Children of the 70s and 80s—What Do You Miss About Life Back Then Compared to Now?

I was born in 1983.

I truly yearn for the days before the internet.

Evil Republicans, same as always.

The music

I liked my clothes.

Tiny TV screens with really bad color and resolution.

I loved writing letters.

I read more books.

Life was groovy!

Unsupervised outdoor play with other kids in the neighborhood. In the summer we would be outside all day, my Mom had an old cowbell she had bought for 25 cents at a yard sale that she would ring for us at dinner time.

Those pointy jazz shoes. Shoulder pads on linen blazers. Ray-bans. David Lynch.

Moderate Dems and moderate Reps

I miss not being connected to everything and everyone 24/7.

And, yes, I know we can still "unplug," but that's now the exception not the rule.

I feel like growing up you had a sense of optimism—that so many things were possible, and that a decent life was in reach if you worked hard. Now, people seems very jaded and cynical about the state of the world, and rightfully so.

I feel no nostalgia for the 70s/80s.

I would never want to go back to those bad TVs -- or not having the Internet.

I would never want to go back to watching people die from AIDs.

Music videos

People not being nearly as ideologically and politically divided as they are now.

People not having huge TVs blasting all over the house that they don't turn off or even mute when visitors come over.

There were problems with just having The Big Three networks, but it made you feel more connected and a part of something because everybody watched almost the same things. When "V" and the Mash finale aired, I swear *everybody* watched and then discussed them the next day. Now it's all very splintered.

The music.

Movies about adult humans rather than superheroes or caricatures.

One thing I don’t miss is gym which was often humiliating. They wouldn’t get away with that today and I bet you could use more excuses today to get out of it because schools are afraid of offending.

I miss the close friendships I had back then, like Richard Dreyfus says in Stand By Me you never will have as close of friends when you get older (for me that is true)

Nudity in locker rooms.

I love how Mr. Brown and Mr. Print in OP's pic are really getting into the jazz hands, but Mr. Bespectacled can barely force himself to bend his wrists.

People not perpetually hunched over a mobile phone like I am now.

R14 in my teens (mid 80’s) my friends and I always had MTV on in the background. Now I never even turn it on.

Back then guys could change in the locker room without an elaborate towel dance. .

What kept you, R13?

[quote]People not being nearly as ideologically and politically divided as they are now.

This is true, but we still had a glib, Republican asshole in the White House who was pointedly ignoring a pandemic.

So not so different.

I miss New York of the seventies. I would visit there when I was four or five, and it was the most thrilling place on earth. I loved the noise and excitement and even though I was too young to identify it, the seediness of Times Square. There were coffee shops with counters : “Chock Full O Nuts”, cheap theatre tickets, automats, and really glamorous department stores, like Henri Bendels. I would give anything to go into a time machine and walk around Manhattan in 1972.

Saturday morning cartoons, strolling the Toys R Us aisles for the latest He-Man, G.I. Joe and Transformers, Must See TV - Diff'rent Strokes, Facts of Life, Webster, Growing Pains, MTV, Madonna and Michael Jackson, riding my bike with friends and cooling off with a glass of Cherry Kool Aid, not having to worry about jobs or money. Such a great time to be a kid.

R25 must be my age.

42, R26

Are you not allowed to play outside unsupervised anymore R8?

A sense of hope

R21 -- you haven't started one of your "Gen Zs Do The Towel Dance And Won't Let Me Gawk At Their Cocks" threads in a while. Give up or just busy?

It was a struggle to find fapping material.

News media that simply covered the news.

Hope and optimism.

Wholesome family TV shows.

Crowded shopping malls on the weekends.

People actually engaging in conversation with one another.

An upscale, dignified sense of glamor.

Pantyhose

Quirky TV commercials.

A culture that demanded talent

I was in my late teens/early 20s during Watergate, and never once feared for democracy or felt as threatened and dispirited by what is going on with our government as I do now. It is truly frightening to watch this shit unfold before our eyes, the assault on the US Constitution that began with Ronnie Raygun and his buddies and continues with Trump and his henchmen.

Everything was so basic. Want to shop? Go to the mall. Music? Radio, tape player or record player. Books? Go to the library or bookstore. News? Read the daily paper. Movie? Go to the theater.

TV was mostly an evening thing, and we had about 8 channels to choose from. Your entertainment was chosen for you, in a way.

I remember how novel it was when calculators became commonplace. Teachers thought students would cheat on math tests!

How about “Men Over 30 Who Get Naked In The Locker Rooms While Changing Must Be Old Pervs Trying to Look At My Twentysomething Weenie”?

I had no idea of what anyone’s politics were and the news was actual facts instead of talking heads giving their opinions in grudge matches.

I miss my Ernie shirt.

What I miss about the '70's & '80s:

No P.C. culture No BLM stooges No shitty Hip Hop permeating the culture No social media Great looking cars ('70s) Most people height/weight proportioned A dollar went A LOT further

[quote] I would visit there when I was four or five, and it was the most thrilling place on earth.

This is one of the anomalies of DL: so many of you seem to remember in vivid detail, things that happened when you were that age.

I am 36 and most of my memories of that era are things I've been told about/seen photos and videos of (family trips, etc.)

But so many of you can remember everything from the feelings of visiting NYC to the intricacies of the plots of various TV shows

^^that age, not that era, lol

[quote] What I miss about the '70's & '80s: No P.C. culture No BLM stooges No shitty Hip Hop permeating the culture No social media Great looking cars ('70s) Most people height/weight proportioned A dollar went A LOT further

What I miss about the '70's & '80s: White people being in charge and not having to think about the coloreds

Fixed and shortened

R25 must be around my age of 47.

[quote]Wholesome family TV shows.

Are you with One Million Moms?

A) was thinking that too R43

B) There are entire channels (Disney, Nick) of "wholesome family TV shows"

[quote]Are you with One Million Moms?

And the obligatory reply.

No dear. I just don't think the entire culture should be steeped in one dimensional mean spirited, cynicism.

You can have a wholesome family show with two gay or lesbian parents. I'm not talking about phony Republican family values crap. Family Ties, Diffrent Strokes, Facts of Life, Webster weren't made by Republicans.

Nobody can write a decent heartwarming moment these days if their careers depended upon it.

Just about everything. I could never have imagined how awful both the world and this country (and its people) would become. Internet and cell phones are the worst things ever to have been invented.

Grew up in the 70s.

Today there’s too much choice, and everything’s too easy. I used to do a lot more than I do now because a little glowing rectangle offers me too much too easily.

When a really good movie was in theaters I treasured it. Now it might divert me briefly, but with hundreds of channels and virtually the entire body of film available to watch whenever, wherever, what’s one good movie? It’s just a commodity.

The internet has taken craziness mainstream. There have always been dumb people and/or weirdos but the internet and social media make it so much easier to reach and control vast numbers of them.

On balance the digital revolution seems more like a counterrevolution.

For me i think it was just the freedom to go oht and play. Too many scheduled activities and playdates.

Pubes

Nothing. Dreadful times.

[post redacted because linking to dailymail.co.uk clearly indicates that the poster is either a troll or an idiot (probably both, honestly.) Our advice is that you just ignore this poster but whatever you do, don't click on any link to this putrid rag.]

