Boomer Support Thread

[jtcarm]

First color TV: my brother & I were thrilled when our viewing options were doubled by UHF. We heard from several reliable sources that somewhere on that huge range of UHF channels naked women could be found, but apparently our antenna wasn’t set properly.
Remember fine-tuning knobs?

AM radio. Ash trays. Cigarette ads in TV. Paper grocer sacks. Returning Coke bottles for the deposit.

National Anthem played when the stations signed off after the late news. Saturday’s were the best. Cartoons in the morning and TV all the way to 11:30, with wrestling & roller derby ending the day.

First car: 1975 Camaro. After “Smokey And The Bandit” a Trans-Am was all the boys dream car. Learned on a 1970 C10 with 3 on the tree.

Remember when teens worked to buy their first car? Remember when owners worked on their cars?

No seat belt laws. When my older sisters took the whole neighborhood swimming in the summer, we jammed four in the back seat, one or two more of the lighter kids sitting in laps, and one or two sitting in the floor board.

Buying gas: an attendant pumped, washed your windshield & checked your oil. Far from today’s convenience store/gas stations, there might be a coke machine outside and maybe candy bars behind the counter.

Where I grew up, there was no fast food and really few restaurants. The eateries there were independent. I was 17 when I first tasted pizza.

We visited Mexican border towns regularly with no concerns about safety.

Ask someone for directions.
Boomer: Hold on while a get the map out of my glove compartment.
GenX: Hold on, I’m checking MapQuest
Millennial: Siri...

Great times! I miss them. Except liver night.

[Malamute]

Attachment 47050

Or 13 speed Road Ranger, and hand shift, foot clutch motorcycles.



Jay Leno riding his 1936 H-D

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sGS9OMWh4hU

Ok people, so what was your first car?

An old farm truck.

Not in this house. Not teaching your kid to shift a manual is akin to not teaching them to shoot.

19 y.o. .. 15sp Road Ranger

Excellent plan.

Gen xer.

Houses/cars, no a/c. (miss vent windows and rain gutters).

Wing windows are a true loss.

[revchuck38]

Typewriters... before correction tape!

Yeah, when I was in college, the rich kids had electric typewriters.

[willie]

And if you were lucky enough to have a pocket full of change you could buy enough candy for you and your friends, plus a couple of comic books.

(Are there still candy stores in NYC like back in the day?)

A few years ago I ventured across the Mason Dixon line expecting to see people with horns. When in NYC I met some of the nicest people. I saw a few mom and pop shops reminiscent of those from my rural Mississippi rearing. My wife and I visited a small business selling collectible items like antique china in addition to just some really nice stuff. There were three generations present. The grandmother, her son, and her grandson. They were Jewish. We bought $400 worth of goodies, and I asked if they would ship them to Texas. They said yes. I took a card, shook hands, and started to leave. In an accent, the grandmother told me not to worry about the items being shipped. I replied that when I saw that she was in charge, I had no concern. The box arrived home before we did. Today the fine old lady has most likely passed away. But I feel certain that the family is still conducting business in the same manner.

[Drang]

I still have records.

If you have and use a turntable, that makes you a modern hipster.

[jtcarm]

My dad still has 8 tracks and a working player. I still have records.

Speaking of recorded music, remember when you bought 45s at a record store?

[Malamute]

...I feel certain that the family is still conducting business in the same manner.

One of the regular stops I make when driving cross country is a mom and pop motel. I call, say my name and town, they ask how I am and if I need a dog room that night. Ive gotten a late start on the days drive a couple times, they told me the office would be closed when I got in so they left my usual room unlocked, light on, and said to stop by the office in the morning to pay for it.

[revchuck38]

If you have and use a turntable, that makes you a modern hipster.

I keep threatening to buy a turntable to hook up to my laptop to record some albums that are out of print. The first one up will be Buckingham Nicks, recorded right before they joined Fleetwood Mac. It never made it to CD, though someone recorded their copy of the album and is selling copies.

[BobM]

Someone mentioned AM radio. That reminded me that I installed FM converters in the 72 LTD and the 79 Chevette.

[Tom Duffy]

Ah, phones. The first phone I remember in our kitchen had a mouthpiece on the wall unit and a separate ear piece to listen to. I remember when my sister got a Princess phone for her room. It was stylish and had a lighted rotary dial and... it wasn't black. Talk about pushing the technology envelope! I also remember my grandmother's instructions to my mother, "When you get home, call my phone and let it ring twice. That way, I'll know you're home." Thereby gipping Ma Bell out of like 8 cents for a answered toll call. (Typing this I also noticed that there is no "cent" key on my keyboard. When did they disappear?)

My first car was a hand me down '61 Ford Galaxie with a 6 cylinder and 3 speed column shifter. When I blew the clutch a new one installed cost $54. First car I bought on my own was a '73 Ford Torino. It cost me $3,800.