Recently I saw a meme on social media that took me back.
Waaaaaay back to my Gen X childhood in the 70s and 80s.
“You can still taste the warm plastic water on an 80s summer day…” the meme states alongside a picture of a green plastic water gun.
Oh my word, yes I can!
I totally remember sucking the water out of such water toy guns during a water gun fight with my sisters or friends. And how hard it was to open that little red plug and pour the water in that teeny tiny little hole just right so that you could refill it again. And then how quickly those water guns ran out of water again.
It got me thinking about more 70s and 80s childhood summer memories that’ll take you back.
Like watching reruns on TV all summer long. I remember watching HOURS of reruns (which probably explains a lot about me–ha!).
I know for me and my sisters that lazy summer weekdays meant taking in epic marathons of The Munsters or Gillligan’s Island or Bewitched. I can almost feel the soft shag carpet on my legs from where I lay staring at the TV set while in a summertime haze.
At the same time, I totally recall skateboarding, roller skating, riding my bike (without a helmet of course) and playing games like “Mother May I” with other kids in the neighborhood.
And I bet I wasn’t the only kid in the summer during the 70s and 80s that practically lived in a bathing suit 24/7 after swimming or running through the sprinkler.
All of this playing outside made us thirsty. Thank goodness we had amazing processed and likely contaminated drinks to quench our thirst back on a summer day in the 70s and 80s, too.
I definitely gulped a cool splash of water from many a garden hose. Or cracked open a tin can of Hi-C with a can opener.
Ahh–refreshing! And possibly tainted with lead?!?
Anyway, I found Hi-C particularly sweet for washing down that warm plastic water gun water.
Thanks for revisiting some of my favorite 70s and 80s childhood summer memories, whether skateboarding or laying like a slug in front of Brady Bunch reruns or sipping out of the water gun or a can of Hi-C.
Now let’s get out there and get the next generation off their phones and into a pair of roller skates stat. They can even bring their fancy water bottles.
Yes! You’ve brought the unique plastic water gun taste flooding back. Yum. And memories of leaping though the sprinkler. Up here we had Cragmont pop (soda) to quench the summer thirst. I was allowed one a day. You’d open them with a can opener that left two triangular holes in the lid. As for TV – I adored Bewitched and was very annoyed when the new Darrin showed up.
Yes Old Darrin was much better than new Darrin. Thanks for sharing your exotic Cragmont soda memories–oh Canada who knew your beverages were so unique? 🙂
Katy recently posted…70s and 80s Childhood Summer Memories That’ll Take You Back