No helicopter parenting. I vividly remember when my parents would drop me and my friends off at the local mall on a Saturday morning. Then we'd explore everywhere on our own, eat at the food court and do a lot of kid stuff. We were 12, 13 years old. Then one of our parents would pick us up at 3 or 4 in the afternoon and we'd make it home for dinner. That would be unthinkable for today's pre-teen/young teen crowd. And it's such a shame because those days really sowed the seed of my independence.

Another thing great about growing up in the 1970s was NO SOCIAL MEDIA!! No cell phones. People actually had conversations with each other and were not constantly distracted by their phones. Also, if you did anything awful or embarrassing, it wouldn't be captured on social media and continue to haunt you the rest of your life. Thank god!

I also really loved spending hours in record stores like Sam Goody's (and later Virgin Records). I miss those days.

Nixon and Reagan. Vietnam and AIDS. Pass.

The 80s were the beginning of the end for kids. Adam Walsh. Milk carton kids.

Poetry readings about female empowerment—gathering together to talk about Herstory—and listening to Janis Ian records. Now all we do together is go on Olivia cruises.

Try the DIsney Channel R45

R13 exactly. Catching and dying of the aids was in fashion but not very fun.

The independence of youth. We were allowed to make mistakes and find our way. Our parents were not our friends. You made your way and establishes self confidence that you could care for yourself.

The cigarette vending machines. My sister and I would go and pull every single knob and sometimes a pack of matches would fall out.

Every conversation didn’t devolve into and argument about politics or racism.

You laugh, R28, but I believe that a huge part of the poor mental health and lack of resiliency we’re seeing in young people today is due to the lack of “lord of the flies“ type unsupervised play experiences growing up.

When kids have a disagreement during “play dates” now, the adults come and solve it. That did not used to happen, kids were forced to work things out. I’m times that involved name calling and punching. It wasn’t always pretty but you learned from it.

[quote] I also really loved spending hours in record stores like Sam Goody's (and later Virgin Records). I miss those days.

Tower Records for me.

One thing I miss is putting an LP on the record player and listening it from start to finish. Often you'd discover a track that wasn't being played on the radio that you really liked and you'd want to share it with your friends. But they'd have to come over and listen to it because they didn't have that album. And then they'd bring records of their own for you to listen to. And you'd lie on the living room floor (shag carpeting, if you please) listening to records and reading the liner notes until your mother would say, 'Billy, your mother just called, time to go home for dinner.'

Kids could occupy themselves all day on the weekends & summer. Our neighborhood convenience stores had arcade games, & you could also rent video games & movies. You had to give your address, phone number & parents name to get an "account", all accounts & checkout records were just in a big binder behind the counter. You'd pick the game case from the rack & bring it to the counter, they'd get the game cassette out & put it in the case. Due back in four days! If a game was checked out you'd call your friends to see if they checked it out. If they did, "can I come over?!" Then there were the collectible cards, especially Garbage Pail Kids. Going to the store ALL THE TIME to see if the new series was out. Also, trying to peek at the adult magazines.

I miss the jumble sales and charity shops and the thrill of finding some old designer shirt from the 1960s or even the 50s for 10p. When I go now it's all mass produced rubbish. Maybe the bargains are still there and I just don't spot them anymore but I think the vintage stores have cornered that market.

[quote]You can have a wholesome family show with two gay or lesbian parents. I'm not talking about phony Republican family values crap. Family Ties, Diffrent Strokes, Facts of Life, Webster weren't made by Republicans.

They were shitty sitcoms. I do not miss shitty sitcoms.

You can still find "wholesome family shows" -- there are whole channels for them, which makes it convenient for me to ignore such mawkish drivel.

What I miss most about life back in the 70s and 80s? The people who were in my life then -- my parents, my grandmother, other relatives, and friends -- and who are not alive today. I've written before on another thread about this. If I could go back, I'd go back to a Sunday afternoon circa 1980. I was a junior/senior in high school. My older brothers were off in college or medical school. My younger brother and I were still home. My Mom would be there fixing dinner after she had prepared her courses for the week (mathematician). My grandmother would come over for dinner, bringing her copy of the Sunday Times crossword to compare with my Dad. My Dad would be watching a game on TV. It really was heaven! I miss them so much now.

Social media, mobile phones, and technology have connected us more, but as other previous posters note, they have deepened our divisions. We had Walkmen to tune out the world, but we didn't tune out each other. We are becoming more and more isolated from all but an ever smaller circle.

Other stuff I miss: listening to the radio...102.7 FM in NY. Going to a record store and browsing through the records...Going to a book store and spending hours there.

Seeing good-looking and athletic guys in tight, faded Levis. I can still see a few of those beautiful, denim-encased butts in my memory.

Yes—I share a house with a gamer, and I know the WiFi is down or he needs something because it’s the only time you hear from him—and the only time he leaves the house. Otherwise, in-person interactions are a perceived annoyance and only interfere with virtual reality.. That’s why I don’t interact with him anymore and largely pretend he doesn’t exist, because I know in his world, I don’t either.

Pantyhose, R32? For real? GTFOH

“ Unsupervised outdoor play with other kids in the neighborhood.”

Considering the number of serial killers on the loose then, this was very unwise

[quote]Internet and cell phones are the worst things ever to have been invented.

The internet was a blast in the mid to late 90's. the vintage AOL chat rooms were something else. Even MySpace and early Facebook wasn't that bad.

Today's "Social media" is an oxymoron like jumbo fish. There's nothing social about Instagram and Twitter. People just want echo chambers or create vanity scrapbooks to placate their own egos.

Grew up in the 70s. Life seemed slower back then. Less harried. I also miss the "excitement" of discovering music as a teenager (Jethro Tull, Cat Stevens, Joni Mitchell, Led Zepplin, Pink Floyd, Moody Blues etc etc). We weren't into labels - clothing labels, watches, headsets, - things must have fashion house labels now to have general societal value. I miss Johnny Carson -I'd stay up Friday nights to watch because it was so late during the week. I also miss the old comedians like Bob Hope. Didn't eat junk food back then - ever.

The kids would stay off of my lawn!

Nonsense, r68. Getting taken by a serial killer was about as likely as getting struck by lightning. It was so unusual that we never heard about it. Then when a few cases were publicized, everyone entirely changed the nature of childhood . Overreaction.

Without the internet there would be no Datalounge

R73, it would have been a live sewing circle.

Footnote to r70 note: People seem more neurotic or unable to manage their emotions it seems nowadays. Cowell reported today having "healing crystals" in his hospital room. Chrissy Teigen (sp?) deleted a million tweets today. Meghan Markle is now a non-stop professional ranter or victim. Harry Windsor cries in public, trashes his family out in the open for all to see. Tom Cruise, Will Smith and their all-encompassing, celebrity megawatt "religions." Kardashian fortunes built on "porn-star" level marketing of tits, lip fillers, hair extensions, makeup and trendy "colored" babies.

R72 is probably right. And it's not like we had no restrictions, even if we did ignore them. We were way more likely to be hit by cars while riding our bikes.

I miss life before social media and the repeal of the Fairness Doctrine.

Serial killers usually killed older people, often crimes of opportunity like targeting hitchhikers. Only dummies would ever hitchhike nowadays and due to Covid, hardly anyone is stumbling around drunk after the bars close either. Poor serial killers! What are they doing nowadays?

OP's pic has a shot of Ellen, fourth from right.

With the surveillance cameras and scientific forensics, they’ve taken all the fun out of being a serial killer.

