It Was So Much Better Being a Kid Back Then

[Weatherman2020]

Children bouncing on worn out mattresses. England, 1980s.

Lawn darts, 1960’s.

Atomic lab kits, 1960’s. Complete with uranium ore.

Barbie Rollerblades that would shoot out sparks to ignite things.

 

[toobfreak]

It Was So Much Better Being a Kid Back Then​

We rode our bikes miles from home in traffic to spend 35¢, went off in the woods playing for hours. Took off in the dark to cemeteries during Halloween, set off M-80s with our hands, threw apples at houses, squirted cars with garden hoses, went to rock concerts at the age of 15, played with Gilbert chemistry sets full of glass, asbestos and minerals, melted lead to make our own statues, took everything apart to see how it worked, figured everything out in our heads because there were no computers, learned to drive because there were no electronic cars, built our own radios out of spare parts from Radio Shack, and took our rifles to school to show them off. We made America great.

 

[fncceo]

And our playground equipment was made entirely out of rusted scrap metal and broken glass.

 

[toobfreak]

And our playground equipment was made entirely out of rusted scrap metal and broken glass.

This was one of my most favorite memorable toys as a little kid. Parts lit up and rotated.

 

[Weatherman2020]

And our playground equipment was made entirely out of rusted scrap metal and broken glass.

It was where I lived.

 

[Rawley]

Children bouncing on worn out mattresses. England, 1980s.
View attachment 990144
Lawn darts, 1960’s.
View attachment 990146
Atomic lab kits, 1960’s. Complete with uranium ore.
View attachment 990148
Barbie Rollerblades that would shoot out sparks to ignite things.
View attachment 990150

I loved Jarts!

 

[whitehall]

Not much fun to live in a neighborhood that threw worn out mattresses in a vacant lot.

 

[fncceo]

It was where I lived.
View attachment 990176

Made from the remains of the Jap fighters out dads shot down.

 

[Yarddog]

And our playground equipment was made entirely out of rusted scrap metal and broken glass.

Exactly. It was how we kept our infections up to date.

 

[JOSweetHeart]

It was where I lived.
View attachment 990176

This picture reminds me of the playground that my elementary school.

God bless you always!!!

Holly

 

[Resnic]

Look what happens when you stop raising kids to be tough, smart, independent, strong willed, and don't coddle them. You get what most kids are today.

When you raise them where there is no danger, they grow up to have no fear or respect for anything. They think life is easy and safe and everything goes their way. It's why today's 24 year old has the intelligence and maturity of a 16 year old from 2 decades ago.

Toys used to be fun. They made you curious, taught you things, required instruction, they were intriguing, and so on. Now toys are all generic, safe to the point they take no thought and spark no imagination and have no purpose. All kids want now is a smartphone.

 

[toobfreak]

It's why today's 24 year old has the intelligence and maturity of a 16 year old from 2 decades ago.

I estimate that it now takes a Bachelor's degree to get the education I had before leaving high school (of course, I went to a private high school), but a hundred years ago kids had that level of education by the time they made it through the 8th grade.

Toys used to be fun. They made you curious, taught you things, required instruction, they were intriguing, and so on.

Toys when I was a kid made you think and taught you to pay attention because they could be unsafe if you were not careful! You had to make an effort to stay safe. Getting hurt is part of life so it taught you to pay attention and be careful. Now the government coddles kids with stuff so safe that you can't hurt yourself even if you are an idiot and try.

 

[deannalw]

Not much fun to live in a neighborhood that threw worn out mattresses in a vacant lot.

Twas if you were a kid!

 

[Yarddog]

I estimate that it now takes a Bachelor's degree to get the education I had before leaving high school (of course, I went to a private high school), but a hundred years ago kids had that level of education by the time they made it through the 8th grade.


Toys when I was a kid made you think and taught you to pay attention because they could be unsafe if you were not careful! You had to make an effort to stay safe. Getting hurt is part of life so it taught you to pay attention and be careful. Now the government coddles kids with stuff so safe that you can't hurt yourself even if you are an idiot and try.

I used to spend hours on end with my toy Guillotine, I get exactly what you mean !!

 

[toobfreak]

I used to spend hours on end with my toy Guillotine, I get exactly what you mean !!

I still have one. Actually, its a magic trick. I used to dabble in magic when young.

The way it works is it has two holes. You put your finger (or someone's) in the larger top hole, then a cigarette in the smaller lower hole. As the trick goes, first you show the guilotine cutting two cigarettes, one in each hole to show that it cuts, then you put the finger in. This time, the blade passes harmlessly through the finger yet still cuts the cigarette right below in half!

Thing is that if you don't work the trick right, you can hurt someone's finger pretty bad.

 

[Yarddog]

I still have one. Actually, its a magic trick. I used to dabble in magic when young.

The way it works is it has two holes. You put your finger (or someone's) in the larger top hole, then a cigarette in the smaller lower hole. As the trick goes, first you show the guilotine cutting two cigarettes, one in each hole to show that it cuts, then you put the finger in. This time, the blade passes harmlessly through the finger yet still cuts the cigarette right below in half!

Thing is that if you don't work the trick right, you can hurt someone's finger pretty bad.

Got to put your finger in the right hole !

 

[fncceo]

Got to put your finger in the right hole !

That is an important life lesson.

 

[MarathonMike]

Children bouncing on worn out mattresses. England, 1980s.
View attachment 990144
Lawn darts, 1960’s.
View attachment 990146
Atomic lab kits, 1960’s. Complete with uranium ore.
View attachment 990148
Barbie Rollerblades that would shoot out sparks to ignite things.
View attachment 990150

B B Gun fights were always fun, no safety glasses of course.