December 4, 200718 yr I remember cutting branches off of the willow trees down by the creek and using them to make homemade "bows and arrows". This was a favorite of mine. I remember my grandma making me got get a switch off the tree so she could whoop my behind with it. Talk about picking your own poison!!
December 4, 200718 yr Things I hardly ever see kids doing outside anymore that I used to do: Run through the sprinklers Stickball with a broom stick and a taped-up whiffle ball Hopscotch on a chalked up sidewalk Jump rope Hula hoops Setting up an outdoor war using plastic army men, et. al. Lemonade stands Tree-houses Homemade tents, using folding chairs, blankets, et. al. Burning ants and leaves, etc. with a magnifying glass Bike jumps using lumber from a nearby building site Launching water balloons from homemade slingshots Tetherball Handball ("buns up") using a medium cherry ball Marbles Slip-n-slide Sleepovers "Can John come out and play" I'm sure kids still do some of these things but they are not, say, as frequent.
December 4, 200718 yr We used to spend an entire day cutting grass, raking leaves and collecting pop bottles. We would then take a bus down to Covington and blow all our riches on used comic books and candy. We were 10-14.
December 4, 200718 yr Run through the sprinklers- Water bill would skyrocket! Stickball with a broom stick and a taped-up whiffle ball- Do you know what kind of toxins are in the adhesive of the tape? They better be bio-degradable. Hopscotch on a chalked up sidewalk – The sidewalk is a City “right of way” which the city has an ordinance against defacing. Jump rope You can jump rope but you can’t count the number of jumps because you don’t want to hurt the little kids feelings that can’t jump as much as you. Hula hoops- kids still do this but the Hula Hoops need to have LED lights in them to keep the kids amused. Setting up an outdoor war using plastic army men, et. al. Army men are a choking hazard. Lemonade stands Don’t forget to pay the taxes and you may have to be issued a permit from the city. Tree-houses Personal injury lawyers DREAM! Homemade tents, using folding chairs, blankets, et. al. We have everything except the blankets. We donated all of them to the homeless. Burning ants and leaves, etc. with a magnifying glass PETA would burn your house down. Bike jumps using lumber from a nearby building site The kids would be arrested for trespassing! Launching water balloons from homemade slingshots- See tree houses Tetherball -The kid down the street is too short to play, so the tetherball had to be removed. Handball ("buns up") using a medium cherry ball- That ball was made in China and was deemed unsafe. Marbles- That is nothing but gambling. Slip-n-slide-See sprinklers Sleepovers- Still happens but you risk being visited by a social worker. "Can John come out and play" You don’t say that anymore, you either text it, e-mail it or visit John’s MY Space page.
December 4, 200718 yr In the neighborhood I grew up in, if you were bad, a mom or dad yelled at you. Didn't matter if it wasn't your mom or dad, you got punished.
December 4, 200718 yr I remember my grandma making me got get a switch off the tree so she could whoop my behind with it. Talk about picking your own poison!! Yep...did that, too!
December 5, 200718 yr In the neighborhood I grew up in, if you were bad, a mom or dad yelled at you. Didn't matter if it wasn't your mom or dad, you got punished. Yep, I remember that. And you prayed that that parent wouldnt tell your parents or you would get a whooping for that. Now adays parents are more likely to defend their kids if another parent yells at them....
December 5, 200718 yr Run through the sprinklers- Water bill would skyrocket! Stickball with a broom stick and a taped-up whiffle ball- Do you know what kind of toxins are in the adhesive of the tape? They better be bio-degradable. Hopscotch on a chalked up sidewalk – The sidewalk is a City “right of way” which the city has an ordinance against defacing. Jump rope You can jump rope but you can’t count the number of jumps because you don’t want to hurt the little kids feelings that can’t jump as much as you. Hula hoops- kids still do this but the Hula Hoops need to have LED lights in them to keep the kids amused. Setting up an outdoor war using plastic army men, et. al. Army men are a choking hazard. Lemonade stands Don’t forget to pay the taxes and you may have to be issued a permit from the city. Tree-houses Personal injury lawyers DREAM! Homemade tents, using folding chairs, blankets, et. al. We have everything except the blankets. We donated all of them to the homeless. Burning ants and leaves, etc. with a magnifying glass PETA would burn your house down. Bike jumps using lumber from a nearby building site The kids would be arrested for trespassing! Launching water balloons from homemade slingshots- See tree houses Tetherball -The kid down the street is too short to play, so the tetherball had to be removed. Handball ("buns up") using a medium cherry ball- That ball was made in China and was deemed unsafe. Marbles- That is nothing but gambling. Slip-n-slide-See sprinklers Sleepovers- Still happens but you risk being visited by a social worker. "Can John come out and play" You don’t say that anymore, you either text it, e-mail it or visit John’s MY Space page. :lol: Excellent job, Leo!
