What We Did as Kids....

[Number6]

... that kids don't or hardly do today.


For most of us on this board, our childhoods was from four decades or more. Times change and what we did as a kid is different from what kids do today. So, what did you do as a kid that kids don't do today.

For me, there are a number of things.

Pick up baseball or football games. The only thing organized about them was we kids did the organizing and choosing the teams instead of today where parent drive their kid(s) to the field and there's a coach overseeing everything.

The ice cream truck coming down the street with it's bells jingling or music blaring. If we had been good, our mom would give us some money, usually a quarter, to go out and buy something. Today, I only see an ice cream truck in large population areas, usually around stores.

Playing outside with a gaggle of our friends and no parents around. The only time we saw or heard them is when they called us to come home. In the summer, we'd be outside until about 8 pm.

So, what did you do as a kid?

[gounion]

We can keep such a thread going forever, so I'll just mention one thing that was big for me.

My cousin was eight years older than me, and was like a brother. Most summers we went to the drive-in many times. As I was under 12, I got in free. But his buddies would all get in the trunk. My cousin's car, I don't remember the model, the back cushions of the back seat came down and you could crawl in from the trunk. We would go in, the long dirt road from the street into the theater, my cousin hitting every pothole and the guys in the trunk - sometimes two or three - cussing him, and him saying "shut up, we're almost there" - we weren't - and then going to the back row, letting his buddies in, then moving back up front.

Never got caught. I remember seeing cars park right in front of the concession stand, then a guy gets out, opens the trunk, and a bunch of guys get out. A few minutes later, a guy with a flashlight would come out, and they would have to leave.

They always had a playground in front of the screen. I remember going up and playing with other kids, then as the screen lit up, we'd all run back to our cars!

But I loved movie and drive-ins are a great memory. Of course, in later years, going with girls and getting lucky, paying zero attention to the movie.

In the nineties, there was only one theater left, a double screen. You could listen to the sound on FM from their low-powered transmitter, but the other thing was I'd see people with a pickup bed full of furniture, parking in one spot and taking a second spot with couches and chairs. I found it quite strange.

[rainwater]

moms rules were.."get out of the house! come home when the street lights come on".

living in the start of subdivs at least they had some land and trees around. bikes hikes
skating down new roads...we kids were out all the time.
we had this hill..ridge..tree filled with paths, we'd hang up there til the monstor stories
scared us back down.

im glad im not stuck inside staring at some gadget most of the time as so many kids are.
these young kids cant write spell read add...cursive?...huh?...

[gounion]

Just doing an online quiz, and the phrase "Laughter is the Best Medicine" brought a memory back. I read EVERYTHING as a kid, and my uncle and aunt, who I stayed with at night when my mom worked, had a subscription to many magazines, including Reader's Digest. Anyone remember that? It had several regular features, but one was humorous stories with the aforementioned headline. I certainly didn't read most of the heavily abbreviated book adaptations, but I read a fair number of articles in it.

[ZoWie]

The big news around here is that the schools have pretty much all decided to restrict the use of cell phones. The only question is over whether to have periods of unlimited use between classes, or to silence them for everything but emergency calls.

[Number6]

Just doing an online quiz, and the phrase "Laughter is the Best Medicine" brought a memory back. I read EVERYTHING as a kid, and my uncle and aunt, who I stayed with at night when my mom worked, had a subscription to many magazines, including Reader's Digest. Anyone remember that? It had several regular features, but one was humorous stories with the aforementioned headline. I certainly didn't read most of the heavily abbreviated book adaptations, but I read a fair number of articles in it.

My parents subscribed to The Reader's Digest and I'd start with Laughter is the Best Medicine, the section about life in the military, and the other humorous sections. I remember reading, in the 60s, about the "treasure" buried on Oak Island and now there's a show about two brothers digging for the treasure. During the first season of the show, they both mentioned The Reader's Digest article they read in the 60s that spurred their interest in the treasure.

