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To all us KIDS that survived the 1930's, 40's, 50's, 60's and 70's

By Fred GUNDELL

1st:   We survived being born to mothers who smoked and/or drank while they were pregnant. They took aspirin, ate blue cheese dressing, tuna from a can, and didn't get tested for diabetes.

         Then after that trauma, we were put to sleep on our tummies in baby cribs 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, not to mention the risks we took hitchhiking.

         As infants and children we would ride in cars with no car seats, booster seats, seat belts, or air bags.  Riding in the back of a pickup on a warm day was always a treat.

         We drank water from a garden hose, and NOT from a bottle. We shared one soft drink with four friends, from one bottle, and NO ONE actually died.  We ate cupcakes, whitebread, and real butter and drank koolaid made with sugar, but we weren't overweight because we were ALWAYS outside playing!  We would leave home in the morning and play all day, as long as we were home when the streetlights came on. No one was able to reach us all day. And we were OK !

          We would spend hours building our go-carts out of scraps and then ride down the hill, only to find out we forgot brakes. After running into the bushed a few times, we learned to solve the problem.

         We did not have Playstations, Nintendo's, X-Boxes, no video games at all, no 150 channels on cable, no video movies or DVD's, no CD's, no cell phones, no personal computers, no internet, no chat rooms.  We had FRIENDS ans we went outside and found them!

         We fell out of trees, got cut, broke bones and teeth, and there were no lawsuits,  We ate worms and mudpies, and the worms didn't live in us forever.  We were given BB guns for out 10th birthday, made up games with sticks and tennisballs, and although we were told it would happen, we did not put out very many eyes. 

       We rode bikes or walked to a friends house and knocked on the door, or rang the doorbell, or just walked in and talked with thtem.  Little league had tryouts, and not eberybody made the team. Those who didn't  had to learn to deal with disappointment. Imagine that!!

     These generations have produced some of the best risk takers, problem solvers, and inventors ever!  The past 50 years have been an explosion of innovatiopn and new ideas.

  WE HAD  FREEDOM, FAILURE, SUCCESS AND RESPONSIBILITY, AND WE LEARNED HOW TO DEAL WITH IT.!!

  I  had the luck to be born in the 40's, and grow up in Rochester. The above was part of our  JohnMarshall 45th class reunion picnic booklet. I thought of sharing it with everybody who might remember these times, and really appreciate how lucky we are.  Thanks

 

Fred Gundell

 

Chelsea O'Brien

Grouping the 30s-70s is a long time.

There were wars, riots, assassinations, and the draft.

There were (generally) fewer drug laws and less enforcement of them

There were fewer tests and medicines to treat the sick and dying

There were factory job, coal mining, etc that could and did kill fathers and bothers

Entire towns and villages were owned by companies, who contaminated the land and the soil, and then abandoned the people

Life wasn't "easier", it was just different.

Aug 4, 2009, 10:15am Permalink
Karen Miconi

Hah?? You wouldnt know chealsea. Your too young. Yes life was easier, and the quality of it was way better than today. I loved the 70's. No coal mines here either. I was a Kodak Baby. This is my opinion( and I should know}. I grew up in the midst of it. It was great!!

Aug 4, 2009, 10:28am Permalink
Karen Miconi

Dont want to fight Pete, thats your job..LOL I will win anyway. Na-na-na-boo-boo. Take that heehee. Just find another victim. And start an argument?? I dont think I did that, you 2 did. Im just blogging, minding my own. Remember what Howard wants you to do now petee. Be nice. Oh and yah, we respected others back in the 70's a hell of a lot more than the youth today, thats for sure. Signing off now..................

Aug 4, 2009, 10:55am Permalink
Chelsea O'Brien

For the record, I didn't start an argument. I simply put out other information in the discussion. I could put in things that I had while growing up which made life "easier".

We tend to remember them as "good old days" when in reality a lot of bad things happened.

Aug 4, 2009, 10:59am Permalink
Peter O'Brien

Yeah Karen, alot of respect was shown by this country to their soldiers back in the 70's.... And Tricky Dick was a respectful name too. Let's not forget all the respect that was given to KISS.

There was so much respect that in 60's we had Aretha begging for it.

Aug 4, 2009, 11:08am Permalink
Peter O'Brien

I grew up in the transition from outdoor activities to home bodies. I preferred to be inside. I enjoyed playing video games far more than I ever did building forts in the woods or damming a creek or drainage ditch. My parents moved to a new house on 11 acres (1/2 wooded). It was interesting for a bit to have that space but electronics and technology are my hobbies not seeing what I can build with my hands. I prefer using my mind instead of my body when it comes to work.

The only times I really enjoyed being outside was when we were playing a sport but at the new house we had no neighbors and it was a hour long bike ride to get to my best friend's house. Even when I had a car I stayed home. To this day I prefer staying indoors unless a sport is involved. Its just who I am.

Childhood obesity is the fault of the parent. Its not about the kid getting outside to play. Fat kids existed back then too. Its about the parent not taking an responsibility or feeling any shame toting tubby around.

You can blame video games all you want for this societal change but the fact is they engage more of the mind then any of the activities I ever did outside.