I miss doing prank calls

Not having to pay any bills. The 70's were a heyday for malls, so it was always fun going there. Arcades. Atari. Sled riding - I live in Ohio and we're not really getting many snowy days to go ride a sled. In fact I can't recall the last time I saw sleds available in the department stores at all. Trick or Treating, Haunted Houses, Haunted Woods attractions. Birthday parties at Pizza Hut. McDonalds and Burger King also used to host birthday parties. Building forts in the woods. Riding around on my dirt bike.

Trick or treating on Halloween. No parents, no limits on what you could accept (homemade cookies or apples were fine), just running around with your friends pulling very mild pranks and pretending to be scared of one certain shabby house on your block.

Just being younger and partying without immediate, bad consequences. Drinking / dancing in clubs, smoking cigarettes (including the clove cigs), cocaine. New Wave dance music. Plus, tanning in the sun, no sunscreen. No worrying about wrinkles, gray hair, etc. Lots of sex. (Yes, a lot of this was foolish.)

Bad side: Lots and lots of pressure about how you're going to make a living.

I think you guys are forgetting that the 70s and 80s had their major problems. It wasn't as carefree as what I see described above. Some things are better now.

Of course that era had problems. Stagflation, the oil crisis, Vietnam, AIDS. We all know that, but that isn't what the OP asked for. He wanted positive memories, things we miss. Maybe the people who pop in to tell us that everything wasn't so great way back when should create their own thread.

[quote] and pretending to be scared of one certain shabby house on your block.

The one with the serial killer?

It felt we were defined by the music we listened to, and there was often hostility based solely on that difference.

Lots of pressure on how you would make a living? Really? I would think it’s worse now. Seemed like you could live in NYC and be creative and get by back then. Post-80s would seem worse.

Today's kids definitely don't have it better. I know that's what every generation thinks, but c'mon. Today's kids have their parents hovering over them every second. Their school year is longer and they have more homework. Social media means bullying takes place 24/7, not just during the school day. They're taught from infancy to be fearful of other people and of doing things on their own. And now there's Covid to really fuck things up for them.

What's on the bright side? Well, no question it's easier to be gay these days. Other than that...I don't know. YouTube?

Why does someone like R53 show up in every 80s thread? And this is one for CHILDREN of the 70s and 80. No kids were thinking about Vietnam or AIDS, sorry. And they probably knew Nixon from Family Ties and Mrs. Ronald Regann from Diff'rent Strokes.

TV Guide. More than 4 afternoon soap operas.

R68 A lot more people die from suicide than are murdered by serial killers. Fresh air, sunshine, exercise, and socializing with other people all help fight depression.

I don't miss one fucking thing from the 70s or 80s.

Would I have done some things differently with advanced knowledge? Sure. Would I want to go backwards to do those things? No.

That period of time what what I knew then, the period when I moved away from my family to university and to start a life on my own, in new places, with new people, and with possibilities I was unaware of. My life changed immensely in that time and I'm grateful for those changes, good and bad. It was an amazing chunk of my life but if it taught me anything it taught me that fear had few rewards and bold moves many, to venture outward not to withdraw inward...and to look forward, not to inhabit the world of fondness for an imagined past of lost opportunity or maudlin sentimentality.

Swiping the even numbered plate from your friend's car, taking off your odd numbered plate, and substituting his even numbered plate to buy gas so you can go to the shore on an even numbered gas purchase day.

In the summer, I'd go down to the lake with my BFF and her family.

We would water ski or swim all day then sleep on the houseboat deck or roof under a million stars.

Other times, I would ride my bike about three miles down country roads to get to a tiny store and buy a bunch of candy then ride my bike back.

We rode horses or caught frogs in the ponds all day, played flashlight tag at night or caught fireflies in an old glass jar with holes poked in the lid.

In the colder months, all of the kids in the surrounding area would meet up and play baseball, football and go sledding when it snowed.

We were ALWAYS outside either playing or doing chores. NONE of us was fat. We were too active. Kids today don't have that. They don't like being outside and seem afraid of noises in the night.

They mostly miss out on the socialization and teamwork with other kids.

R95, how did the frogs and the fireflies feel?

Full bush.

R94, I bet the under 40 set are thinking what the hell is she talking about!?

The Magic Pan restaurants

Phil Donahue and Sally Jesse Raphael on my TV.

PTL Club on my mom’s TV

VHS porn on my dad’s TV VCR

I miss going into a drug store (or a sundry store at the shore in Jersey) and seeing a rack of comic books and a wall full of magazines . I would have to be very selective to choose what I could buy with what little money I had, so whatever I bought I probably read over and over again. I loved reading. Nowadays with the internet you can "read" for eternity but there was something special about only having access to limited content and having to choose it carefully.

R101 I bet you jacked off to the same skin mag for years and years. Cheap ass!

1974 baby here.

I miss my own ignorance as a kid, where things could be really scary but other things like magic and heaven were real possibilities.

I also miss that there was just a lot less HYPE over stupid pop culture shit, and people weren’t so self-absorbed with social media.

I miss passing through moms pussy

MAD magazine

Prince, Queen, Bowie ...

I miss Tower Records. Used to be so exciting going and getting music and looking through stuff. Also miss smaller music stores where you could find live CDs - was so exciting.

Miss life before the internet.

Red Barn and Burger Chef restaurants.

Seeing ads in the TV Guide for Halloween and Friday the 13th movies and talking myself out of watching them and then of course tuning in and watching through my hands.

I think what I miss the most, is people talking to each other in person. People don’t communicate the way they used to, they don’t learn from each other the way they used to.

I miss being hopeful about the future. Life has become a dystopian quagmire of existential dread.

Mom always being at home. While we played and wandered outside unsupervised, we also knew mom was always at home and not going anywhere.

Someone mentioned Magic Pan! I LOVED Magic Pan when I was a kid. My mom used to always take me to the Magic Pan when it was the last day of school. It was her way of celebrating the end of one school year.

R113 I’m a magic pansexual!

I grew up in LA and was a teen in the 80's. I miss waiting for rush hour to die down (by 10 AM) and driving to Venice beach to hang out with hippies and weirdos. Before Venice changed into the ghastly mess it has been over the past 2 decades.

Oh and we would leave by 4 PM to avoid rush hour.

It's too easy to see a naked man now. Type in a few keywords in Google; you can see dozens of pictures of nude men to your liking.

I hated gym class, but it was a reward to see the other guys in the showers twice a week, especially if there are a few new guys in class. I knew who had the biggest cocks, the heaviest balls, the oversized bushes, and also those guys who were lacking in these qualities. And I still remember!

Waiting for the newest Playgirl to come out; I would get eager two weeks before. To think you could actually see a real celebrity you know off unashamed and naked in those first few years. Every month, you saw the clothed pictures of the monthly centerfold model first, so you could ponder in your imagination what he looked like naked (and it was thrilling), and then you turned the page and knew if you were right or not. I still think the men who got naked for Playgirl are hotter than today's men who do. PG looked for gorgeous men with a nice cock, a big bush and a buff body.

Occasionally I would see the lifeguards in the showers at the swimming club we joined when I was 8 to 15 years old. They would soap up their thick pubes and flop their dicks around. I had to go into a toilet cubicle at times, so I wouldn't reveal the thoughts I was thinking.

Those moments were so exciting because I couldn't just get naked images on demand. Somehow that thrill has been lost.

I miss the one armed jumpsuits Halston used to make for me.

I was a spoiled child.

I miss my Calvins.

I miss After School Specials and a very special episode of any series that always dealt with a sensitive topic.

