

Clean abundant readily accessible WATER. Eyes of the World Nov 2012 #326

I haven't read every thread so this may be a dupe...pick up the phone reciever and have the operator MichaelSoE Nov 2012 #332

EM-1233 Actually I remember when it was just 1233. Auntie Bush Nov 2012 #487

Classrooms without computers in them NNN0LHI Nov 2012 #333

Birthday Party Spanking Machine Laura PourMeADrink Nov 2012 #335

Paper Bag Bookcovers Laura PourMeADrink Nov 2012 #337

Early McDonalds Laura PourMeADrink Nov 2012 #338

I so remember this game being played at birthday parties. I completely forgot until I saw your kimbutgar Nov 2012 #407

Stretch Armstrong Laura PourMeADrink Nov 2012 #339

Manual word processor... Historic NY Nov 2012 #343

$.95 Saturday matinees, no Internet, MTV actually played nothing but music videos justiceischeap Nov 2012 #344

I usd to tell my nieces and nephews that we had to walk uphill to school and uphill home from libinnyandia Nov 2012 #346

Holiday Cartoon Specials after dinner, back before 24 hour cartoons/vcrs/cable. nt Romulox Nov 2012 #349

No TV! n/t RKP5637 Nov 2012 #350

A few from my youth fredamae Nov 2012 #352

Cube rat stuff from a half century ago sarge43 Nov 2012 #355

we didn't have the plastic like we do today newspeak Nov 2012 #382

RUSH LIMBAUGH! aletier_v Nov 2012 #387

Rotary dial phones? RC Nov 2012 #392

Regularly hearing different types of music Z_I_Peevey Nov 2012 #394

Life before backpacks. Lugging textbooks home under one arm and carrying a lunch pail in the other. snagglepuss Nov 2012 #401

Drive in Theaters, reel to reel tape players, Super 8 Projectors that made the ticking sound kimbutgar Nov 2012 #402

Sour Bites, From Beechnut... Man I Loved Them Little Candies... WillyT Nov 2012 #404

Chemistry sets with real chemicals that you could use for experiments kimbutgar Nov 2012 #410

Me too for much of the above. I'll try not to duplicate: northoftheborder Nov 2012 #412

"zip lines with a container for your money" dixiegrrrrl Nov 2012 #421

The little dot when the tv goes off. xfundy Nov 2012 #413

That modem sound sakabatou Nov 2012 #417

Oh yes...... northoftheborder Nov 2012 #425

Hahahaha savebigbird Nov 2012 #461

Jarts Lemonwurst Nov 2012 #427

The unbridled joy, space, and freedom of the '60s and early 70's. Zorra Nov 2012 #432

Those were the days: lucca18 Nov 2012 #438

Ahhhh...lightning bugs. If you are looking to see those again....there's a beautiful B&B in VA Laura PourMeADrink Nov 2012 #477

We are so lucky here to have fireflies. dixiegrrrrl Nov 2012 #498

Computers the size of a living room, requiring a special operator LeftInTX Nov 2012 #443

An american made steel tonka truck Demonaut Nov 2012 #444

Most young people will not experience formal dress being the norm in their lives rather than the Midwestern Democrat Nov 2012 #446

Hell, I'm in my 20s and haven't experienced those things. Drunken Irishman Nov 2012 #451

Polio, Child Labor, the Civil War. The Black Plague, the Spanish Inquisition, trepanning, rickets Warren DeMontague Nov 2012 #452

The scandal surrounding the trial of Socrates... Democracyinkind Nov 2012 #458

Honda 305 scrambler Aanenin Nov 2012 #455

Three television stations...if you were lucky. No DVDs or videotapes or "On Demand" -- you had to MADem Nov 2012 #456

Where I'm from... savebigbird Nov 2012 #460

West Coast, right? dixiegrrrrl Nov 2012 #502

My family moved from Kansas to California in 1962. Our Philco TV got three stations in Kansas City. slackmaster Nov 2012 #465

I had this exact discussion with my daughter at Halloween when the Great Pumpkin was on. hughee99 Nov 2012 #468

so true ! I remember very well "suffering" through Lawrence Welk..haha Laura PourMeADrink Nov 2012 #474

Fun thread! savebigbird Nov 2012 #459

pogo sticks GeorgeGist Nov 2012 #464

I can actually participate in this thread, God I feel old. white_wolf Nov 2012 #467

GREAT thread!!! FirstLight Nov 2012 #473

Did anyone else have local record shops? Ours even had a "sound booth"...we would Laura PourMeADrink Nov 2012 #476

Riding in a car with no seat belt or any restraint. Riding with a parent who is drunk as a skunk. raccoon Nov 2012 #479

Yup...my dad still won't go fishing because he has bad memories of going to the CT shore with his Laura PourMeADrink Nov 2012 #480

Part of the reason might have been less people, less cars, less traffic. Remember when raccoon Nov 2012 #488

true...and I guess depending on where you lived mattered a lot too. Like a lot of Laura PourMeADrink Nov 2012 #489

I do not remember my Mom or her sisters ever driving a car! dixiegrrrrl Nov 2012 #497

Actually.... lbrtbell Nov 2012 #481

I actually do think it was better to have the phone ring and not know who it is or to get Laura PourMeADrink Nov 2012 #493

As a millenial i am GLAD i will never experience smoking on an airline. alp227 Nov 2012 #484

No worries, they reserved the back 5 rows of the plane for smokers Laura PourMeADrink Nov 2012 #492

My teacher had to quit teaching school once she started "showing". DawgHouse Nov 2012 #500

The boys took SHOP CLASS, the GIRLS took HOME ECONOMICS.... MADem Nov 2012 #511

Well, at 77 (going on 78), so lets see: clydefrand Nov 2012 #503