# Things you just don't see much anymore. **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [April 30, 2005, 10:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-just-dont-see-much-anymore/301895 "2005-04-30T22:26:02Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Nic2004](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/4491bb/32.png) [@Nic2004](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nic2004)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2005, 12:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-just-dont-see-much-anymore/301895/41 "2005-05-02T12:59:54Z")
> [@danceswithcats](#): > > Check [this link](http://www.kraftfoods.com/postcereals/cereal_alphabits.html) as it may be regional, but it looks like the product is still made. Thank you **danceswithcats**. I have gone to the site and made an email request for a local dist. or a way to have them shipped. I’ll keep ya advised. Thanks again. ---
**Author:** ![Jake](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f475e1/32.png) [@Jake](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jake)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2005, 6:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-just-dont-see-much-anymore/301895/42 "2005-05-02T18:45:06Z")
> [@+MDI](#): > > White dog shit. LOL! 😃😃😃 ---
**Author:** ![Batsinma\_Belfry](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ea5d25/32.png) [@Batsinma\_Belfry](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Batsinma_Belfry)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2005, 7:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-just-dont-see-much-anymore/301895/43 "2005-05-02T19:18:56Z")
> [@Kalhoun](#): > > Nah…that’s a glider. Silly woman. A glider is the thing with bench type seats that swings back and forth. Teeter Totter, just the little round seats with handles. Also, a glider is one of those long bench things, that barely moves. Not as much fun as a swing, not as stable as a bench, serves no purpose at all. Hey, there’s something you don’t see anymore! ---
**Author:** ![cher3](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/da6949/32.png) [@cher3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cher3)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2005, 7:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-just-dont-see-much-anymore/301895/44 "2005-05-02T19:46:22Z")
> [@bluethree](#): > > I don’t spend any time around children anymore, so I don’t know for sure, but it seems like they never just take off running just because it feels good, or even because they want to get somewhere fast. I saw a kid do that in a 70s movie recently and it made me realize that I never see that anymore. Do kids still run for the fun of it? My kids are 5 and 7 and, since they got up on two pins, I don’t think I’ve ever seen them just _walk_ anywhere. Hop, skip, gallop, run–check. The only thing close to plain walking is the snail-like shuffle put on when you are really in a hurry. My son an I went to a park yesterday specifically so he could run. New superhero shoes, you know. They also have jump-rope in PE and there are lots of jungle gyms and see-saws around here. No merry-go-rounds, though. ---
**Author:** ![plnnr](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/7ea924/32.png) [@plnnr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/plnnr)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2005, 8:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-just-dont-see-much-anymore/301895/45 "2005-05-02T20:35:18Z")
[QUOTE=Big Bad Voodoo Lou] Men wearing hats (fedoras, pork pie hats, knit caps) with suits and other “nicer” clothes. I say this because I’m looking for a nice hat, and nobody has any for sale, not even the men’s sections in the larger department stores. I hate ball caps, and I think people look stupid wearing them if they’re not playing sports or at a tailgate party or something. On that note, suspenders (braces) with suits. QUOTE] If you were here you’d see me in both braces and a real hat. It cost me $35 and is quite snazzy. ---
**Author:** ![plnnr](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/7ea924/32.png) [@plnnr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/plnnr)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2005, 8:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-just-dont-see-much-anymore/301895/46 "2005-05-02T20:37:35Z")
> [@hillbilly queen](#): > > Also, a glider is one of those long bench things, that barely moves. Not as much fun as a swing, not as stable as a bench, serves no purpose at all. Hey, there’s something you don’t see anymore! Ah, sitting in the glider on my grandmother’s front porch eating home-made ice cream and listening to her sing hymns. That was a wonderful time. ---
**Author:** ![Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spectre_of_pithecanthropus/32/12343_2.png) [@Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spectre_of_Pithecanthropus)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2005, 8:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-just-dont-see-much-anymore/301895/47 "2005-05-02T20:51:07Z")
> [@TheLoadedDog](#): > > I like these threads. > > See-saws (teeter-totters to you 'Merkins) always feature highly. There is one in a little out-of-the-way playground near my house. I hope the officials from the Department of Fun Spoiling have forgotten it. We say ‘see-saw’ too. ---