I remember this one was a scandal — and they creepy choral theme song

R1 I was born in 1980, and I agree. I love online shopping, and communication. But I dislike what it's done to erode our social, and personal sensibilities.

Tuition at the local, private, 2-year junior college was $30 per credit. The text books cost about $20. The local, public community college was $20 per credit. This was the very early '80s.

Weed in the mid-'70s was $5 for a nickle bag. It was a GOOD nickle bag, too.

PORN 'STACHES!!!!! Body hair on men!! Tight Levi jeans...mmmmmmmmmmmmm.

Fast food was actually good. And was cooked a minute or so before you ate it.

Howard Johnson's

I remember how delicious Burger King food seemed to me when I was a kid in the 1970s. Maybe because it always reminds me of my beloved late father who always used to take me there on the nights my mother was working late.

What a sad thread.

I've noticed that many DLers seem overly nostalgic for their childhoods.

I wonder if that's a result of not really moving on from them--never marrying, having children, seeing the cycle repeat.

No, asswipe r126. It was a thread about nostalgia you idiot. Look at the title.

Sad to me are your milestones. Marrying, kids, etc....

I feel bad for you for not being able to move on from your troglodyte thinking. That only those things define adulthood and lifetime accomplishment.

What a small, narrow person you must be.

R126 🙄 alright you're so special and unique, you never ever get nostalgic. Happy now? Moving on...

I miss population being much lower. Tired of looking at hideous (over) developments, that destroy all the good things, like trees, fields, flowers, and so on. Then the homeowners are crying when coyotes, deer, and other wildlife are eating their gardens, nesting in their homes, etc. Not one single park, creek, or trail, that's not full of pompous fucks, nor a single road, not full of obnoxious cyclists, all giving dirty looks because they choose to use roads with higher speed limits, and no shoulders.

I miss banks giving mortgages on homes that need TLC and a vision. I miss prices being what they should be and the ability to be middle class without needed a piece of paper "worth" $50,000- $100,000.

I miss basic vehicles, without computers that fail. I miss vehicles not turning off and restarting at red lights 🙄 (ironically not saving much gas and damaging the starter much quicker.) I miss a brand new car being maybe a third of a yearly income, instead of costing an entire year or two. Same with homes being a 3rd of the cost.

I miss when products and services weren't complete shit. Items from 50 years ago still working, while cheap plastic products can break immediately. Don't let them fool you, there's been no savings passed down to consumers by sending jobs away and using cheap materials. They marked up the cheap garbage and keep the "savings". Same with service. They used to give a shit if customers were ripped off. The BBB was defanged, like almost all accountability, because there's too many other people that will keep buying crap.

Just think of cell phones costing more every year, even though they haven't changed all that much in years, and are made by slave wages. Can't even purchase a shit brand laptop for under $700.

I miss privacy, where people weren't constantly snapping pics or taking videos, without consent in public. Or these cameras in every store, street, stop light, toll booths, or every other yard.

I miss when many jobs would provide insurance that actually mattered -- full plans, with dental, rarely copayments, and not costing 10% or more of income. When doctors had time to give a shit...

I really think it goes back to there being just too many people, and no one caring about anything anymore except for superficiality. I miss the fight people used to have -- for better wages, to fight companies, to fight tax burdens on those that are struggling (while the wealthiest get more and more tax breaks.)

R128, I don't know why you are nostalgic for the low cost of laptops in the 1970s and 1980s. The first Mac was 1989 and cost over $7000. The first IBM with a CD-rom drive was 1994 and cost over $4000. A 1983 TRS-100 by Kyocrra-Tandy-Microsoft had a liquid crystal display smaller than an XL mobile phone and started at $1100. A 1981 Osborne 1 cost $1800 and weighed 23 lbs.

And there are plenty of "shit brand" laptops today that cost half or less of the $700 you quote; or you can buy a chromebook for one-third you budget.

I loved loved loved my Osborne 1 back in 1981.

R126 must have had an unhappy childhood, starts an I Hate Christmas thread every year and bashes Disney, Halloween and every other fun thing for a kid like so many on here.

Lol r128. I was issued the compaq luggable that ran Real World accounting software.

Nowadays, I work with different ERP software offerings like SAP and Dynamics based Offerings. At their core, they aren’t that different. But the flashy reporting and analysis tend to get the tongues on the table.

That you lived your life surrounded by actual people, you went to the mall, the movies and hung out with friends as a past time.

The joy of discovery, wether it was something tangible you found while out shopping or going to the library to read or research something.

I appreciate technology and how it has connected the world but at the same time I mourn the simpler times when you were immersed in life vs viewing it virtually.

I fear that younger generations will not be as resilient, they fear the unknown, confrontations and have poor interpersonal skills. They have trouble problem solving and place to high a value on being being liked by their peers.

People are becoming to coddled, we are constantly being protected from ourselves it seems.

R133 STFU, Mary. What happens to other people is absolutely none of your business.

Record stores have been mentioned and it's not something I actively miss, but having to chase after good music made it seem more special. You heard something on college radio or read a review of some new band and then you had to search for it--hoping to find it at your local store. Flipping through the albums at the indie record shop near my campus was such a thrill (also because I had a crush on the guy behind the counter).

Those kids in OP's photo look like they're about to burst into a rendition of "Sunshine Day."

Which is now being used to advertise free-range chickens.

Encyclopedias.

We had two different sets. It was so easy to be looking up something for class and be distracted by some other topic / entry that helped you learn about something even more interesting (and would be relevant later). Sidney J. Harris, the syndicated columnist, had a recurring feature titled, 'Things I Learned En Route to Looking Up Other Things.'. I could relate.

cultural consensus - the home, the school, and the religious institution working together to teach more or less the same set of values to children, and to reinforce instead of undermine each other

television was another factor in this, that most people watched the same thing

i miss there being fewer people

i miss teachers having authority (yes, there were bad teachers back then too, but lots of great ones) instead of our student-as-consumer model today where everything is the teacher's fault

i miss the loonies being on the fringe, and everyone knowing they were nuts, instead of centerstage with non-fact based points of view getting the same or more coverage than the truth

i miss equal time/fairness doctrine in media re: politics

i miss people being more literate, items having words on them instead of a series of pictures for the directions

i miss greed not being a national virtue, and poor people being viewed as people we should try to help instead of as lazy moochers

i miss the higher tax rate on the super wealthy

[quote] People are becoming to coddled,

Oh dear

I am sure every generation misses whatever they associate with their childhood, unless of course they had a less than idyllic one. DLers in 20 years will be waxing nostalgically about their smart phones.

Was THAT ‘70s SHOW accurate?

R142, Swingtown was much more accurate.

i miss teachers having authority (yes, there were bad teachers back then too, but lots of great ones) instead of our student-as-consumer model today where everything is the teacher's fault

This is why I quit teaching. Imagine reasoning Trump’s actions with his MAGAs and that’s what it’s like dealing with most students’ parents. They will rationalize even the most inane things to excise their child and blame the teacher.

*excuse

I loved Swingtown.

I miss old style voting booths with curtains, so dramatic.

I miss the optimism, even after Watergate, even after the Energy Crisis. People were dissatisfied, but I don't remember a sense of doom; maybe that's because I was still a kid.

I miss Hershey chocolate bars with almonds that contained several almonds and not just slivers.

I loved "Swingtown," too. I was 13 in 1976 and I thought "Swingtown" captured the era beautifully.

