The DU Lounge

Myrina

(12,296 posts)

34. Free time & the ability to go exploring alone or w/other kids ...

Thu May 3, 2012, 02:45 PM

May 2012

... nowadays kids are micro-managed to the max and not even allowed to stand at the end of their own driveways to wait for the school bus.

Shit, we used to walk to school and stop at the candy store, or detour to the park on the way home for a couple hours ... nobody disappeared & no parent was freaking out/calling the FBI.

Edit history

Please sign in to view edit histories.

Recommendations

0 members have recommended this reply (displayed in chronological order):

147 replies

= new reply since forum marked as read

Highlight:

5 things you had as a kid, but your kids did not have [View all] SoCalDem May 2012 OP

1. The milkman trof May 2012 #1

ArmorAll'd rear bench seats NightWatcher May 2012 #2

hahahah pipi_k May 2012 #7

Did the "way back" seat face backwards? Archae May 2012 #67

It did!!! pipi_k May 2012 #94

Almost certainly a Ford Country Squire. hifiguy May 2012 #112

You're probably pipi_k May 2012 #128

You know about the freeper and the Country Squire, right? jmowreader May 2012 #147

We never had a station wagon but I remember sleeping on the ledge between A Simple Game May 2012 #64

I was just thinking about how we did that too. Pjs and a pillow on the ledge between the back SammyWinstonJack May 2012 #129

childhood BillStein May 2012 #3

. GeorgeGist May 2012 #4

yikes SoCalDem May 2012 #9

OK... pipi_k May 2012 #5

Banana bike seats (with the accompanying tall handle bars), rotary dial phones, riderinthestorm May 2012 #6

1. Married Parents YankeyMCC May 2012 #8

I remember guitar man May 2012 #10

We still have a rotary dial phone cyberswede May 2012 #41

Wow guitar man May 2012 #47

Awesome! cyberswede May 2012 #60

But the coolest thing by far.... guitar man May 2012 #65

My Aunt lived in a ranch style bungelow and there was a little nook in the snagglepuss May 2012 #73

The standard ring tone on an IPhone pink-o May 2012 #139

Same here; it's a powder blue Princess Phone. Sequoia May 2012 #140

Mine have pogo sticks. HopeHoops May 2012 #11

Ford Falcon with milk crates for back seats... JCMach1 May 2012 #12

First car I bought was a 66 Ford Falcon SCantiGOP May 2012 #53

I drove to Woodstock with my friends in a Ford Falcon wagon kwassa May 2012 #74

It sounds like you were really there. truedelphi May 2012 #123

1. Mumps, 2. Measles. (I don't have kids, but thought I'd chime in on this.) raccoon May 2012 #13

The "children's table" at dinners with family and friends LibDemAlways May 2012 #14

Yeah no tv remotes. Of course there were just a handful of channels so no need to snagglepuss May 2012 #75

Having to repeatedly turn the tv dial manually caused it to fail quickly so that LibDemAlways May 2012 #77

That is a riot. I had no idea anyone else had to situate the dial between two numbers. snagglepuss May 2012 #81

It had to have been a common problem. Those were also the days when LibDemAlways May 2012 #86

My Dad's first career was as a TV repairman. Archae May 2012 #106

Reminded me of another thing treestar May 2012 #121

Interestingly, I was a child of the 80s and lived in SE Asia RFKHumphreyObama May 2012 #133

And if sleepless at night - nothing to do but read a book! treestar May 2012 #136

1. Curb feelers on cars geardaddy May 2012 #15

Bub's Daddy! cyberswede May 2012 #36

I hated Green Apple. geardaddy May 2012 #38

When I was a kid, hockey players didn't wear helmets. GoCubsGo May 2012 #49

I played in the mid-70s geardaddy May 2012 #50

Most of the pros were wearing them by the 1970s, too. GoCubsGo May 2012 #56

I remember goalies without masks. geardaddy May 2012 #59

Gump Worsley hifiguy May 2012 #114

Bingo! geardaddy May 2012 #115

And as a kid, I don't remember baseball players all truedelphi May 2012 #124

Coffee percolators geardaddy May 2012 #52

At my grandmother's house laundry_queen May 2012 #79

And the Canadian hockey players had no teeth siligut May 2012 #66

Yep! geardaddy May 2012 #92

Yeah my kids say I sound old benld74 May 2012 #16

We had UHF channels (14-82) also. PBS and a couple of independent stations. madinmaryland May 2012 #24

... Arugula Latte May 2012 #17

Don't know if anyone pipi_k May 2012 #18

That sounds cool. I don't remember those -- I was a 70s kid. Arugula Latte May 2012 #19

Wow! That's a blast from the past. Another... GoCubsGo May 2012 #57

oh that brings back memories!!!! nadine_mn May 2012 #108

I had one of those but it looked a little more like this: Gidney N Cloyd May 2012 #39

I had one that looked like this: GoCubsGo May 2012 #58

Pretty damn boss as well! Arugula Latte May 2012 #103

Hey, it was free. GoCubsGo May 2012 #107

One Was Shaped Like A Rocket grilled onions May 2012 #61

I always wanted one of those! geardaddy May 2012 #22

It was pretty "boss" if I do say so myself! Arugula Latte May 2012 #26

OMG I had one of those!!! Myrina May 2012 #35

Had the same thing. Called a 'Toot a Loop' Populist_Prole May 2012 #88

Another thing we played with (didn't own, though) ... Arugula Latte May 2012 #104