[Number6]

The big news around here is that the schools have pretty much all decided to restrict the use of cell phones. The only question is over whether to have periods of unlimited use between classes, or to silence them for everything but emergency calls.

I don't have a problem with schools limiting use of cell phones in the classroom. A local TV news report showed how the teachers would prevent cell phone use. They would used something like a canvass sheet with numbered pouches for the students to put their phone in at the start of the class. My concern on this is how does the teacher ensure a student doesn't mistakenly take the wrong cell phone or steals one.

Between classes, at lunch, and recess (for elementary school students) they can use them as much as they want.

[ZoWie]

It does seem like phones in the classroom were becoming a major distraction. Socializing didn't stop with the bell, it simply moved to texting.

[Number6]

My father was the Navy liaison at Sikorsky Aircraft in Connecticut in the early 60s and we rented a house on an acre of land (half of the acre was wooded). In the early 60s, skateboarding was becoming popular and my father made my brother, sister, and me some skateboards out of thick plywood and old metal skates. We'd skateboard down that hill to the bottom, turn right and continue down the road to a bridge over a creek. Anyone back then knew if your wheel hit a small pebble you'd go flying off your skateboard. The only fall we ever had was my sister fell and tore her pants. I do remember one kid from my school decided to try skateboarding the hill with his friend and he ended up breaking his arm. It's amazing we didn't suffer serious injury or get killed.

Today, kids would have to have a helmet, knee and elbow pads.

[Greengrass]

The first skateboards we had we made by breaking down roller skates and attaching them to boards.

[gounion]

I had a skateboard, but they were pretty lame. But in the sixties, my teen cousin would take me with him to the indoor roller skating rink on weekends, and you'd skate for a few hours, then take the skates off and they had a band and we had a sock hop. I mean, I was seven or eight, so I wasn't out dancing much, but the music was awesome. 1966 and 67.

[Glennfs]

I am still recovering from a 2.5 day annual party me and the boys have every labor day. 50 to 60 years later we still all get together frequently.

One sad thing on FB was a meme that went one day you went out to play football with your friends for the last time without knowing it.

We played football, whiffle ball, home run derby baseball with right field closed batting team provided the catch and no blood no foul basketball over 1000 times combined

[gounion]

I remember chasing fireflies as a kid, they were everywhere.

Not anymore. Too bad it's not something that today's kids really get to do.

[Number6]

I remember chasing fireflies as a kid, they were everywhere.

Not anymore. Too bad it's not something that today's kids really get to do.

That's a memory I also have. I catch them in one hand and the put my hands together and peek between my fingers watching the little bug lit up. Or, I'd put them in a jar. I remember I'd chase them for a long ways and through I didn't know it at the time it was good exercise. Where I live, I don't see any fireflies.

[gounion]

That's a memory I also have. I catch them in one hand and the put my hands together and peek between my fingers watching the little bug lit up. Or, I'd put them in a jar. I remember I'd chase them for a long ways and through I didn't know it at the time it was good exercise. Where I live, I don't see any fireflies.

Well, I wouldn’t expect many on the California coast. But I don’t see any ANYWHERE, even out in the country, in the Midwest and south, for many years now. Pesticides have taken their toll on fireflies. I don’t think they are endangered, but there’s a hell of a lot fewer than there were fifty years ago.

[Number6]

Well, I wouldn’t expect many on the California coast. But I don’t see any ANYWHERE, even out in the country, in the Midwest and south, for many years now. Pesticides have taken their toll on fireflies. I don’t think they are endangered, but there’s a hell of a lot fewer than there were fifty years ago.

Remembering back 60 plus years, I'd see the starry night sky and then on the ground the starry woods caused by the fireflies.

[gounion]

Running home to watch Batman on Tuesday and Thursday nights.

Also loved watching Red Skelton. Hilarious! Also remember him signing off with “and may God bless!”

Also remember when I was just six or seven, my aunt, uncle and cousin teaching me to play pitch because they needed a forth!