Aug 4, 2009, 11:27am Permalink
Susan Kennelly

I grew up in Batavia... Moved away for 20 some odd years. I moved back after my husband died. The Batavia of the 60's 70's and 80's was a much different atmosphere. People were friendlier, Young people had respect for their elders and were taught manners at home. Hell, young people had a home life. (I'm not saying there aren't intact families now so don't get your undies in a bunch) , but in these times people need 2 and 3 incomes per family to survive. There are many split families where the single parents work to damn much to have a complete family life. The economy is in the crapper...People can't afford food let alone family nights. They can't afford to take the kids to amusement parks or carnivals or on vacations. They don't eat dinner as a family. Adults are stressed, kids are ignored or abused. and don't say it doesn't happen.. because it does... all the time. In all walks of life not just low income or welfare people. And face it... a lot of the "starting over" people are so damn selfish getting their poo together that the older kids are generally left to fend for themselves.

It was not only different back then, it was a simpler kind of life. We ate dinner at the table, spent time as a family. People not only knew their neighbors but everyone got along. We grew up in a very close knit neighborhood. We all hung out young and old. We played outside all day. At night we had to be on a porch. not necessarily our porch... but, somebody's porch. We would start all over the next day. We couldn't get away with anything because it was like having 17 mothers and fathers but it was also like we had 40 brothers and sisters... we always knew if we ever needed anything no matter where we were we could always depend on them. It's sad to see that era go away. And you know what? there were bad things back then but nothing like the crap that happens today. Thing happened far away in places we never heard of. Now scary stuff happens in your own back yard. Also remember, we didn't have the Internet back then and few people had cable. We didn't have access to the information we have now so it wasn't like this stuff was force fed to us every minute of every day like it is now. We were blissfully ignorant to the big bad ways of the rest of the world. I'm not saying it was good or bad it was just "different". Now a days there are kids taking medications for anxiety problems. I wonder if we had the same access to the information we have today back then, if we would have been necrotic little crazies too. (speaking of my own children of course. My kids worry about everything. Wars, sickness, murder, everything negative.. it drives me up a wall) We spent our time enjoying life and they spend their time worrying about it.

Back then Batavia was kind of a security blanket. Bad things never happened here. We could walk the streets at night. We could go to the playground or the store without worrying if someone was going to take us. We could talk to adults without being afraid. Remember block parents? OMG I would never tell my 7 yr old grandson to go up to someone's house and knock on the door. We could survive days without electricity, we could live without drugs, we had fun in school! Now schools are run like prisons... park your fun at the door please, you can pick it up on the way out... It's not even close to being the same as it was. Neighborhoods have depreciated, you need good credit to live at the "projects" since they became respectable yet many of the little old neighborhoods have gone to pot. It was better, it was different...It's changed all the way around and it's sad.

Aug 4, 2009, 12:24pm Permalink
Bea McManis

The fact that those years were a simpler time is not a myth.
Sue gave a great description of what it was like growing up in the 60s and 70s in a neighborhood that boasted about 40 kids (from newborns to teens).
I don't believe any neighbor has a snow blower back then, but there were plenty of kids to take care of the sidewalks and driveways. Not only their own but the neighbors' too. There was always a competition to see who could shovel the neatest sidewalk and driveway. Perfectly square corners and absolute straight lines was a constant goal. Also figuring out how far to shovel the street so that the plow wouldn't plow in a driveway was the mathematical test every time it snowed.
Raking leaves was never considered a chore either. Our tree lined street provided more than enough leaves for hours of play in leaf piles. The leaves also provided instant stuffing for 'scare crows' on halloween. Every porch had at least one stuffed creature.
Back then, when you could still burn leaves and the remnents of the garden, the autumn bon fire was something everyone looked forward to.
Summer belonged to the kids. They played, as Sue mentioned, from morning to night. They understood the rules of the neighborhood and it only took one banning from joining the rest of the kids to teach them that rules were not meant to be broken.
They had numerous water fights and when the street flooded after a massive rain storm they all went tubing down the street.
They took turns having sleep outs in back yards. It was like going to summer camp without leaving home.
Every summer the neighborhood at a street picnic. Young and old alike gathered to play games and feast from tables groaning with the food prepared by each household.
None of this is a myth. It was their childhood.
I do wish that today's kids could have that experience. It wasn't easy for many families back then, financially. Every family, at one time or another, goes through their own private economic depression - and most had both parents working - as well as the older kids picking up work to help out.
That old neighborhood, like many, has undergone changes over the years. There were deaths and families moving in and out. The cohesive network was unique and most likely will never be there again. All the pity.

Aug 4, 2009, 2:04pm Permalink
Fred GUNDELL

Congratulations to all of you for your wonderful comments. It sure is different to hear most agree and not bicker. I do wonder where we would be today if we just backed up and went back to the 60's and 70's growing up. Was the Draft all that bad, or did we grow from it. I sure learned alot in the military. Like how to get along with others. Even those I didn't necessarily like. I sure learned how to make $200.00 a month last for 30 days. Did we learn from trickie Dickie, or Lyndon Baines, or Gerald Ford, or Jimmy the peanut man. I would hope so, but only history will tell. Thanks again.

Sep 14, 2009, 8:24am Permalink
Jim Dimo

Fred,
I'm in agreement with the letter and spirit of your post, but we need to talk about its large amount of inappropriate and misplaced apostrophes. Like you, I graduated from Marshall, but -- in the words of the late Tony Alocco -- when I attended it was a school.
J.D.
Terrace Gardens class of 1970s

Feb 2, 2015, 10:06pm Permalink

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