Bottled soda
neighborhood games like tag, kick the can, whiffle ball, and so on.
Dukes of Hazzard and the A-Team
Wearing clothes that didn’t have to match
And, of course, no responsibility
How about you?
Summers off
organized sports (baseball in summer, football in fall, etc)
deciding what you were going to do this weekend or evening 5 minutes before you did it (Now, we’ve got to find a babysitter, etc etc).
Driving (or earlier, biking) around with friends with nowhere to go and nothing to do
Staying up late and getting up early without feeling like a zombie for the rest of the day
Hmmm… I’m sensing a lot of “No responsibility” in those answers
my youth.
Playing outside all day…every day, for the entire summer. If I wasn’t swimming, I was riding my bike, building a fort, walking through fields, playing at the creek, playing in the street…it was a wonderful time.
Innocence and youthful idealism.
The magic of Christmas.
Being able to ride a bicycle without some overaerobicized witch yelling at me to wear a helmet.
My grandparent’s farm.
My grandparents.
My grandmother’s cooking. She’s still alive at 85 years of age, but in a nursing home now.
Week-long trips with my grandparents. My grandpa (age 88) can now only handle day-long drives into the mountains if we go anywhere.
Three months straight of time off every year.
Video games for a quarter, and you could usually play for as long as your skills and luck allowed on that one quarter.
Getting toys for Christmas.
Not having to pay your own bills.
Being young enough that many things that are now mundane to me were all new experiences.
Being more physically agile and having more energy.
Running after the ice cream man, barefoot, with change in my hand.
The first day of school. (Yes, I’m a nerd)
Saturday diner expeditions with siblings and my father.
The joy of learning something that’s really, completely new to me, that I’d never heard anything about before.
Being bored. Man, I miss being bored.
Other than that, I don’t think I’ve given much up in the transition to adulthood.
Potential
Time.
The worst punishment being a spanking or a grounding instead of possible jail time.
This grown-up business isn’t what it’s cracked up to be.
The house I grew up in, which was a genuinely wonderful house. It was on a cul-de-sac, so it had a small front yard and a huge backyard opening onto woods. The house was ‘modern’ for the 1950s, and had a lot of picture windows that let the outdoors and the light in. And (joy of joys, during the summers) we had a small in-ground swimming pool in the backyard.
My grandparents’ houses.
My grandmother’s shortbread.
Like Kalhoun, playing outside every day, all summer.
I third or fourth the playing outside all day sentiment…We had an overgrown bayou behind our house that was like a jungle. My brother and I chased, and caught, snakes and turtles and frogs.
I also loved going fishing with my dad.
Thanks for this thread! Many fond memories are popping into my head.
The smell of grandma’s fried chicken.
In the grades below junior high, we were all just kids. We didn’t lump each other into nerds, dorks, geeks, etc.
Sometimes being the smartest kid in class.
Staying up way late to watch a stupid movie on TV, and not caring about having to wake up the next morning.
Having a best friend.
Eagerly anticipating the next birthday.
My parents taking us to far away places for vacation.
Nothing. I did not have a good childhood.
My poodle Bijou, Little League, Trout Fishing in the mountains, Kitter’s a swimming hole in West Enosburg, VT, Hillside Roller Skating Rink, Fishing, Swimming and Waterskiing at Lake Carmi, Jay Peak.
I think one of best memories were “Snow Days”
These are some truly great memories, wasn’t life just grand in those days?
I want to second dwc1970’s post on arcade games for a quarter. I used to go to this corner store to buy a pack of baseball cards for a quarter, a juice drink for a quarter, and a game of Pole Position or Galaga for a quarter. That’s fine entertainment for 75 cents!
Seems like the common thread in many posts is the endless energy and non-existent responsibility thing. Definitely true in many ways. Keep them coming, these are great for sparking some fond old memories.
moejuck
I think mainly the excitement and anticipation of all the fun events in the calendar year. Also back then any (good) new experience was almost magical.
Summer for me was not only three months off from school, but also three months from all the rotten kids I had to deal with while in school.
Summer nights were the best. Playing in the front yard until dark, watching TV late at night, and having the entire house to myself during the day.
Hindsight is 20/20. My childhood couldve so been much better if I knew just how responsibility-free I really was.
Wrapping up in a blanket on a cold night and watching airplanes fly across the sky, in the back yard with my Dad.
Dairy Queen chocolate-covered ice cream cones, and my Mom serving garden-grown fried okra and tomatoes for lunch in the summer.