Life growing up in the 1970’s

[ParaDime77]

I was born in the late 70’s so not much that l recall other than where l lived and the Schwan man coming to the house every now and then.

Was reading a Yahoo post earlier about growing up in the 70’s. Brought up a couple of interesting tidbits:

-Did any of you get sent to the store to buy not only cigarettes but liquor as well for your parents? My buddy from down the street always got sent to the local convenience store to buy smokes with a signed check after his mom called over to the store.

-The doctor stopping by the house for a house call?

-A random delivery of some sort where an employee had a key to your home to drop off milk or something similar?

What other random things can you think of occurring that seemed normal back then but is forgotten about today?

[VinnieVincentsVag]

I remember the Charles Chips guy delivering 5 gallon buckets of potato chips, early cable boxes with push buttons and the early gaming systems with Pitfall and games like that.
My family never had those, but a good friends family did.
I also remember leaving early in the morning and not coming back until dinner time.
Spent hours in the woods and at the creek.
Parents had no idea where we were for 10-12 hrs. No cell phones.
No wonder serial killers roamed in that decade.

[Metal Sludge]

The 70's were weird for me.
I think I was 7 years old when my dad and stepmom moved from the Bay Area, to Reno, NV.
My sisters and I spent summers and Christmas there with them. Strange place!
Summer was really hot, but the winter was crazy! They lived in what I guess what we would call a suburb now, but then it was just a few miles from the town. In the winter, the roads where they lived were covered in ice and snow for months.
I remember they had a doughnut truck come around in the summer. That was the first food truck I ever saw.

[kytepunches]

We used to have to get smokes for our drunk parents all the time. I was like 7 or so, off to the corner store with cash and a note. We also had a giant community news paper recycling bin…for only news print. We would climb in and hunt for nudie magazines , it was like a treasure hunt . That was 78/79ish. Good times , off to the tree fort to check out our newly found mags.

[VinnieVincentsVag]

We used to have to get smokes for our drunk parents all the time. I was like 7 or so, off to the corner store with cash and a note. We also had a giant community news paper recycling bin…for only news print. We would climb in and hunt for nudie magazines , it was like a treasure hunt . That was 78/79ish. Good times , off to the tree fort to check out our newly found mags.

We used to find porno mags in dumpsters all the time.
I had a loose board under the upstairs bathroom sink where I would hide them from my parents.

[Hellsinkey]

We used to have to get smokes for our drunk parents all the time. I was like 7 or so, off to the corner store with cash and a note. We also had a giant community news paper recycling bin…for only news print. We would climb in and hunt for nudie magazines , it was like a treasure hunt . That was 78/79ish. Good times , off to the tree fort to check out our newly found mags.

We used to find porno mags in dumpsters all the time.

Yes, that. Also found dad's porno mags and even his Polaroids with stepmom.

[TravisBicklesMohawk]

We use to get soft drinks delivered, like the milkman.

I also remember a lot of cool stuff on television like variety shows and detective shows; something you don't see anymore.

I also remember the anticipation of the holidays like Thanksgiving and Christmas which was always exciting. Now, not so much when you can get Christmas stuff in July.

[Rocker4Real]

That must have been a pain in the ass before VCRs and movie rentals. You didn't know when you'd get to see a movie again if you saw it in the theater. Even if it came on TV, it would have been edited.

[VinnieVincentsVag]

We used to have to get smokes for our drunk parents all the time. I was like 7 or so, off to the corner store with cash and a note. We also had a giant community news paper recycling bin…for only news print. We would climb in and hunt for nudie magazines , it was like a treasure hunt . That was 78/79ish. Good times , off to the tree fort to check out our newly found mags.

We used to find porno mags in dumpsters all the time.

Polaroids with stepmom.

You still have them?

[VinnieVincentsVag]

.

[Danzig in the Dark]

We used to find porno mags in dumpsters all the time.

Polaroids with stepmom.

You still have them?

[eddie lee roth]

I loved the 70’s as a kid. We were always outside having fun with no parental control.

I was big into bike riding and this was the height of Evel Knievel and Smokey and The Bandit, so you learn the limits of how much dumb shit you can get away with before you fuck your self up the hard way.

I still have a picture of the first Halloween after Star Wars. When my dad bought a rubber kitchen size trash can and cut hole’s in it for my arms and for my eyes. And if that ain’t 70’s enough he also spray painted the whole thing silver as well as my shoes, pants and sweatshirt.

So I was walking around the whole night breathing in the spray paint. That might be where the first signs of brain damage occurred but I sure did have a blast.

As far as getting deliveries I don’t remember anything about that my mom would go to the grocery store and get what we got. And my dad who did smoke and drink beer always took care of that himself. And I will admit that before the 70’s were up I had already snuck a few cigarettes and a few beers.

And I’ll just say I was bought in happily for the KISS everything at the time. It almost seemed mandatory for a kid to be into KISS. Even got to see them on the last tour before all the hoopla went away.

[TravisBicklesMohawk]

Yep, that's another thing . . . Halloween totally ruled during the 70s.

That has been a HUGE change.