[quote] Encyclopedias. We had two different sets. It was so easy to be looking up something for class and be distracted by some other topic / entry that helped you learn about something even more interesting (and would be relevant later). Sidney J. Harris, the syndicated columnist, had a recurring feature titled, 'Things I Learned En Route to Looking Up Other Things.'. I could relate.

I suspect you can get the same buzz and then some from a site called Wikipedia R138

You all are assuming many things about younger people that are not true.

No, you can't pick up Wikipedia and flip through it. I learned a lot from using actual reference books. Encyclopedias and big, unabridged dictionaries fueled my education. The internet is great; but books have merit.

I only used our encyclopedias once to look up sexual genitalia, female

But you can take Wikipedia with you everywhere you go, you don't have to put it back on the shelf, and it has at least 20X more entries than an encyclopaedia. All of which are updated regularly

With Wikipedia you can't sit in a quiet corner and cozy up with a heavy, ink-fragrant book with tissue-thin pages, and have the same feeling of being all alone in the world, just you and the book, which you could then "sink into" in your imagination, and not be connected to the world through the internet.

R153, is that post a joke? If so, you need to read R154. Besides the fact that half of Wikipedia is now lefty ideology and edit wars, and constant pitching for donations. You need quiet and atmosphere to be able to really THINK about the information you're accessing. That's worth more than quick access to info.

The vast majority of what is in Wikipedia is apolitical R155.

And my computer does not talk to me. Nor is it a musty out of date book.

It's a generational thing I guess.

I'm getting off your lawn now

Born in '79, I pity anyone born later than 1990 or so.

R156, I am ancient, and I much prefer Wikipedia and reading on my kindle to r154's "heavy, ink-fragrant book with tissue-thin pages."

"Ink-fragrant" = "headache giving."

Card catalogs

"I've noticed that many DLers seem overly nostalgic for their childhoods. I wonder if that's a result of not really moving on from them--never marrying, having children, seeing the cycle repeat."

We grew up. We live our own lives. We don't need to live childhood over through offspring.

I feel like life is becoming too needlessly complicated: faster, streamlined, impersonal... and why? It's leaving many people behind. How soon before we can't do anything ourselves anymore, but have to ask an expert for help?

TV movies of the week

The feeling of looking forward to the future and the excitement of getting older and being grown up, the feeling that anything was possible.

Real journalism.

The Sunday New York Time Magazine and Arts section

It's always hard for me to answer these threads because I had an unhappy childhood. It's hard for me to pick out happy times, memories, things, etc though undoubtedly, I experienced some of those things. Even in small amounts. Having said that...

Books and really, long in depth reading sessions. Remember reading in bed and getting yelled at to turn off the bed lamp or flashlight?

I miss Christmas TV, when all the classics were shown on network and local channels. Not the crappy hallmark/lifetime channel stuff. Then it changed a few years back and the classics were only on cable tv and since I didn't have cable anymore, Christmas time didn't have that holiday atmosphere anymore. It happened over the years and finally I asked, what the heck happened to Christmas TV. And I don't even celebrate Christmas really or a Christian. I know there is still some of the old movies and tv shows but not in the mass that permeates a whole season. I just missed that marker that made the time between Thanksgiving and Christmas different from the other 11 months of the year.

The last few years I wised up and have tried to create that tv environment. First I would stream Christmas movies on Youtube--loved finding the Alistair Sims' A Christmas Carol and the musical version with Albert Finney. Then I put Roku to good use and there are plenty of free channels that have Christmas content. And also the few years there has been an explosion of tv stations and they only air old movies and tv shows. Good Christmas time content.

I miss being in a soldout movie theater where everyone paid attention to the screen for two entire hours. There was a collective suspension of disbelief. Sure, occasionally, there was the asshole or cunt, but it's not like it is now. Now (pre-Covid of course), I very rarely go the cinema and when I do, I try to go to shows with smaller audiences. And when I get to my seat, I expect and accept there will be someone directly to my left, right or in front of me who will be on their phone.

Watch the Virgin Suicides, Aside from the plot, it gives a good feel for growing up at that time. And it’s a good movie.

Example of earlier, simpler times. - In Canada, on the Canadian National Broadcasting (CBC) national coast to coast **live**9:00 pm newscast, ending at 10:00 pm, the anchor would thank the audience then say staring straight into the camera: "Do you know where your children are?" It was said in a comforting, folksy, charming, warm, fatherly way. This was probably very early 70s (starting in the 60s). It was funny and also comforting to hear an adult say that to families looking at the evening news. Felt like news and family were closer in a weird way.

Another good bittersweet 80s nostalgia movie

It's hard to find contemporary shows/movies that capture the 80's. And it's not necessarily because they do a poor job (although many suck), but because I grew up in that decade and have a certain memory imprint which the shows and movies can't quite capture. I imagine people who grew up in the 60's feel the same way but since I wasn't alive then, I don't have the same critique. For example, the British show, Endeavor is set from the early 60's to 1970. It looks authentic to me, but I wonder if people over 60/70 may find it doesn't quite capture the vibe.

I tried to watch the Goldbergs and they have the clothes and settings, but it being shot in high def digital kills the 80's vibe. I can't forget it was just shot recently.

I miss stealing Mom’s diet pills.

No, I’m sorry. Even if you make the assumption that encyclopedia and wiki have the same standards and duplicate information, they have different advantages.

Wiki is good for a quick reference to all the data you might want. Right there at your fingertips. Quick, efficient and narrow.

Encyclopedias are published , fact checked and footnoted texts that include opposing opinions They usually follow the journalistic standards not found in the home basements of wiki contributor’s parents. I know Wikis have footnotes and sometimes opposing viewpoints. But they are usually lightweight and just as unsubstantiated as the source material.

You can’t just thumb through a wiki collection and have your attention drawn in by a compelling piece of art, an impacting graphical representation of history or a topic you would never “click” on.

You can call it musty or outdated or whatever you want. You think you are able to reach your own conclusions, but you just parrot whoever won the wiki war.

My 2 “z” kids both want my parent’s Brittanicas. I think it is the millennials that shun traditional knowledge because they were told they would be the internet whiz kids. They turned out to be anything but that. So they teeter in this zone of conceited self assurance that is completely unfounded.

What did lesbians do back then? Seems like it was a boring time for them.

R172, Dinah Shore.

Maybe some that post here will share what they did back in the old timey days. I’m searching and can’t find much.

Where did you get that idea R172? The early 70s was a golden age for lesbians. Look up the Van Dykes, W.I.T.C.H., Dianic witchcraft, etc. This has got to be the most history-ignorant generation we have ever had. It's tragic.

Quaaludes

I'm not blaming you, R172, it's our "woke" media and our educational system. But it's sad.

The third one from the left in the ad OP posted is probably living in Palm Springs now.

The music, no internet as we know it, no smart phones, being able to roam widely on foot and bike despite the various dangers, the wilder and more open culture of the 1970s.

Things started to go south in the 1980s when Reagan took over (and AIDS, crack, extremely violent crime, the conservative backlash, etc.) surged, but there were lots of fun things happening in the 1980s too. It was just a LOT more dangerous at times.

R175 please share any good links on the lesbian life in the 70s and 80s! I just watched Ms. America and am curious. All I can find are things such as the Billy Jean King scandal and how she lost her endorsement to that Goolagong woman.