**Author:** ![gotpasswords](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/c57346/32.png) [@gotpasswords](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gotpasswords)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2005, 9:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-just-dont-see-much-anymore/301895/48 "2005-05-02T21:23:54Z")
Suits with suspenders? A gentleman in this building usually dresses that way. Phones with only 12 buttons and round ends on the receiver? I’ve got a phone with only ten buttons - there’s no star or pound. **Thudlow Boink** - Don’t let him throw out that “color” thing for the TV before you have a look at eBay. **+MDI** - I see that every time I give my dog a real bone for a treat. ---
**Author:** ![Push\_You\_Down](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/push_you_down/32/9095_2.png) [@Push\_You\_Down](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Push_You_Down)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2005, 9:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-just-dont-see-much-anymore/301895/49 "2005-05-02T21:49:50Z")
Zip-lines at playgrounds. You know a long cord high above the ground connecting two points. One lower than the other. With an apparatus and handle (or seat) allowing you to push off of one point and ‘zip’ down to the other. Man growing up in Great Falls Montana there was a nearby park that had one at a fairly steep angle. The ride was roughly 30 feet. Years later when some friends and I moved to the Ballard neighborhood of Seattle we found a park that was lost in time. Merry Go Round, teeter-totters, tall swing sets, sand box and a Zip-line(!). It was good times. Best times. I would say Crock Pots but they are making a comeback. I will definitely say Casseroles. I can’t think of the last one I had. Not even my mom makes casseroles anymore. I think probably Green Bean Casserole on Thanksgiving is the only one I ever hear about nowadays. ---
**Author:** ![Capt.Ridley\_s\_Shooting\_Party](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/cc9497/32.png) [@Capt.Ridley\_s\_Shooting\_Party](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Capt.Ridley_s_Shooting_Party)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2005, 11:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-just-dont-see-much-anymore/301895/50 "2005-05-02T23:03:20Z")
> [@](#): > > +MDI - I see that every time I give my dog a real bone for a treat. I haven’t seen it in _ages_. Is that what causes it (i.e. bones)? ---
**Author:** ![jimmmy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/73ab20/32.png) [@jimmmy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jimmmy)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2005, 11:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-just-dont-see-much-anymore/301895/51 "2005-05-02T23:50:42Z")
Diving Boards (esp. High Dives) Quisp cereal. Local kids clubs on TV (e.g. [CAptain 20](http://kidshow.dcmemories.com/twenty.html) or Romper Room) ---
**Author:** ![Lobsang](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lobsang/32/4067_2.png) [@Lobsang](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lobsang)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2005, 11:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-just-dont-see-much-anymore/301895/52 "2005-05-02T23:51:54Z")
You don’t see new places like you did as a child anymore. Life sucks. You spend your entire childhood craving adulthood, and when you finally become an adult the fact is revealed to you that childhood is better. Youth is wasted on the young. ---
**Author:** ![Burnt\_Sugar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ee59a6/32.png) [@Burnt\_Sugar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Burnt_Sugar)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2005, 12:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-just-dont-see-much-anymore/301895/53 "2005-05-03T00:20:20Z")
> [@Push You Down](#): > > Zip-lines at playgrounds. > > You know a long cord high above the ground connecting two points. One lower than the other. With an apparatus and handle (or seat) allowing you to push off of one point and ‘zip’ down to the other. Many parks here have those, they’re called flying foxes. Although usually they’re only a few metres long and go from platform to platform. ---
**Author:** ![Tamex](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ccd318/32.png) [@Tamex](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tamex)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2005, 3:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-just-dont-see-much-anymore/301895/54 "2005-05-03T15:37:59Z")
> [@TheLoadedDog](#): > > I don’t know why see-saws had to go. Sure, the ones I remember were essentially nothing more than a long plank with two U brackets bolted to the underside, and mounted on a tube welded to four legs. Now admittedly, this whole set-up was on a concrete base, and cracked heads were a part of childhood, but I’m sure modern playgrounds could have a _proper_ see-saw that would satisfy the lawyers. > > Mount the thing in that rubberised matting that playgrounds have now, and set up a simple retarding mechanism that slows the see-saw in its last several inches of travel - this wouldn’t spoil the kids’ fun as mostly it wouldn’t kick in with normal use. It was that sudden hit on the concrete with exuberant use that made the lower kid get a sore arse, and the higher kid fly off into space with a concrete touchdown. This could easily be solved mechanically. > > Let’s face it - those poor replacements - awful little plastic animals on springs - are dead boring, and are shunned by most children. > > BRING BACK SEE-SAWS DANGNAMBIT!! > > (On the other hand, some of the modern playground equipment is pretty cool) I saw a lawyer-pleasing teeter-totter the other day…the “simple retarding mechanism” was a giant spring on each side of the fulcrum. If one kid got off suddenly, the spring would keep the other kid from slamming into the ground. The springs also made it possible for one kid to have a bit of fun on the teeter-totter by him/herself…like those lame springy animals. ---
