Sometimes my Tender Pumpkins ask me to get them a snack or drink of water while they lounge on the couch watching TV.
Why?
Because “You’re already up” or “You’re closer” they plead.
At times like this, I fight the good fight. Laziness and privilege will not be rewarded. No, I stand firm and tell them that they can get it themselves.
Okay, so sometimes it’s easier to just get the stupid glass of water then engage in 5 minutes of back and forth.
But still. Sometimes I DO fight the good fight.
Furthermore, I always remind them how much easier they have it today then when I was growing up.
After all, I lived through the 80s. The Cold War was raging. President Reagan got shot. Boy bands had tighter pants and bigger hair than I did.
Indeed, here are 10 Ways That Living through the 80s Made Me Stronger:
1. I went to the movies before stadium seating. If anyone sat in front of me, I could only see half the screen.
2. I learned how to drive on a stick shift. Heck, I learned how to parallel park on a stick shift!
3. I survived using a bottle of Aqua Net every week to get my 80s hair just so. (Um, sorry ozone layer.)
4. I had to get up and slide the bar to change the channel on the cable TV box.
5. I used the card catalog and encyclopedias.
6. I had to write my school papers by hand and use white-out if I made a mistake. (It smelled kinda good, though!)
7. I had to share a phone with my whole family AND it was attached to the wall.
8. I had to fast forward after the last song on the first side of a cassette tape before I could turn it over and listen to the first song on the other side. Geesh. My kids don’t even know of what I speak.
9. I had to lick the back of postage stamps.
10. Two words: spiral perm.
See? Life was hard in the 80s. My Tender Pumpkins don’t know how easy they’ve got it.
What about you? Tell me something about when or where you grew up that made you stronger.
Want more 80s?
Then you might like these Generation X posts (like, totally!):
My friends and I lived in fear of the telephone bill – long distance calls were absolutely forbidden! I also survived the age of microwave cooking – we got a microwave around 1983 and my mother cooked almost exclusively with it for the next three or four years.
Meanwhile in my house the microwave oven sat around unused for years unless we made popcorn or got bored and puffed up marshmallows!
You’re exactly right about the long distance phone bill. Yikes!
I love the term “tender pumpkins”. The long distance thing was a big one for us since our family is spread all over the country. Also, remember when cell phones were car phone, permanently attached to the car?
Mo recently posted…Retirement is Exhausting – Part Two
Yes! And I remember thinking it was ridiculous that people had phones in their cars. Who needed to talk in the car? I guess my feeling on that haven’t changed too much actually.
Haha, awesome. I still remember licking the back of stamps. And I wore those jelly shoes that were popular then.
Amber recently posted…Hey, It’s Okay Tuesday!
Is it just me or did those jelly shoes make your feet sweat?! That was another hardship of the 80s for sure!
#7 was rough – what if a BOY called and your FAMILY answered??? Talk about problems. Actually, that’s why I won’t get my kids cell phones until they’re 30. If a boy calls to talk to my daughter, I want to know about it.
Jenny @ Unremarkable Files recently posted…Things Better Than Driving My Kids All Over Town
Encyclopedias and spiral perms. Both make me cringe. I really must tell you about the time I went through training to sell encyclopedias and the time I got a spiral perm. One word for both? Ouch.
Great summation here, Katy. Off to share.
Kelly L McKenzie recently posted…My Podcast on Inside Voice
I forgot about those poor souls who sold encyclopedias door-to-door, especially the ones who had spiral perms as well! I’m skimming your past posts to look for these stories. 😉
Oh my, Katy! You always bring such fun memories to my mind when I read your posts. I ALWAYS wanted a spiral perm, and even tried only once to get it. Let’s just say naturally frizzy/wavy/curly hair and a perm back then was not s beautiful sight and leave it at that. 🙂
Lynette
Lynette recently posted…(FMF Friday) Quiet
Oh, Lynette, but we all tried to rock the spiral perm didn’t we?! I’ll remember that when my daughter’s a teen and there’s something she wants just like everyone else. Fingers crossed it ISN’T going to be spiral perms!
My brother and I used to take turns laying on the floor in front of the TV and changing channels with our toes. Between that and the commercial break-sprint to the bathroom, I had a ready made exercise routine. Now I just sit on the couch and use the remote. And pause the TV, so I can walk to the bathroom and check facebook on my phone!
Rabia @TheLiebers recently posted…If Parenting Were a TV Show
Ha ha! Commercial bathroom breaks. And remember how you could only catch a TV show once or maybe twice in the summer during a rerun? You really had to stay home to catch something in prime time.
I totally remember using a typewriter. Also, oh lord, the card catalog. When I was in my Master’s program I had to do a lot of work in Russia and all of their archives were still using the CARD CATALOG. It was…difficult 😉
Typewriters! And what about those dot matrix printers with the continuous paper feed that you had to rip off on the sides? Yikes.
I love this! And what about those Dr. Sholls wooden clogs; talk about hard on the feet!
Oh my word! Those Dr. Scholl’s clogs! I never had any because I was scared of walking in them, LOL. But I remember so many girls had them. Thanks for the memory!
Katy @ Experienced Bad Mom recently posted…10 Ways Living Through the 80s Made Me Stronger
BAHAHAHA!!! YES!! Every SINGLE one of these… YES!! My first year in college, I doused my hair with “Sun In’ on a regular basis, then blow dried it for the full effect of that orange-blonde hue. I had my friend do a spiral perm on me and guess what happened? My curls were like gooey overcooked pasta. I had completely KILLED my hair!! It was SO damaged, it hung like frazzled wire. Yeah… I learned my lesson about perms and Sun In – they DON’T mix.
So add that to your list, wouldya?
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