There was NO FOX NEWS! And the idiots it created. And no, it was not a "liberal media" either. It was just straight news. Boring sure, but at least it wasn't as biased and opinionated and factually wrong as what Fox dose to get higher ratings. A crazy battleaxe like Judge Jeanine Pirro would never be let into a studio with her behavior.

R181, spot on. Fucking Fox "news" permanently altered TV news and for much worse.

I like the encyclopedia (and dictionary, for that matter) as much as Wikipedia. I’ve gone down very long rabbit holes that ended up in entirely different subjects on Wikipedia. Info is info, it doesn’t really matter how you get it, as long as it’s true.

I find Wikipedia easier to jump around on.

The encyclopedia is very visual, whereas I’ll often click on the “see also” prompts or highlighted words in a Wikipedia article, and that’s usually just from having a curious mind, a hunch, or an interesting sounding word.

One thing I dislike are screens. Even on low they are too bright for me. Books are easier on the eyes.

Hope

R164, I recreate my childhood Christmas programming, too. I even got the Albert Finney "A Christmas Carol" on DVD, as it was one I watched on the local channel every Christmas, alone, because I was the only one in my family who loved musicals.

R169, have you watched Freaks and Geeks? It's a realistic depiction of 80's middle-class life. Highly recommend it, despite it being network TV (and the first episode is a bit dull).

I'll say, "hope" too. Born in 1969. True child of the 70s-80s.

I miss that tv shows didn't take themselves so seriously. I liked whimsy. Everything today is dark themed...zombies and doctors and lawyers. Back then we had shows about a Love Boat and a Fantasy Island and cars that could talk and drive on their own.

Today we get people being assholes to each other on reality shows.

I miss talking to people on the phone. A friend and I still do this weekly. We have two hour, deep conversations about our lives weekly. Today's world is, "let's meet for a drink, get wasted, and never talk about anything real."

R180

R180

The slower pace. Everything seems so frenzied and rushed these days.

Playing outdoors was a requirement. No video games and internet back in the 70's when I was in elementary school. One had to develop social skills and knew one's place in the neighborhood pecking order, with the potential of becoming upwardly mobile.

Everyone wasn't a fucking self-centered narcissist back then. I'm constantly disgusted by people these days.

Realistically-priced real estate. Savings accounts that actually paid interest. Stocks that weren't in a massive fucking bubble.

I miss when our society had adults.

I miss when our society had childhood and adulthood. Now we have neither.

Going to the mall to see and be seen.

Food wasn’t as big in the 1970s. Not just portion sizes but the food itself - chickens were smaller, fruits and vegetables were smaller. Pork chops weren’t as big.

Nowadays a lot of food items are huge, and the fruits and vegetables seem to have less flavor. I recently saw a pyramid of monster peaches in the grocery store, all of them hard as rocks (in Georgia, no less). Didn’t buy any.

I miss opening the TV Guide each week to see what I had to look forward to on the tube the upcoming week! The Fall Preview issues were also very exciting for this TV addicted kid. Loved the spotlights on new series and also seeing which syndicated shows the UHF channels were going to start airing (channel 29 is showing M*A*S*H at 7 and 7:30 every week night! ; channel 48 is running All in the Family at 7:30!)

Yes, r195. I remember high school in the 70s, we all brought our sandwich lunches from home. Everyone had one small sandwich, a juice and cookies or fruit and that was it. I don't remember seeing any overweight kids, not ever. Ever. Now, the weight/over-eating issue is on a pandemic level (to use a bad analogy).

I think there was one person in my class who was overweight but not obscenely so. She ended up going to what we called back then a "fat farm" for the summer. When she returned for the school year, she was 30 pounds lighter.

Oh, R197. I took a peanut butter sandwich and an apple in my lunchbox every day from first grade to sixth grade. I was allowed to buy a small bag of chips or cheese nips once a week. I considered it a treat.

I got a new lunchbox every September. It was the only thing I looked forward to when school started. I found my first grade lunchbox in the attic lazy year. It was a Disney bus with all of the major characters in the windows. (You could tell a lot about a person by the lunchbox he or she picked out.) After 50 years, I opened it up and smelled the scents of peanut butter and apple still in the box. It transported me, like a jolt from the past.

Growing up, we were allowed one bottle of Coke for the week, on Friday nights. We'd go to McDonalds once every two or three months. That was also a treat!

I miss Mod Podge.

Because there were specific sources of current events and entertainment (newspapers, magazines, radio, TV news) you could easily avoid most of it and allow it into your own life as needed.

I used to get high, pop a mix tape into my Walkman, and head over to a mall just to people watch.

R200 I have seen Mod Podge at Dollar Tree in recent times.

I thank God every day that there was no social media when I was in high school. The humiliations would have been magnificent!

I miss all night coffee shops.

Not Starbucks, but places that served decent, reasonably priced, if predictable, food all around the clock.

Many of them had zany, 1950's atomic age designs and vinyl booths. and it was a good place to bring the family as children were rarely seen in fine restaurants. In your teens it was a place to meet friends after the movies or school dances.

I lived in San Francisco and they're must've been a dozen in the city itself, not including the suburbs. Even the big downtown hotels had all-night restaurants, often with some sort of European theme decor (The Dutch Kitchen at the St. Francis, The Vienna Coffee House at the Mark Hopkins, and The Brasserie at the Fairmont which was pseudo-French).

There was always a counter if you were alone or in a hurry, and nobody rushed you if you wanted to sit, have another cup of coffee, and read the paper. The music, if there even was music, was low volume and low-key.

Whenever I come across one (Norm's in West LA, Bob's Big Boy in Burbank, Dot in Houston) I have to stop and soak in the memories.

It's amazing how, even pre-pandemic, how few all-night restaurants remain (no, Denny's and Waffle House don't count)

The Olympics were a big deal because they were really an athletic proxy war between the USA and the Soviets.

r200 believe it or not Mod Podge is still used extensively by people restoring beat up old electric guitars and other solid wood instruments, it's a mainstay.

Being a lesbian was more individualistic and less mainstream. There was more joy and sisterhood. Also less trans males trying to hijack the notion of what it is to be female.

What I miss about the ‘70s is that was when Streisand was a SUPERSTAR with What’s Up, Doc?, The Way We Were, A Star Is Born, Streisand Superman, The Main Event - I even remember Funny Girl being in re-release in the early ‘70s! You Don’t Bring Me Flowers! Barbra was IT!

Whatever people make of her now, they don’t make them like that anymore.

R206 - the Olympics also seemed a bigger deal because they only happened every four years, - it was a long stretch between Olympic Years. Once they spilt up the winter & summer games it always seems like an Olympic Year and it’s just not as special.

They were few and far between these "stars" it seemed, r209 which made them even more valuable. I sometimes across this type of photos of Queen Elizabeth and La Streisand being photographed at Albert Hall and you can just *feel* the electricity in the air through this old photo. I think the select few that "made the cut" in the super star realm were highly coveted by all TV shows, interviews, movies, TV mags, etc. And you never heard the word "star" strewn around like the way it is today. The DM is the worst offender:

Star Sophie Ritchie" from Scott Discick of Kardashian fame are regularly referred to as stars. The Kardashians themselves are of course now considered full-fledged "stars." I don't think that kids today really experienced true star power the way studios presented, marketed their talent. I think **talent** is the key word here. They were exceptionally talent people who naturally became stars. Now, "stars" are self-described with little to nothing to back it.

No reality television.

I firmly believe years of reality tv was a factor in the result of the 2016 election.

