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For Those Of Us Born Before 1980. . .
----- BE SURE YOU READ
TO THE BOTTOM FOR A GREAT QUOTE FROM JAY LENO -----
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 were frequently exposed to second-hand smoke, or who themselves smoked and/or drank while they were pregnant.
They took aspirin, ate bleu cheese dressing, ate tuna from a can, and they didn't get
tested for diabetes.
Then after that trauma, we were put to sleep on our tummies in baby cribs
covered with brightly 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 infants and children, we would ride in cars with no car seats, booster
seats, seat belts or air bags.
Riding in the back of a pickup truck 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, white bread and real butter and drank koolade made
with sugar, but we weren't overweight because WE
WERE ALWAYS OUTSIDE PLAYING. . . (and without sunblock!)
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 spent hours building our go-carts out of scraps and then we'd thunder
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 didn't
have Playstations, Nintendo's, or X-boxes. . . no video games
at all, no 150
channels on cable, no video movies or DVD's, no surround-sound or
CD's,
no
cell phones, no personal computers, no Internet or 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 ate
worms and mud pies made from dirt, and the worms did not live in us
forever.
We were given BB guns for our 10th birthdays; we
made up games with sticks and tennis balls and, although we were told it
would happen, we did not put out very many eyes.
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 face-to-face!
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!
These generations have produced some of the best risk-takers, problem solvers
and inventors ever!
The past 50
years have seen an explosion of innovation and new
ideas.
We had freedom, failure, success and responsibility, and we
learned HOW TO DEAL WITH IT ALL!
If YOU are one of us . .
CONGRATULATIONS!
( Kind
of makes you want to run through the house with scissors, doesn't
it?! )
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 so much of our
lives
"for
our own good"
And
while you're at it, feel free to email the URL to your kids so they will know how brave
(and lucky) their parents were.
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The quote
of the month is from Jay Leno:
"With hurricanes, tornados, fires out
of control, mud slides, flooding, severe thunderstorms tearing up the
country from one end to another, and with the threat of bird flu and
terrorist attacks. . . are we sure this is a good time to take God out of the
Pledge of Allegiance?"
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