Material Things of Which the Younger Generation Has No Idea

Post Reply New Topic

Cars, with wind-up windows.

OK, it's official. I am a hillbilly throwback raised by Depression-era grandparents. I remember almost all of those things. None of us were much into electrical components and we didn't have a recorded-video entertainment system until VHS was getting old (but I do remember seeing Betamax movies at the video rental joint). I am 37 years old.

Not only do I remember wringer washers, I remember how to use one. Until I was about 8, Grandma pulled the clothes out of the washer and fed them through the wringer, and my job was to catch them on the other side, stir them around in the first tub of rinse water, and move them into the second tub. Then Grandma would shove the washer out of the way while I got the clothesbasket, and she would feed them back through the wringer, and then we'd hang them out on the line.

Generally talking about stuff while we did it.

Then my grandfather's sister died, and we got her "regular" washing machine. I cried.

I remember the summer Saint Alan decided he was sick of getting 3 channels, all fuzzy (antenna on top of the house). He was going to put an antenna on top of the hill (about a mile and a half away). Unfortunately (or perhaps fortunately), a mile and a half of cable and the local wildlife didn't make a very good combination. He got fed up and bought a 10-foot satellite dish.

Something else modern kids don't remember. The picture quality degenerated, but it ACTUALLY GOT RECEPTION IN THE RAIN. You had to tune it manually, ten degrees at a time. If you went really slowly, you could pick up information off NASA satellites and unscrambled government broadcasts and all kinds of interesting stuff that definitely wasn't listed in OnSat.

I've looked high and low for an Erector Set for my DS8. No luck. He does have Tinker Toys, Lincoln Logs, and Legos though. Remember when Legos came in a big box, and you didn't have to buy some ridiculously overpriced licensed theme set to get the "cool pieces"??? Tinker Toys are bigger now, but they still suck.

http://www.erector.us/

@BuyerBeware: They have Erector Sets, EVERYWHERE!!

Erector Sets at Amazon

I've even seen them, IN-STORE, at Wal-Mart!!

It even seems like REAL wood furniture is rare, nowadays----or, houses being built with REAL bricks----'course, I guess the younger generation has actually seen some, at their grandmother's house.....

Lincoln Logs and Tinker Toys: Oh hell yeah!! Hours of fun.

Yep. No air conditioning so in summer windows were usually down, which meant that when suddenly driving into a summer afternoon thunderstorm one had to try to keep the car on the road with one hand while reaching across to the passenger window with the other and frantically cranking it up as fast as possible. Sore rotator cuffs not infrequently ensued.

Spirograph

Lite Brite (Lite bright - makin' thi-ings with light---what a sight, makin' things with lite-brite) : )

Slip 'n Slide

Super Balls

Wham-O Yoyos

Wood and Paper Kites

Hi, Britte----nice to see you!!

I used to love Spirograph. I liked to take the one that looked similar to a popsicle stick, and run my pen across it, to make "music"----my mother didn't think it sounded like music, and would holler!! LOL

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Things made out of paper: Football, paper-dolls, snowflakes, and airplanes.

Lite Brite!

I loved Spirograph, too. It is actually still made, and even more deluxe than ever! I want one.

By all means get one, Nerdygirl!

How about Etch a Sketch?

And Gaming is so detailed and all different kinds of controllers now, Pinball and pong were what I played (when not studying) in college, over 35 years ago.

And in my Intro to Computer Science then, all the program directions were on those cards.

Yesterday I was told that back in the 60's there were tricycles made for adults or older kids. In fact I once saw on TV that they were originally built for adults. So who was the complete SADIST that decided they were only for small children while everyone else has to attempt at riding a flimsy two-wheeler where one slip can grind you up like raw hamburger?! I have never been able to perform such a balancing act, and for some reason my parents had never heard of something called training wheels until I was too old for them.

I don't care if we get laughed at, we need to bring back the adult tricycle! We're required to wear safety helmets now, so wouldn't three wheels make it even safer?

http://www.schwinnbikes.com/usa/bikes/c ... wn-country
I bought one of these a couple years ago.

http://www.walmart.com/ip/26-Schwinn-Me ... n/12016722
They still sell single speed Meridians at Walmart.

http://www.walmart.com/ip/26-Kent-Monte ... qrstuvwxyz
Low priced 7 speed tricycle.

Oh, yeah----PUNCH cards, for when computers were as big as a ROOM----that's how / when I started MY career, in computers!!

Ahhh----THOSE were the days!!