They were surprised how good a player I became in short order.

i was also a bit of a chess prodigy as a kid. Won a citywide under-16 championship at nine. Then burned out at about ten and didn’t play again until I was an adult. I’m middlin’ decent. Not near what I was at my best as a kid.

Not pretending I was THAT great - had no chances at big tournaments, but pretty good as a kid.

[Number6]

I remember the only book my sister, bothers, and I were eager to read was the winter Sears catalog. We'd go through every page of the toy section noting which ones we wanted. I also liked going to the electronics section to see the TVs, radios, and other gadgets they had.

[gounion]

I remember the only book my sister, bothers, and I were eager to read was the winter Sears catalog. We'd go through every page of the toy section noting which ones we wanted. I also liked going to the electronics section to see the TVs, radios, and other gadgets they had.

Yeah, it was that Sears catalog that convinced me early on that there was no Santa Claus. I think it was around five that I knew I was being snowed.

But I did love that catalog.

And I loved Sears. Kenmore appliances. Craftsman tools. I hate it that stupid, craven and self-serving leadership destroyed the company for their own profit.

[Number6]

Yeah, it was that Sears catalog that convinced me early on that there was no Santa Claus. I think it was around five that I knew I was being snowed.

But I did love that catalog.

Even after I learned there was no Santa Claus I still looked forward to the catalog and it didn't dampen my enthusiasm.

And I loved Sears. Kenmore appliances. Craftsman tools. I hate it that stupid, craven and self-serving leadership destroyed the company for their own profit.

Sears was a one-stop place for shopping. Clothing, shoes, toys, electronics, appliances, automotive, tools, lawn/garden supplies, etc.. Their main problem was they didn't update their stores or retail model and remained stuck in the early 70s mode. I still have 60-piece Craftsman socket/wrench set I bought about 40 years ago.

[rainwater]

we read books too....all the bobsey twins the hardy boys the...nancy drew series...the library was a big deal for us.
i was reading leon uris at 12yrs old.....if i brought home big thick books i didnt have to deal much then with the
rest of..them.

[Number6]

we read books too....all the bobsey twins the hardy boys the...nancy drew series...the library was a big deal for us.
i was reading leon uris at 12yrs old.....if i brought home big thick books i didnt have to deal much then with the
rest of..them.

I remember in grade school, there was a reading program in our classroom where we were challenged to read X-number of books from a large set. There were about 50 books which were probably 20 - 40 pages long with fairly large print. I remember finishing about three of them a week.

In high school, our English teacher gave us the first 15 minutes of class to read any book we wanted. That was a great way to get us to read by not having to study English.

[Greengrass]

Even after I learned there was no Santa Claus I still looked forward to the catalog and it didn't dampen my enthusiasm.


Sears was a one-stop place for shopping. Clothing, shoes, toys, electronics, appliances, automotive, tools, lawn/garden supplies, etc.. Their main problem was they didn't update their stores or retail model and remained stuck in the early 70s mode. I still have 60-piece Craftsman socket/wrench set I bought about 40 years ago.

And Sears didn’t manufacture Kenmore Aplliances nor Craftman Tools.

[Number6]

And Sears didn’t manufacture Kenmore Aplliances nor Craftman Tools.

You're right, Sears didn't manufacture Kenmore or Craftsman Tools but they did sell them but both are synonymous with Sears.

[rainwater]

i wish i still had my kenmore washer dryer. 20years and all it ever needed was one belt.
repair guy said all he does is replace control panels on the new elec crap.

sears was an inadvertent model for the cost co walm monstor. while sears to me always
felt like it was giving, offering, something to the community-- a handy place to get most
anything you needed from tools to undies-- walm never felt that way.
when the walm monstor came along it felt to me like it would, it was, taking from the community.
there was an overwhelming feeling i didnt like as it took over town after town.

i recall seeing large wagons at checkout Stuffed with crap all now available at walm, tables piles and
piles of crap. walm is like a holding center for crap eventually headed for china or the
pacific ocean.
who makes all this small plastic crap...and why. is that lil doll with the deranged head really
needed for sale at this point?....