navychief 1 Posted November 26, 2003 ALL PEOPLE OVER 25 YEARS OF AGE SHOULD BE DEAD To the survivors: According to today's regulators and bureaucrats, those of us who were kids in the 40's, 50's, 60's, 70's probably shouldn't have survived. Our baby cribs were covered with bright colored lead-based paint. We had no child proof lids on medicine bottles, doors or cabinets, and when we rode our bikes, we had no helmets. As children, we would ride in cars with no 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. Horrors! We shared one soft drink with four friends, from one bottle, and no one actually died from this. We ate cupcakes, bread and butter, and drank soda pop with sugar in it,but we were rarely overweight because we were always outside playing. We would leave home in the morning and play all day, as long as we were back when the street lights came on. No one was able to reach us all day.No cell phones. Unthinkable We would spend hours building our go-carts out of scraps and then rode 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 did not have Playstations, Nintendo 64, X-Boxes, no video games at all, no 99 channels on cable, video tape movies, surround sound, personal cell phones, personal computers, or Internet chat rooms. We had friends! We went outside and found them. We fell out of trees, got cut and broke bones and teeth, and there were no lawsuits from these accidents. We made up games with sticks and tennis balls and ate worms, and although we were told it would happen, we did not put out very many eyes, nor did the worms live inside us forever. We rode bikes or walked to a friend's home and knocked on the door, or rang the bell or just walked in and talked to them. Little League had tryouts and not everyone made the team. Those who didn't had to learn to deal with disappointment. The idea of a parent bailing us out if we broke a 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. The past 50 years have been an explosion of innovation and new ideas. We had freedom, failure, success and responsibility, and we learned how to deal with it all. And you're one of them! Congratulations. Please pass this on to others who have had the luck to grow up and live through those dangerous times. Doesn't it kind of make you want to run through the house with scissors? Makes you think, doesn't it? Navychief Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
switch 0 Posted November 26, 2003 Yea Chief! And most of us probably have done worse things than drinking out of garden hose! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
CowboyTodd41 133 Posted November 26, 2003 Heh, even I've done most of that! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
+pcpilot 181 Posted November 28, 2003 Thanks Chief, you brought back a LOT of good memories as a child. I tell ya, I fell outta the big tree, next to the big field, close to the big ditch more times than I can remember. Mom would always tell me again to be careful and bandage my sore spots yet again. Never once was a lawsuit considered against the property owner. Dad smacked me for not saying sir to him or the neighbors and it never occured to me to go crying to school and sic CPS on him, I loved him too much. Even as a child I knew he was right and I needed to do the right thing, and he was only trying to teach me. I remember how special they made Halloween and Thanksgiving and Christmas. ...sure was a lot of empty chairs this year at Thanksgiving...I sure miss them...and those days... :( Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Dagger 21 Posted November 28, 2003 man that is soooo true..I remember we'd go on vacation and leave the house unlocked(come home and find notes from everyone telling us what they borrowed),and getting spanked at school,our shop teacher had a paddle that whistled on teh down swing used to drive you crazy,was actually worsr than the whipping itself.and my dad making me go get my own switch to get whipped with(took awhile but learned the long limber ones weren't the best choice). Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
navychief 1 Posted November 29, 2003 Memories are a wonderous thing, aren't they? I recall the days as a teenager, how much I longed to be away from home and under the control of my parents. Seemed like I thought they were the dumbest people in the world back then. And then I grew up, and realized how fortunate I was to have had such wonderful parents. They are both gone now. Life has not been the same since, or ever will be. When your parents die, I believe part of you dies as well. Were it possible to go back in time to my childhood days of the 60s, I would go there immediately. They were the best of times. Navy Chief Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Dagger 21 Posted November 29, 2003 chief,you remember that first Christmas away from in the service? man I drew duty and remember sitting in a tower at Gitmo thinking how much I wanted to be back home.you're right growing up all you want to do is leave then once gone all you want to do is go back! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
+pcpilot 181 Posted November 29, 2003 Ya know, its nice realizing I aint the only one thinking like I do. I was thinking just yesterday, that with my parents and brother all dead, life just isnt quite the same. These days Im living right now are some of the happiest days of my life, yet there is this hole, left by their loss, thats only filled with memories. Rarely does a day pass I dont think of them. Chief, I was 10 years old in 1967. I lived in Albuquerque at the time in an old farmhouse at the edge of town. Had a squad of 8 GI Joes, a model of the USS Enterprise NCC-1701 on the TV, and was a cubscout with Mom as the den mother. I always managed in the Corps to be home for Christmas. It wasnt till 1977 that I spent my first Holiday away. I was in Navy bootcamp in San Diego. I was RPO1 and my buddies and I were sitting in the company office after the Company commander had left for the day just relaxing and talking about home. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
BirdDogg 0 Posted December 3, 2003 Good Read Chief, *whistles Andy Griffin's theme music now* ;) BirdDogg. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
navychief 1 Posted December 3, 2003 These days, I have a lot of time to reflect on my life. The Navy kept me busy, to say the least, for 20 years. To be honest, I wish I was still on active duty. Even though I didn't like the changes taking place in "today's Navy", I look back on those times as being very fulfilling, and happy. So much of my time is spent on the computer; whether flying sims, or reading/answering posts on these types of forums. About three years ago, I quit drinking. No regrets there. I drank a lot in the Navy, and continued doing so for several years until I decided it was time to give it up. I do enjoy this forum a lot. So many intelligent folks, and it is so nice to have contact with people with the same interests. All for now, shipmates. Navy Chief Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Nick Tselepides 1 Posted December 3, 2003 Navychief, Your thread is deeply moving-- you are so right... And ,you know something: you have a talent for writing. You made our day. Thank you, friend. :) Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Skater 0 Posted December 3, 2003 Thanks Chief. That was a great trip down memory lane. I share the same memories and feelings that you do, and if I could, I'd go back to those days in heartbeat as well. Thanks again Chief. STS1 (SS) Ed Lynch USNR Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
navychief 1 Posted December 3, 2003 I thank you all for the comments, however, I am not the author! I do not know who actually wrote that piece, but it really "hit home" for me, and I wanted to share it with you all. I will say this, whoever was the author had to have been born/raised during the 60s, as the things he mentioned were all too familiar. Navy Chief Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
snapple2993 0 Posted December 3, 2003 Oh god, my cell phone reception has been so terrible lately... tragic... somebody help me :P B) :D Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
tc223 0 Posted December 3, 2003 Indeed.. the funniest thing is remembering those times and remembering my Dad.. "enjoy it.. it'll be gone before you know it" Then I'd blow him off! <_< Now I walk around the house with my 2 boys saying "enjoy it.. it'll be gone before you know it" and then watching them blow ME off! How many of us said.. I'll never be like my father? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Boltz 0 Posted December 4, 2003 Thanks navychief for the great trip down memory lane. Man, how times have changed. I was in the Navy from 74 thru 78, and looking back it was some of the best times I ever had. I'll never have friends like that again I'm afraid. Hope this country turns around soon, or I'm afraid where in for a long haul. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