**Author:** ![Hey\_It\_s\_That\_Guy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/6f9a4e/32.png) [@Hey\_It\_s\_That\_Guy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hey_It_s_That_Guy)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2005, 3:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-just-dont-see-much-anymore/301895/55 "2005-05-03T15:42:09Z")
> [@plnnr](#): > > > [@Big Bad Voodoo Lou](#): > > > > Men wearing hats (fedoras, pork pie hats, knit caps) with suits and other “nicer” clothes. I say this because I’m looking for a nice hat, and nobody has any for sale, not even the men’s sections in the larger department stores. I hate ball caps, and I think people look stupid wearing them if they’re not playing sports or at a tailgate party or something. > > > > On that note, suspenders (braces) with suits. > > If you were here you’d see me in both braces and a real hat. It cost me $35 and is quite snazzy. Where did you buy your hat, a national store chain or a website, by any chance? ---
**Author:** ![plnnr](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/7ea924/32.png) [@plnnr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/plnnr)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2005, 3:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-just-dont-see-much-anymore/301895/56 "2005-05-03T15:49:49Z")
> [@Big Bad Voodoo Lou](#): > > Where did you buy your hat, a national store chain or a website, by any chance? SteinMart. Don’t know if they are national chain or not, but I believe so. Plus, there are a ton of websites, but I’d recommend against it unless you’re really sure what your hat size is. I’ve got a big ol’ head, so I have a hard time finding hats that fit me properly. ---
**Author:** ![Corii](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/aeb1de/32.png) [@Corii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Corii)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2005, 3:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-just-dont-see-much-anymore/301895/57 "2005-05-03T15:56:03Z")
> [@TheLoadedDog](#): > > See-saws (teeter-totters to you 'Merkins) always feature highly. I always called them see-saws. [Merkins](http://dictionary.reference.com/search?q=merkin) now, you don’t see those much anymore. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![BobLibDem](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/boblibdem/32/3149_2.png) [@BobLibDem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BobLibDem)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2005, 3:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-just-dont-see-much-anymore/301895/58 "2005-05-03T15:57:01Z")
Computer punch cards. When I went to school, we had vending machines that sold them. I doubt they’re even made anymore. Kids playing sandlot baseball. When we were kids, we’d ride around the neighborhood on our bikes rounding up enough guys to make a game. We’d get to the park, or more often an empty field, and choose up sides and get to playing. Nowadays, they don’t play ball unless it’s scheduled and officiated. Tattoo-free basketball players. Slide rules. Glass soft drink bottles. Pantyhose commercials. Vinyl music. Stereo tuners with a dial and a moving needle. ---
**Author:** ![meanoldman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/7ab992/32.png) [@meanoldman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/meanoldman)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2005, 4:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-just-dont-see-much-anymore/301895/59 "2005-05-03T16:18:30Z")
Smaller cities probably still have them — but single screen theatres are harder and harder to find in urbanized america. The drive-in theatre seems to be almost gone as well. Might just be around these parts… but the mom & pop, unaffiliated, downtown cafe’. Stars in the night sky. Too much light pollution now to see most of them. Growing up, I used to be able to look up and quite clearly see the band of stars that are the milky way. ---
**Author:** ![DeadlyAccurate](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ac91a4/32.png) [@DeadlyAccurate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DeadlyAccurate)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2005, 4:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-just-dont-see-much-anymore/301895/60 "2005-05-03T16:28:29Z")
> [@BobLibDem](#): > > Kids playing sandlot baseball. When we were kids, we’d ride around the neighborhood on our bikes rounding up enough guys to make a game. We’d get to the park, or more often an empty field, and choose up sides and get to playing. Nowadays, they don’t play ball unless it’s scheduled and officiated. Instead nowadays everyone rides around trying to round up enough people to raid Tarren Mill or the Crossroads. 🙂 [sub]World of Warcraft reference[/sub] [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-just-dont-see-much-anymore/301895.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-just-dont-see-much-anymore/301895.md?page=4)