[pieceofme]

Yep, that's another thing . . . Halloween totally ruled during the 70s.

That has been a HUGE change.

What has changed?

Do you still dress up and trick or treat?

[eddie lee roth]

Yep, that's another thing . . . Halloween totally ruled during the 70s.

That has been a HUGE change.

What has changed?

Do you still dress up and trick or treat?

What’s changed is the participation. Back then you would go home at least once and empty your sack and go back out and fill it up again. Even walking to nearby neighborhoods and loading up there too. As a kid it was second only to Christmas.

[ParaDime77]

We used to have to get smokes for our drunk parents all the time. I was like 7 or so, off to the corner store with cash and a note. We also had a giant community news paper recycling bin…for only news print. We would climb in and hunt for nudie magazines , it was like a treasure hunt . That was 78/79ish. Good times , off to the tree fort to check out our newly found mags.

We used to find porno mags in dumpsters all the time.

Yes, that. Also found dad's porno mags and even his Polaroids with stepmom.

Polaroids fuck yeah! My buddy was big into using a Poloroid and had a full photo album of random women he met through his detail shop. He let me borrow it one time for Valentine’s Day so I could snap a couple tasteful nudes of my lady

[VinnieVincentsVag]

We use to get soft drinks delivered, like the milkman.

I also remember a lot of cool stuff on television like variety shows and detective shows; something you don't see anymore.

I also remember the anticipation of the holidays like Thanksgiving and Christmas which was always exciting. Now, not so much when you can get Christmas stuff in July.

Donnie and Marie, Carol Burnette Show, Mutual of Omahas Wild kingdom, Disney on Sunday nights.

[VinnieVincentsVag]

[empty your sack[/b]

Heck yeah.
Best part of Halloween.
Usually to Farrah Fawcett poster…you know the one.
While eating a Snickers bar, full size.
Fuck apples and pennies

[Hellsinkey]

We used to find porno mags in dumpsters all the time.

Polaroids with stepmom.

You still have them?

No, of course not. I didn't dare to steal them.

[ParaDime77]

We use to get soft drinks delivered, like the milkman.

I also remember a lot of cool stuff on television like variety shows and detective shows; something you don't see anymore.

I also remember the anticipation of the holidays like Thanksgiving and Christmas which was always exciting. Now, not so much when you can get Christmas stuff in July.

Donnie and Marie, Carol Burnette Show, Mutual of Omahas Wild kingdom, Disney on Sunday nights.

Marlin Perkins FTW!

[Lobo]

When a pack of baseball cards came with a stick of gum!

[VinnieVincentsVag]

When a pack of baseball cards came with a stick of gum!

And you could buy KI$$ Trading cards.

[Metal Sludge]

Yep, that's another thing . . . Halloween totally ruled during the 70s.

That has been a HUGE change.

Halloween was great!
My older sister and I were about 7 and 8 or 8 and 9. My little sister was 2 or 3.
My dad would take us trick or treating for a few blocks with our little sister, then he'd take her home and we were on our own for a couple of hours.
All they ever said was "don't eat anything until you get home and we check it".
Yeah, right!!! We were scarfing that shit down the whole time!

[HoldenSSV]

Halloween was great!
My older sister and I were about 7 and 8 or 8 and 9. My little sister was 2 or 3.
My dad would take us trick or treating for a few blocks with our little sister, then he'd take her home and we were on our own for a couple of hours.
All they ever said was "don't eat anything until you get home and we check it".
Yeah, right!!! We were scarfing that shit down the whole time!

And everything was a full-size candy bar, not this "fun size" bullshit.

[Hatchets Molly]

As a Gen-Xer, being a kid in the 70s and a teen in the 80s was the best. I can't say much more than others have mentioned. We were feral in the 70s, and generally small town life was safe enough to be out running around town from morning to night, going to arcades, oogling high school chicks at the city pool, etc. I freakin' loved those two decades. I grew up on the Gulf Coast of FL, and though I wasn't born there, I was as much a Cracker as the locals. Dirty little heathen with a year-round tan and feet that could take 150-degree asphalt.

[the_man_incognito]

As a Gen-Xer, being a kid in the 70s and a teen in the 80s was the best. I can't say much more than others have mentioned. We were feral in the 70s, and generally small town life was safe enough to be out running around town from morning to night, going to arcades, oogling high school chicks at the city pool, etc. I freakin' loved those two decades. I grew up on the Gulf Coast of FL, and though I wasn't born there, I was as much a Cracker as the locals. Dirty little heathen with a year-round tan and feet that could take 150-degree asphalt.

The early 80s (80-84)...we lived outside of San Diego, so warm all year round.
My dad worked out of town near LA and was gone Monday to Friday afternoon.
My step mom worked all day except mondays was 2nd shirt.
By 81, I was the only kid at home and could basically do what I wanted with no supervision as long as I was home by the time my stepmom got home from work.
I was riding my bike for miles away from home, no helmet, no ID on me...time of my life...
Then it was hell..especially in the summer...Dad got a job in small town in NE Wisconsin and my stepmom didn't work anymore...she was home ALL the time except if she went somewhere with my dad..