November 2011

In My Day We Used to Share One Computer

Accessing the web was like waiting for paint to dry.

When I was growing up, I remember my grandparents used to say things such as “in my day we used to walk to school in ten feet of snow” or “in my day we made our own clothes”. I have decided that my catch phrase for any grandchildren that I may have one day is going to be: in my day we used to all have to share one computer.

Recently, I have noticed that modern kids are so obsessed with technology that the simple thought of having to share one little computer with the rest of their household is almost as horrid to them as having to go without food or clean water.

Yes, You can Survive on a Weekly Bath

"What gave rise to this obsession with hygiene?"

In today’s super hygiene world, we often forget how men and women just like us lived in the pioneer days.  Sometimes, as I go through my daily life, running the dishwasher, washing a load of laundry or using the vacuum, I imagine what someone even one hundred years ago would say if they saw the way we live today.

The Golden Age of Nickelodeon is Back

Viewers can go on the web and vote for Friday night’s TV show lineup.

Cable station TeenNick, which typically caters to the programming needs of 13 to 19 year olds, recently decided to give viewers ranging from around ages 25 to 32 their wish: the channel has started airing shows from “The Golden Age of Nickelodeon” week nights at midnight. “The Golden Age of Nickelodeon” encompasses shows which aired on Nickelodeon from 1991 to 1999 when adults now in their late 20s and early 30s were active Nick viewers.

Many people in this age demographic have been able to enjoy sitcom episodes from their childhood and teen years such as Family Matters, Full House and The Nanny in rerun form on a variety of network and cable TV stations for quite some time. 90s Nickelodeon shows on the other hand have been missing in action until recently.

Easy Money Through Happy Accidents

Money.  We love it, we use it to buy neat stuff, we send our kids to college with it, we spend it unwisely and we horde it in banks.  No matter how much of it we have, we always seem to want more.

There was a time when the acquisition of money was as simple as getting a job and working long hours for low pay.  Particularly clever or lucky individuals might even accumulate large sums of it through business or other shady means.  Nowadays, however, there seems to be a trend of trying to get your money by finding the nearest plausible victim and suing the crap out of them.

Giving up Freedom in the Guise of Security

"The only benefit I can see is for the government. "

Have you flown since 9/11?  If you are like me, you avoid it at all costs.  Not because of the risk of terrorist attacks, or because of the ridiculous prices that keep increasing, but because of the fact that we are no longer treated as human beings with basic rights.  When you choose to fly on a plane, you are choosing to lose your basic civil rights.  To me, the tradeoff is simply not worth it.

90s Fashion Trends Remembered, Part 1

Were you ever sent to the principal's office for wearing a slap bracelet?

If you were a child, a tween, a teen or a college student during the 90s, you surely remember some of the hottest trends of the decade. At the time you probably thought you looked great in your trendy outfit while walking the mall or waiting in line to see Pearl Jam or the Spice Girls. Looking back at your old photos, would you ever wear these trends again? Or are you happy to leave them in the past?

Let's remember and celebrate some of the best trends of the 90s.

Flannel

If it was the 90s, there had to be flannel around. Everyone from legendary rocker Kurt Cobain to the hunks on TV shows such as Party of Five and My So-Called Life wore flannel shirts (unbuttoned of course) with a t-shirt underneath and jeans on a regular basis. Even girls got in on the flannel shirt trend by wrapping flannel shirts around their waists or wearing the shirts open with a baby tee underneath.

The Dukes of Hazzard

I think for many people, The Dukes of Hazzard series is iconic of the lighthearted mentality of the eighties.  Fun loving Bo and Luke took us on some wild adventures in the backwoods of Georgia.  Former moonshiners and all around renegades, the Duke cousins constantly went head to head with Boss Hogg, the corrupt town leader who was always up to no good.  The rambunctious cast of eccentric characters meant there was always something strange going on. 

The Changing Standards of Beauty in Fashion

I am about to express an opinion that may get my man-card revoked, but I have to say that the way women’s fashion has changed in recent years is quite disappointing.  Call me a traditionalist, but I’ve always thought that subtly works better when it comes to accentuating beauty.  Nowadays it seems like the emphasis in fashion focuses on high-rise thongs and low-rise jeans, booty shorts and tops so tight that it’s a wonder that women can breathe at all.

On Kids and Manners

"I long for the "good ol' days" when kids were taught some manners."

Maybe it's my faulty memory but it seems to me when I was growing up in the 1970's that kids behaved better in the check out line at the store. I know for certain that I would have had one of those screaming "I want this" and "I want that" temper tantrums like I see so many kids have today while I'm waiting to pay for my groceries, there would have been a dire price to pay. My Mother just would not have put up with that.

Then I remember the stories of my Grandmother who always talked about how kids were taught to show respect for their elders. It was considered an important lesson of childhood that continued on into adulthood. Nowadays, I don't think we show the same amount of respect for our elderly people who have so much to offer us in terms of wisdom.

Riding in the Back of Pickups

"Life – and death – will play out regardless of how much we try to control the outcome."

I remember the freedom of sitting in the bouncing bed of a pickup truck on the way to the swimming hole.  The thought of getting hurt or killed back there never occurred to us.  We would just snug up to the back of the cab, suck on a lollipop and wait with eager anticipation to get to our destination.  I have a lot of fond memories that began with that pickup bed ride.

These days, you are a bad parent if you let your child sit in the back of a pickup.  In many areas, it is outright illegal now to let anyone ride without a seatbelt.  In our area, you still can if all of the available seats are already taken, but it is highly frowned upon.