December 5, 200718 yr For all this nostalgia that people get warm and fuzzy about, it ignores the fact that during the time all this Norman Rockwell crap was going on, blacks and other ethnic minorities were being denied basic human rights, and Catholics and anyone else not a Protestant were treated with suspicion and derision. But hey, if you're a WASP, great times. :thumb: It wasn't perfect...but it was mostly the adults that had the problems of which you speak. When we were kids, we didn't care about anything excepted getting the kids we wanted on our team when we choose sides for a sporting event or which of our dads had "extra" screws and tools so we could put roller skate wheels on the old wooden ironing board we found in the garbage for some helmetless, highest freshly blacktopped hill four man bob sledding. What about the parachutes we made from a sheet and rope that we tested out on the little kids?
December 5, 200718 yr Run through the sprinklers- Water bill would skyrocket! Stickball with a broom stick and a taped-up whiffle ball- Do you know what kind of toxins are in the adhesive of the tape? They better be bio-degradable. Hopscotch on a chalked up sidewalk – The sidewalk is a City “right of way” which the city has an ordinance against defacing. Jump rope You can jump rope but you can’t count the number of jumps because you don’t want to hurt the little kids feelings that can’t jump as much as you. Hula hoops- kids still do this but the Hula Hoops need to have LED lights in them to keep the kids amused. Setting up an outdoor war using plastic army men, et. al. Army men are a choking hazard. Lemonade stands Don’t forget to pay the taxes and you may have to be issued a permit from the city. Tree-houses Personal injury lawyers DREAM! Homemade tents, using folding chairs, blankets, et. al. We have everything except the blankets. We donated all of them to the homeless. Burning ants and leaves, etc. with a magnifying glass PETA would burn your house down. Bike jumps using lumber from a nearby building site The kids would be arrested for trespassing! Launching water balloons from homemade slingshots- See tree houses Tetherball -The kid down the street is too short to play, so the tetherball had to be removed. Handball ("buns up") using a medium cherry ball- That ball was made in China and was deemed unsafe. Marbles- That is nothing but gambling. Slip-n-slide-See sprinklers Sleepovers- Still happens but you risk being visited by a social worker. "Can John come out and play" You don’t say that anymore, you either text it, e-mail it or visit John’s MY Space page. :laugh::laugh::laugh: Classic!!
December 5, 200718 yr Just trying to keep things in the proper perspective. "The Good Old Days" weren't necessarily good for everyone. Dude, name one day that was good for everybody.
December 6, 200718 yr The irony is the generation lavished with praise for how they grew up is raising the generation they are criticizing for growing up the wrong way. I was born in 1961 and I made the exact comment to my wife recently. I have no explanation. For some reason we can't imagine giving our children the freedom to do the things we did. Has society made us over-protective?
December 6, 200718 yr :thumb:I can agree with you on this, it does contribute to being lazy. I thought your were implying that the people were unable to exercise because of technology. Good point. Yup not what I meant, ha it's cool though. But yes those were the good old days.
December 6, 200718 yr I was borned in the early 60's and I can relate to the e-mail. Funny thing is -- it came from an e-mail.
December 6, 200718 yr I was born in 1961 and I made the exact comment to my wife recently. I have no explanation. For some reason we can't imagine giving our children the freedom to do the things we did. Has society made us over-protective? I to have given this some great deal of thought. I believe the things that have made us change are as follows: Increase of Population, Its seems to me there is twice as many people around than when I was growing up in the 70's (born 1964) Increase of Automobiles, more people more cars. Increase of Law Suits, This non-sense has changed our whole reasons of doing things and what we allow done. Ex: years ago you would allow kids to come over and play at your house, yard, in pool. Now your afraid if something happens your getting a call from a lawyer. If the kid was to lie about something "GOD For-BID" you'll have to move away. Non Punishment of Crimes, this to me is the NUMBER 1 reason things are different now. When I was growing up you were afraid to do something wrong, fear of GOD first, fear of your parents second, fear of the law third, and fear of what people would thing of you if did do something bad. Not to mention how your family would feel and the embarssment you would bring to them. All these reason are why, not video games, TV, and Mcdonalds. JMHO.
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