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Life before the internet

zuben el genub

zuben el genub

Extreme Android User
Life Before the Internet Was Just Plain Boring

I didn't find it so. Plenty of nature to watch. Birds, clouds, read some geology and imagine what the earth was like when your favorite red rocks were formed, same for astronomy. Plus photography, quilting and other crafts. We played outside all summer as kids. Went swimming, hiking. Toys got put on porch and we weren't allowed in except for bathroom and food.

If we were ever bored, my mother used to say:
"Sit on a tack, and holler for a hammer"
 
yeah.. because we are sooooo connected.. we see ALL the SCARY stuff that happens to kids.. around the country and world.

today parents are so scared (including me).. we THINK today is way way more dangerous than 20 yrs ago.
that we don't let kids out by themselves.
someone has to watch over them...so it is harder to find the time... all day outside

I wish I could tell my 10yr old daughter.. "get out of the house.. go play.. make sure you are home by dinner!"
 
We used to put the slip n slide in the back yard and the neighborhood would be over almost all day. The girls had Barbies and My Little Pony and could play outside for hours. We let them make "forts"

Neighbors were redoing a garden and had the best mud puddle I've ever seen. The kids had Star Wars action figures in the mud all day. Could only recognize my kid by long blonde hair.

Neighborhood is still fairly quiet. Kids do ride bikes and go to the park (non-green belt)
by themselves.

We did have a couple of bullies. The Vulcan settled one kid's hash, and I informed parents I would sign a police complaint.
 
There are still places like that but they are few and far between. Thankfully I grew up in one. We'd leave the house after breakfast and be gone all day. (Or until we got hungry). We found things to do. But in our small town there wasn't a worry about anyone hurting us, in fact everyone watched out for everyone. You couldn't get away with anything without proper planning. ;-) We may not of had a lot of material things, but we sure had some good times.
 
Our neighborhood was full of kids, there was always someone to play with. We'd get great games of baseball going right in the middle of the street and get really mad when a car did come along. I must have put a million miles on my bikes racing up and down the streets (no helmet, of course). I remember the day I pogo-sticked up and down every street, I was sure I'd set some sort of world record. My most best bud Dougie had an Irish Mail scooter, man, the fun we had on that thing! We'd play flashlight tag well into the night, never a care in the world. Except the time some older guy was stalking my sister...

Now you have to be a bit careful, the traffic has picked up a lot. Riding bikes is a bit more challenging and no street baseball at all. My sister lives in the old 'hood, her kids play in the backyard. It's still a safe area, just more congested and the drivers don't seem to think they need to see if kids are in the road. They go sooo fast.
 
Yep, we'd use rocks as the bases. When cars came the 2nd baseman and and catcher were responsible for getting 2nd and home off the street. Rain? No problem - everyone ran home and put their suits on and the game went on. Don't forget kick the can.
 
We had cow flop for bases. Had to wait until owner got cow out of baseball field.

Kids still do play catch - football and baseball in street. Right now, in between crops of kids. More teenagers than younger ones. We live next to a small cul-de-sac and the younger ones ride bikes and play there.
 
zuben el genub said:
If we were ever bored, my mother used to say:
"Sit on a tack, and holler for a hammer"
Click to expand...


LOLS! I never heard that one yet, but i'm pretty sure my parents would have found something similar to say.


Life before the internet, I actually remember doing gardening with my mom. It would be rare to see me do gardening today. My brother and I would love to place blankets over the tables and sofa and turn it into a house. When our cousins were over, we would all sit on the coach and pretend it was a school bus and we would imagine different adventures we would go on.
 
We played outside all day and came home when the street lights came on. Those were the days. I joined the military after school and all I can say is I am VERY thankful that the internet and cell phones weren't around then. Way to many bad things happen from putting pictures out there when you're young and then there's the cyber bullying. Life was definitely simpler then. I love technology but very glad I didn't grow up with it.
 
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