Getting excited about receiving phone calls, and then having an hour (or more) long conversation while you stretch that curly phone cord to its limits. Remember busy signals? Dialing for the time? Phone booths? I loathe talking on the phone now, but I think what I loathe more is the texting- it's how we have all our conversations now. A small bright spot is Facetime/Zoom type calls, because it resembles the fantastic future of the Jetsons or Blade Runner, and I actually have longer conversations with this mode.

Dressing up to fly on an airplane- it was an event, and you had to look presentable. I can't stand people wearing flip flops traveling.

Growing up in Chicago- the army of lighting bugs/fireflies in the summer, even in Wrigleyville. I worked last summer in Atlanta and was excited to see them, but it would only be 2 or 3, not the magic army of my childhood.

I don't miss the smoking, which was prevalent everywhere- even on planes and movie theatres.

I was born in 82. I miss the lack of social media, talking on the phone to your friends instead of endless texting, when news wasn't owned my corporate interests and driven by ratings.

[quote] I loathe talking on the phone now, but I think what I loathe more is the texting- it's how we have all our conversations now.

I loathe the sound quality, and that I have friends who insist on calling on speakerphone while they're out walking, as if I can't hear all the cars going by. I have one friend whose calls I simply don't answer anymore when it's light out. He can't fathom how annoying I find his noise, and he refuses to stop calling (he thinks I'm his unpaid shrink). So I no longer answer.

I hate texting, too. I have a friend who sends me pics all the time, without any explanation or context. I just delete them and pray I don't have to live that much longer in the stupidverse.

[quote]Dressing up to fly on an airplane- it was an event, and you had to look presentable. I can't stand people wearing flip flops traveling.

While I loathe the sound of flip flops, I do not give a fuck what people wear on an airplane. DL's "dressing up to fly" contingent is the single most pretentious bunch of fops in the entire organization. As long as you don't smell or make noise, I couldn't care less what the guy in the next seat is wearing on his body.

I love how men wore their jeans back then. Nice and tight.

Naw they looked stupid

Kids who enjoyed the freedom and experiences of being able to play outside, unsupervised and engaging in thrilling but dangerous activities, and speak so fondly of those days, grew up to be the uptight, stupid Trumptards of today that restrict their children, shove phones and tablets into their tiny baby hands, keep them locked up inside, and refuse to let them be... kids.

What do you miss most in life

r215, it's inevitable that the person who wears flip flops will be sitting behind me and put their feet up by my armrest.

This whole dressed for airport thing started when I worked on American Airlines commercial where we did the 30's, 50's and 70's at LAX, and it was so pleasant to see everyone, including children, not dressed in pajamas, tshirts, jeans, and workout attire.

Letters! Getting handwritten letters and waiting for the postman to deliver it.

Does anyone recall the name of the reality show - I believe it was on Vh1 - where the cast was living in a 1970s home, with none of the more modern conveniences & inventions?

What do I miss about life back then? The lack of cellphones/smartphones and social media.

The 70s House - MTV

The good thing about letters is they don’t require An immediate response. Email and text almost require feedback or people get butt-hurt. A letter allows you to offer someone a compliment or a observation. With NNTR.

The first episode of The 70s House.

Holy fuck! Did children/teens really dress like that (OP's image) in the seventies?

The third and second from the left look ridiculous.

^ Yes.

Earth shoes

Men were allows to be sexually attractive back then wearing tight jeans to show off a muscular ass, speedos at a pool and really short shorts to show off their legs. Now if a guy is showing a bulge in he jeans woman freak out, giggle like 16 year olds, or complain to the manager.

I miss the Peter Lemongello "Love '76" commercials.

I miss being an ignorant middle class American white boy.

and where were the censors R229? I couple rub one out just watching the men on TV every night.

I have a certain nostalgia for the 70s. Oh sure, bad things happened then. But there was also an innocence back then that doesn't exist now, a sense of hope for the future. Things were so much simpler then.

The 80s were a trivial mirage. Everybody was like "oh everything's so great! Morning in America! Let's spend lots of money and party all the time!" But things were shitty for a lot of people. And of course there was AIDS. And Reagan. Everything was so shallow and trashy. The seventies, although a silly decade in many way, was not nearly as meaningless as the 80s.

As for the way things are right now...well, it's hard to believe things have gotten so bad. Previous decades do seem preferable to the mess we're in now. And will things get better or worse? It's scary to think about. There's little hope these days.

Fred Dryer had a stipulation in his contract he didn't have to wear underwear on Hunter. Look at how much the denim in his crotch was rubbed. The color there has been scoured away.

The fact that people didn't know enough about anorexia to realize that a boy could be anorexic.

I looked fabulous, darling.

I miss playing Monopoly with Ed and Mama, but I don't miss ridin' the cotton pony.

What R25 said only I'd have bowls of sugary cereal to go along with Sat. morning cartoons and Hawaiian punch instead of Kool-aid

R226, yes. In fact my mother was always trying to force me to wear my older brother's hand me downs in the 80's. He was born in 1969, I was born in 1976. I put a stop to that shit real quick. I was not wearing shirts with butterfly collars and god damned polyester pants.

not much

[quote] They were shitty sitcoms. I do not miss shitty sitcoms.

They never left, they just got even shittier and shittier. Those weren’t even the worst examples, and compared to the worst things on TV today, they might as well be classic TV.

My orange leisure suit.

When I was in junior high school and senior high (early 1970s) the guys would all strip in the locker room and take showers. Even the star athletes. It was almost a social thing. There was no modesty or being shy about it, if you were that was considered girly. There was no such thing as a towel dance back then. I think all the guys, even the star athletes, secretly enjoyed the naked time together, just as a "guy thing," with nothing gay about it. Those were still very homophobic times.

When did towel dancing begin?

When they did it in a Crystal Light commercial.

Communicating with beautiful paper materials. Letters, handwriting/ink, photos, leaves or sitcks of gum in the envelope, stamps, etc. Seeing someone's handwriting.

Hard to believe straight men are probably more afraid of getting naked in the locker room than they are of the Coronavirus lol

R243, towel dancing is a very new thing, less than 10 years old. My YMCA went from "no clothes permitted in steam or sauna" to "shorts required in steam or sauna" about 2015. The towel dance makes even less sense to me in the context of the millennials' and Zs' use of butthole selfies as online greeting cards.

Sorry, I don't live in the past.

I miss that I wasn’t constantly being texted by merchants and dentists and people expecting me to see their note and respond promptly. It’s like there’s no time to think things over anymore. And everyone I know has a different preferred means of communication, so it’s real easy to miss one (text, email, tweet, messager, Facebook, etc.)

We are all doing the work that we used to pay others to do. Even things as simple as pump gas. That’s fine, but the considerable wealth savings hasn’t flowed to the consumer.

satanic daycare

You really had to be creative when it came to jackoff material. I remember there was an ad for Salem cigarettes on the back of a TV Guide and it featured a then unknown Tom Selleck. I must have tossed to that three or four times.

Just a handsome face on the back of a TV Guide. No body shots/dick or ass shots. Simplicity itself.

At least during the early years of AIDS, you didn't need to wear face panties everywhere.

No R252, the face lesions were so much more sexy.

Lesbians were much more gregarious.

Roseanne Roseannadanna

About the picture at R226, a couple of things strike me about it:

The children were dressed like children, not Kardashians. If the older girls wore makeup it was very subtle. There was a separate clothing category for children, they weren’t junior adults at all. Not even teens. There were rules about what they could wear, and all the rules made them look too young to be sexually attractive. No one would look at any of those kids and say, I thought you were over 18. They were deliberately clothed so no one could think that. I think kids were happier being treated as kids.

