To All The Kids Who Survived, 1930's 40's, 50's, 60's and 70's

TO ALL THE KIDS WHO SURVIVED the

1930's 40's, 50's, 60's and 70's !!


First, we survived being born to mothers who smoked and/or drank while they
carried us.



They took aspirin, ate blue cheese dressing and didn't get tested for
diabetes.



Then after that trauma, our baby cribs were covered with bright colored
lead-based paints.



We had no childproof lids on medicine bottles, doors or cabinets and when we
rode our bikes, we had no helmets, not to mention, the risks we took
hitchhiking.



As children, we would ride in cars with no seat belts or air bags.



Riding in the back of a pick up on a warm day was always a special treat.



We drank water from the garden hose and NOT from a bottle.



We shared one soft drink with four friends, from one bottle and NO ONE
actually died from this.



We ate cupcakes, bread and butter and drank soda pop with sugar in it, but
we weren't overweight because WE WERE ALWAYS OUTSIDE PLAYING!



We would leave home in the morning and play all day, as long as we were back
when the streetlights came on.



No one was able to reach us all day. And we were O.K.!



We would spend hours building our go-carts out of scraps and then ride down
the hill, only to find out we forgot the brakes. After running into the
bushes a few ! times, we learned to solve the problem.



We did not have Playstations, Nintendo's, X-boxes, no video games at all, no
99 channels on cable, no video tape movies, no surround sound, no cell
phones, no personal computers, no Internet or Internet chat
rooms..........WE HAD FRIENDS and we went outside and found them!


We fell out of trees, got cut, broke bones and teeth and there were no
lawsuits from these accidents.


We made up games with sticks and tennis balls and ate worms and although we
were told it would happen, we did not put out very many eyes, nor did the
worms live in us forever.


We rode bikes or walked to a friend's house and knocked on the door or rang
the bell, or just walked in and talked to them!



Little League had tryouts and not everyone made the team. Those who didn't
had to learn to deal with disappointment. Imagine that!!


The idea of a parent bailing us out if we broke the law was unheard of. They
actually sided with the law!


This generation has produced some of the best risk-takers, problem solvers
and inventors ever!


The past 50 years have been an explosion of innovation and new ideas.



We had freedom,! failure, success and responsibility, and we learned HOW TO
DEAL WITH IT ALL!



And YOU are one of them! CONGRATULATIONS!



You might want to share this with! others who have had the luck to grow up as
kids, before the lawyers and the government regulated our lives for our own
good.



Kind of makes you want to run through the house with scissors, doesn't

it?!

Are we sure we survived?

That hit home like a ton of bricks! That's why many of us are able to withstand today's pressure and not crumble when we're hit with problems coming at us in all directions. I believe you might have already mentioned that!

maggiemahone1 (1953)

Hey very good, dundee! I really enjoyed that and so very true it all is!

Rose (1954)

You forgot that some of us experimented with "POT" and survived that without addiction to other "major " drugs!

Shadows ( 1952 )

I do qualify for this, but just barely!

(not sure if that's a good thing or a bad thing )

Mike F. (1974)

That list brings back memories!! When I see my son flying over a make-shift jump with his bicycle, I try to remember that Evel Knievel was my hero and I tried to emulate him (with no helmet)!!

Greg (Class of '64)

WE HAD FRIENDS and we went outside and found them!


We fell out of trees, got cut, broke bones and teeth and there were no
lawsuits from these accidents.

EXACTLY!!!!

Lil, B.1968!!!!

Gee, I grew up milking cows and picking cotton in California......no one said to be careful about the poison that had been sprayed on the fields. Also, I do remember many us learning to use an iron to press all of our clothes as there was nothing that wasn't wrinkled and could not be worn unless it was ironed. How about the wringer washing machines........ever catch your arm in one of those......not a pretty sight but we continued to help with wash day.......Cars with no signal lights just your arm to indicate that you were slowing down, turning left or turning right.............Oh and starch was not in a spray can.......we cooked our starch for our clothes.............hmmmmmmmmmmm.....Born in '50.......Mariah

Wow!! I thought that I was the only one. The wringer on my grandmother's washing machine pulled me in right up to my shoulder. My grandmother heard me screaming and came running. Split my hand open from the palm to the back of my hand between my thumb and finger. My body is just a diary of scars!

I'm one of those kids who survived that childhood. I can't get over how my kids are always bored with so much entertainment. When I tell them about growing up in Alaska and having only 3 TV stations with the highlight of the week being the Wonderful World of Disney on Sunday night they can't believe it. I told them we just didn't watch TV. We were always outside building fort, riding bike, or hiking. Even in the winter we were outside a lot. And when We moved to Germany I told them there was no TV and the library was my favorite hangout. I don't ever remember being bored. And if you ever said I'm bored in my family my parent found you something to do. Mainly cleaning some part of the house.

Oh yeah, that's what we've always done with our kids when they'd complain of being bored!! They learned to quit saying it too!

SB

I guess I should point out that it was your generations who created all the rules that took the fun out of childhood. As much as you survived it, you didn't learn much.



Thanks
Safer, and bored for it.
Adam R. 1979


(I think I'm going to go remove the seat belts in my car)

Continuing with 1950s fun, you forgot to mention spoke gun fights. Get an old bicycle wheel, remove a spoke and screw the end almost off so that there is a good hollow space. Shave the end of a match into it. Then put in some black powder. Then get a lead fishing weight and shave some into the hollow. Next, point it at the "enemy", hold a match under it to heat and ignite the "match powder" which ignites the black powder, which shoots the lead shavings. Stings like heck. It sure made "cowboys and Indians" and "cops and robbers" more interesting. Aren't older siblings wonderful?

YOU"LL SHOOT YOUR EYE OUT!!!!!!