I know youre right.
But if we were mid-20's now, thinking of kids, wife and I both say "no f'ing way".
But maybe mid-20 kids, this is all they know and its not a huge deal.
We came from a better place and time...
Well, as a kid growing up in Southern California, I did spend a lot of time outside, riding my bike and hanging out with friends. Sometimes I helped my friend Henry with his afternoon paper route. My parents gave me a lot of freedom to do what I wanted and go where I wanted if I didn't get into trouble.
What I didn't do was, play games or endlessly talk to my friends on a cell phone. I didn't plant myself in front of the TV for hours on end. The TV was turned on by my parents after dinner and I watched the shows they chose. Trust me, it wasn't cartoons or other kiddy shows. Mostly boring one's for a kid, like The Ed Sullivan show or the Honeymooners "POW right in the kisser" segment of the Jackie Gleason show. So, I would go to my room and build model airplanes instead.
I didn't snack on junk food all day long because there was none of that in the house... want to have a snack? Eat an apple or a banana. My mom cooked dinner almost every night and sometimes my dad did. They didn't do take out or have pizza delivered. Every so often, maybe once a month we'd eat out at a restaurant either Chinese or Italian.
Occasionally, my dad took me to a movie house on La Brea, just off Hollywood Blvd that only showed old-time silent films. That was weird but fun because it was something we did together. Sometimes he and I would watch boxing matches on the TV, and we make non-monetary bets on who would win. He'd let me watch the first round before betting. Very often I picked the winner.
Yup, a kid’s life back in the 40's - 60's was a lot different than what it is today. A lot simpler.