They were well dressed for the time. The girls wore stockings or socks, their clothing materials were fairly dressy. Look at the shoes. All leather and dark colored. Closed toes, which was a rule then for school shoes. No brightly colored or white athletic shoes. None of those kids look sloppy. The younger kids were wearing clothing that was meant to take a beating, but it was still neat. The tops and bottoms were coordinated so the child could pick their own clothes out. They were practical.

Styles come and go, but I think the concept of making kids dress within certain standards is better.

The clothes at r226 are fucking hideous. Was it all the coke that made people design shit like that? Glad I wasn't around back then.

I never had the optimism and hope you all seem to remember.

I was happy, but I thought bad things were coming. Mostly I was wrong, but about some things I was right.

r256 makes some good points. Someone posted Farrah Faucett hair the other week saying 70s girls looked like that. Teenagers or women did not look like that at all. It was simple, wash and wear hair, maybe a curling iron, but not much else. Not the curls, the long hair, the extensions, the endless array of expensive "hair products" they are expected to buy now. Teens did colour hair, or do strange hairstyles. You "conformed" to the general style of the day which was shortish, shoulder length hair, and above all., maintenance free for walking, running, swimming, gym, partying, school, etc.

Teens did **not** colour hair, meant to say.

I miss the NYC club scene and all the wonderful characters, trannies, druggies and hot ”straight” rent boys. Some of us had money to burn, others couldn’t rub two coins together yet we all still managed to go out. I miss shuffling off to NYC every single weekend from Boston and making the kind of money I could easily afford to. I miss my youth and muscles, I was never vain about the way I looked but for about two and a half years after 30 I was a stunner and could have sex with pretty much anyone I wanted. My dear tranny friend Vanessa (RIP) worked in a laundromat and paid at Twilo in quarters every weekend, we’d laugh and laugh, so much fun. I also had a bevy of cute friends to hang out with but haven’t kept in touch with any of them since I got sober. Sigh.

I was a wallflower and pretty plain all through my 20’s until I hit the weights, and am really thankful I didn’t catch AIDS. The scene today is very different or nonexistent now, but there were a throng of heavy partygoers that would get high on E and K before Tina and GHB overdoses came in the aughts and ruined everything.

R256: In 2005, my 14 year old niece dressed like a whore at my father, her grandfather’s funeral. I’m not exaggerating. My sister said that this is how kids dressed these days, but I would not have been surprised if she’d been asked to leave the (Catholic) Church. In Europe, Eastern Europe and Italy in particular, man can’t even wear shorts in Church in midsummer. It disturbed me for a decade.

Two years later she dressed appropriately for my mother’s funeral, thank God.

[quote]In 2005, my 14 year old niece dressed like a whore at my father, her grandfather’s funeral.

Did she complain about the chicken à la king you served after the funeral, too?

Breathable air.

Sled riding in the winter. Thanks global warming!

Flying kites at the park in spring.

Malls used to be THE place to go, and they were packed. They also had cool water fountain displays.

Department stores that had food concession stands where you could grab some buttered popcorn and an Icee slush, or a hot dog, or some ice cream while shopping.

Racing friends around on go-karts.

Arcades.

I miss a cooler Earth for sure. Much less of a dread that the whole planet was in danger.

I feel that people had more of a sense of community and were less selfish. Take the anti-vaxxers of today: I'm sure most of them don't really want diseases like polio to make a comeback. They're fine with other people getting vaccinated, they want all of the benefits, but think they deserve to be exempted from any of the (BS) risks.

I also feel that people were more humble then and realized that subject matter authorities knew far more than they ever would on the topic. Now, people think they are right and Fauci is wrong because they did a few hours of "research" on the Internet.

True r266. Everybody is a fucking expert on everything because they watched a ten-minute video on Facebook by some fucking quack with no credentials.

People are also much more selfish these days. In the past there was more of a sense of things that benefited society. "It's for the greater good" and so on. That seems to have completely disappeared, people are so self-involved now.

R138 I remember it. We had the encyclopedias (just one set) and I loved just browsing through them to learn things. But it took some effort. Just like going to the library and hunting down what you needed using all available resources: Card Catalog / Microfiche / Gopher was as much fun as the actual text itself. It was like Geocaching with a brain.

Your phone does not have the answers.

Lack of Nazis in the White House.

R262, was her hair all ratted up like a teenage Jezebel?

I’m re-watching the TV show “Hunters” and there are a lot of reminders in that series.

Growling at up in the 60s and 70s, there were a lot of TV shows about WWII. And a lot of books, because we actually read, then. There was a Time-Life series about “The World at War”. I wish I still had them. They go for $350+ on eBay now, but I’d keep them anyway. They were a paperback series then, with a different WWII topic for each one.

Most of us had parents who served in the war. My Dad was a sailor. My Grandmother was an air raid warden, like George Bailey. My other Grandmother stood and waited. My Mom worked for Sherry Gyroscope, making war material. So, we were all interested.

We all had a lot of shared history and interests. Much more so than today.

Cheap college tuition. Friends went to the public community college. They paid $20 per credit. Yes, that's right. I went to a private 2 year college and paid the princely sum of $35 per credit. The text never cost more than about $15. Friends were in shock when I told them my accounting text book cost $35.

I miss the Sears, Wards and JCPenny catalogs. Particularly the Men's underwear sections. Coming of age was better back then as you really had to use your imagination. And you didn't feel so much like a drone, number , worker bee.

Born in 1971 - better journalism and no hair brained conspiracy theories due to disinformation online. People seemed kinder and there was a greater sense of community.

Also really *wanting* things. Seeing things in a store or catalogue and having to wait to get them. Instead of everything readily available 24/7 online.

Better career prospects jobs for young people no gig economy.

My waist line

Experiencing white flight first hand. It was very interesting to watch my neighborhood transform into a very diverse place within several years during my childhood. I’d say it taught me a lot about being open to different cultures and was a sampling of the future of our country, now that I live in place where this will play out much more slowly and to a lesser extent.

Hodgepodge Lodge, a children's show hosted by the mannish Miss Jean, who would never have her hair all ratted up like some teenage Jezebel.

I miss mini skirt outfits with sleeves longer than the hems of the skirts.

Being able to afford going to the movies.

Frau here. The lack of immediate access to sexual content. It took effort. We girls read steamy books and underlined passages. A single copy passed through many hands. We grew into our sexuality. A first kiss was immediately reported back to said girls. Maybe gay kids get to have that now just like us boring straights. College was when you experimented. But now porn is available to practically anyone at any age. Straight men think porn is supposed to be real life. I can't imagine what young people think is expected of them.

"I miss the Sears, Wards and JCPenny catalogs. "

I miss those catalogs, too. I grew up in a rural area where there were no stores to buy anything. You had to get things by mail order. I just loved looking through those catalogs and seeing all the nice clothes. The Christmas catalogs were the best. They were called "wish books."

I remember how they talked about people around the turn of the century (19th/20th) with outhouses kept a Sears catalog in there that they used to read and wipe.

R274

“hare” brained conspiracy theories, not “hair” brained.

[quote]“hare” brained conspiracy theories, not “hair” brained.

We all know what he meant, no need to point it out.

r283 It's actually "harebrained" (one word.)

Oh thanks r285. Should’ve checked.