I thought of another couple. geardaddy May 2012 #20

Isn't it amazing to think we only had 4 flash pics on there! And a roll of 24 pics was awesome. MatthewStLouis May 2012 #33

I loved those cameras. geardaddy May 2012 #40

and the Flip Flash! cyberswede May 2012 #42

Yes! geardaddy May 2012 #44

Yes! pipi_k May 2012 #97

"It's more than a camera, it's almost alive, only nineteen dollars and ninety-five" Gidney N Cloyd May 2012 #127

Open space. Baitball Blogger May 2012 #21

A healthy respect for machines with moving parts gratuitous May 2012 #23

1. A mother Bruce Wayne May 2012 #25

Lawn darts. Archae May 2012 #27

My brother had the "Thingmaker" geardaddy May 2012 #28

Okay Broken_Hero May 2012 #29

Atari, Big Wheel, Sit n Spin,Typewriter, and records. n/t RiffRandell May 2012 #30

I so badly wanted a Big Wheel and a Sit n Spin. geardaddy May 2012 #45

My son got a big wheel for Xmas one year. RebelOne May 2012 #55

There's a company that makes adult-version Green Machines SoCalDem May 2012 #62

Holy crikey. geardaddy May 2012 #90

a few links to try SoCalDem May 2012 #110

Thanks! geardaddy May 2012 #111

more stuff JustABozoOnThisBus May 2012 #31

I'd replace 4 with Saturday Morning cartoons; now they can be 24/7. MatthewStLouis May 2012 #32

Free time & the ability to go exploring alone or w/other kids ... Myrina May 2012 #34

Let's see if I can come up with 5 without hints from others wysimdnwyg May 2012 #37

Afternoon TV WhoIsNumberNone May 2012 #43

That's my childhood, baby! geardaddy May 2012 #51

1. Learning to drive on back roads and your neighbors smiled and waved MerryBlooms May 2012 #46

I learned to drive on I-35 SoCalDem May 2012 #63

Beaut! MerryBlooms May 2012 #68

Wow.. these lists really take me back solara May 2012 #48

Quality food products that were locally made, hifiguy May 2012 #54

I'm too young to have watched Axel geardaddy May 2012 #95

I remember Clancy the Cop and Willie Ketchum like it was yesterday hifiguy May 2012 #98

Allan's He's a super nice guy and a complete liberal geardaddy May 2012 #100

ooh ooh, I remember Axel ! mysuzuki2 May 2012 #141

1960s, but I got a full dose of Axel. hifiguy May 2012 #142

In the front yard before the street lamp came on! MerryBlooms May 2012 #69

Black & White portable tv Tabasco_Dave May 2012 #70

A Chatty Cathy doll. grntuscarora May 2012 #71

Hmmmmm, let's see.........it wasn't all skittles and beer....... Burma Jones May 2012 #72

Cassette tapes Taverner May 2012 #76

ok.. one_voice May 2012 #78

1. Stationery laundry_queen May 2012 #80

omg yarn bows! I haven't thought of those for years. I didn't know snagglepuss May 2012 #82

Yarn bows! LOL cyberswede May 2012 #96

dial up internet fizzgig May 2012 #83

1. Rabbit ears madamesilverspurs May 2012 #84

Not being able to go swimming in August because of polio. The Velveteen Ocelot May 2012 #85

Oh lord do I remember pipi_k May 2012 #99

let's see.. madmom May 2012 #87

Time, Peace, Clean Air, Lack of Fear, A Future. NYC_SKP May 2012 #89

Lack of fear? Not entirely. Remember fear of nuclear war? nt raccoon May 2012 #102

I remember. One nun told us in second grade that none of us would live to see our truedelphi May 2012 #125

Not so much the clean air....... hedgehog May 2012 #119

When was that? When I was a kid we had: The Velveteen Ocelot May 2012 #126

German Measles. HopeHoops May 2012 #91

They first came out with the vaccine when I was in the 3rd grade. GoCubsGo May 2012 #113

Friends And Family Members Stricken With Polio. Paladin May 2012 #93

Well maybe not polio, but I could see a lot of those infectious diseases 4th law of robotics May 2012 #105

so true. that's why i find the anti-vac folk so insanely dangerous. nt La Lioness Priyanka May 2012 #109

Maybe they're just hopelessly nostalgic 4th law of robotics May 2012 #117

I remember the Shriners hospitals caring for children with polio. schmice May 2012 #122

realistic looking toy guns TrogL May 2012 #101

I had a TheCentepedeShoes May 2012 #130

Sports games that lasted for hours SwissTony May 2012 #116

record player, 8-track tapes, transistor radios. lastlib May 2012 #118

Deliveries from milkman / milk box on front porch treestar May 2012 #120

I know where 5 drive-ins are here in TN. Lars39 May 2012 #134

Are they still in business? treestar May 2012 #135

Yep. :-) Lars39 May 2012 #137

Push button gear shift TheCentepedeShoes May 2012 #131

1. An antenna rotator for the tv noamnety May 2012 #132

Lots of free time. yellerpup May 2012 #138

1. Cap guns! chrisa May 2012 #143

Wow... LASlibinSC May 2012 #144

Record Stores alphafemale May 2012 #145

Phone #s with two letter prefixes. BEachwood 4,5,7,8,9 You can call me up and have a date OffWithTheirHeads May 2012 #146