Survivors

[panther]

According to todays's regulators and bureaucrats, those of us who were kids in the 50s, 60s, and 70s (like me ) shouldn't have survived! Our cots were covered with brightly coloured lead-based paint which was promptly chewed and licked. We had no childproof lids on medicine bottles, or latches on doors or cabinets and it was fine to play with pans!
When we rode bikes, we wore no helmets, just flip flops and fluoresent 'clackers' on our wheels.
As kids we would ride in the car with no seat belts or airbags. Riding in the front seat was a treat!
We ate dripping sandwiches , bread and butter pudding and drank fizzy pop with sugar innit, but we were never overweight cuz we were always playing out and not sitting in front of the tv playing on computer games, we shared our drink with about four friends, from one bottle or can and noone actually died from this!

We would spend hours, building go-carts out of scraps of wood and old pram wheels, and then went top speed down the hill, only to find out we had no brakes, after running into stinging nettles a few times, we learned to solve the problem.

We would leave home in the morning and play all day, as long as we were back b4 it got dark. noone was able to reach us all day and noone minded. We had no playstations or x-boxs, no video games at all. no 99 channels on tv no videotape movies or surround sound, no mobiles, no PCs, no internet chat rooms... we had FRIENDS - we went outside and found them. we played elastics and street rounders and sometimes that ball really hurt!! We fell out of trees got cut and broke our bones and teeth, and there were NO lawsuits. they were accidents. We learned not to do the same again. We had fights, punched each other hard, and got black and blue - we learned to get over it!!

We WALKED to friends homes!

We made up games with sticks and tennis balls and ate live stuff!

WE rode bikes in packs of 7 and wore our coats by only the hood, our actions were our own, consequences were expected.

The idea of parents bailing us out if we broke the law was unheard of, they actually sided with the law, imagine that!!

This generation has produced some of the best risk-takers and problem solvers and inventors ever. we had freedom, failure, successes and responsibilty, and we learned how to deal with it all.

And you're one of them, CONGRATULATIONS!!!!!!

[WillowTheWhisp]

On the radio this morning a doctor was talking about all the allergies children today suffer from and in his opinion it has a lot to do with our obsession with cleanliness. We ate worms and lived! They touch worms and develop allergic reactions.

[rockrabbit]

that was the 80 s as well lol never had a video player or a computer till the 90 s spent most my time playing football , out on my bike , or up rhyddings park

[Busman747]

Excellent post Panther, you described my childhood exactly right! All these activities gave us EXPERIENCE in moral attitude, common sense and knowledge of right and wrong

Values that are sorely missing in many of the younger generation today (note: I said "many" not "all!")

I must admit I haven't chewed on a worm for many a year now but I am sure a few maggots have got into the digestive system when eating fruit from a tree (and blackberries straight from the hedgerow! )

[mani]

*L* very true!!!

its like when i was a kid we didnt have a car till later on but we enjoyed the walks to school, we didnt have to b driven to a park to run around - the streets were our kingdom.

we didnt need a PS2 to experience the joys of falling off a bike during an attempt on a stunt. when we got 20 pence we knew we had a treat on our hands we didnt still stand there askin for a fiver...

[panther]

glad you liked it!!!! brings u back in time dun it!!! emmmmmmm those chopper bikes!!!(which are now back in the shops would you believe!!)

[Margaret Pilkington]

We played up Priestley Clough......paddled in the streams.......ran all the way to Peel Park school(just so that we could spend the busfair on Majestic wafers and Beech Nut chewing gum) we collected coal along side the main Manchester Railway line and got hauled home a couple of times by the railway police(got our hides tanned for that).
We picked blackberries and ate them straight off the bush.....never lasted till we got home to wash them. Went scrumping for apples.......didn't have many toys.... but I consider my childhood was rich in experience......wish some of todays kids could have the same experience. They aren't better off are they????????

[Busman747]

There is an estate in Luton, Beds. called Marsh Farm. The name may ring a bell as it appeared in a T.V. documentary because of the violence and rioting by youngsters.
The reason apparently was put down to boredom! "nuffin' to do round 'ere" so all the kids went out looking for something or someone to hurt.

I was the coach driver that had to take a load of dignitaries from local councillors to top level members of parliament on a drive around the estate so they could see first-hand the awful squallor that people were forced to live in...........

Let me tell you briefly about the estate! It is quite small, the roads are uncluttered and wide with vast areas of grass either side. There are three high-rise blocks of flats but all the other houses are well built with gardens. (not yards) It has its own shopping precinct with an outdoor market twice a week, and is less than 2 miles from the centre of Luton. Buses run every 10 minutes until late at night.

There are three schools easily within walking distance from anywhere on the estate, There is a car workshop, open to any interested youngsters that want to know how to break in...sorry, meant to say how a car "works" and gives them experience of driving before they are legally old enough to drive on a road,

There are a couple of parks with swings etc and a hardcourt area which is available 24 hours a day (with floodlights) to anyone that fancies a game of football or net/basket ball with their mates!(and it's free!) There is no industry now on the estate (but plenty nearby for those that DO wish to work) so no major traffic at peak periods.........To someone who lives in the less well off areas of Accy, this probably sounds like bliss but guess what? Shortly after my "drive thru" the residents commitee were entrusted with the spending power of over £500,000 to improve amenities for those poor sad bored teenagers that had nothing to do all day

It wasn't easy to get the grant, they had to fight off "Bury Park" which was mainly an Asian community and used to be the centre of Luton (until they rebuilt the centre off to one side) leaving them with old terrace housing and narrow roads with no amenities worth talking about.but thats another thread

I compare Marsh Farm with my boyhood days as a villager just outside of Luton. We had one shop (until it closed in 1999) There was one bus every 2 hours, (4 only on Sundays) Just 1 recreation ground.....and that was it!!

In the 50's/60's we made our own entertainment, from a grassy bank, we would design roads and towns, Every lad had a "secret" camp, and even sitting on a kerb, annoying black ants would keep us amused for hours.....

We were so knowledgeable about the countryside around us, frogspawn, newts, THAT golden plovers nest, and where to find the barn owl.......... Talking of which, how many of you can remember collecting birds eggs?? (I hear the gasp from the younger generation ) In those days, it was almost EXPECTED of you to have a collection, it wasn't illegal and no one told you it was not right but none the less, it was generally acknowledged that the "finder" has an egg but the rest are left Whether others of the gang returned later is another matter.....but I had over 100 different species including a tortoise egg! As a 12 year old, I was proud of my collection but of course, we all know now, the damage that can be caused by enthusiastic egg collectors!

Does anyone remember the skills of "blowing" an egg? If you get it wrong, the entire egg explodes in your hands and mouth!

Those days are long gone and are unlikely to return. It is a shame as my biggest "crime" was scrumping or knock up ginger (knocking doors and running away) These crimes could land you in major trouble with parents and police but.....what the heck!