Saturday, September 20, 2014

Does Anyone Remember...

life before television when kids played outside?  I don't know why I started thinking about this lately.  Perhaps it was the other day when I watched a kid about 10 years old come close to being run over by a truck because she was watching the screen on her phone instead of the traffic.

I remember when a store bought jump rope was the cause for happiness.  It was so much better than the length of clothesline I used before that.  It had wooden handles.  The rope was thicker.  It didn't get all twisted around like clothesline rope did. It was fun.



There were those who could jump rope where two people swung a  long length of rope between them and another one or two jumped the rope in the middle.  I never got the hang of it.  I got tired of being tripped up by the rope, so I stuck to a single jump rope.

It has been years since I saw a set of jacks.



For the youngsters who don't know what jacks are, 10 small metal star shaped pieces and a small rubber ball made up a set of jacks.  The object of the game was to toss the ball in the air and scoop up jacks before the ball bounced twice, starting with one jack at a time, progressing to two at a time until all ten were picked up at once.  My hands were small.  I don't think I ever made it beyond the eight-jack mark.  But many a lazy summer afternoon was spent sitting on the sidewalk with a friend, playing jacks.

Nearly every neighbor kid I knew growing up wore a skate key on a piece of string around their neck.  And what is a skate key for, you might ask.  It is for turning the clamps that attached roller skates to your shoes.  We didn't have boots with wheels set into the soles.  We didn't have roller blades.  We had these.


A strap around the ankle area held the heel of the skate onto your shoes.  The clamps tightened near the toes of your shoes.  This arrangement kept the skates in place.  Until the clamps worked loose.  And then if you didn't notice it right away, the toe part would fall off to one side and down you would go.  I spent the better part of my childhood with big scabs on my knees.  I loved to roller skate.

Even though we didn't have a television or a cell phone or any other electronic gadget, and even though there were always chores to do, especially on Saturdays, I think I grew up in the best of times for a child.  There was a freedom in the life of a child that my grandchildren will never see.  A kid could fly down the sidewalk on roller skates or ride a bike as fast as the wind without having to be helmeted and padded to within an inch of their lives.  A kid could leave home on a summer morning and not return until evening without anyone calling the police.  Our police were all the Moms up and down the street who watched out for us.  They were there if we needed help or a sandwich or a band aid, but they let us play and just be kids.

I find it somewhat sad that the freedom to be a kid is gone.

16 comments:

  1. I remember "jacks". Those were those fun little things that you left out on the floor where your mother could come along barefooted and step on them.

    Heh. Made for some good fireworks!

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  2. Matt...My Dad, who never swore, at least not in front of Mother, could come up with some pretty colorful language when his bare foot found my jacks. I think Legos now replace jacks for causing late night fireworks!

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  3. Another trip down memory lane. I had skates but that was in the 70's so it was on a boot. I loved my skates and my bikes growing up. A few months ago we drove to my old neighborhood those blocks seem so very short now compared to back then. We also rode down to the park to play or swim in the pool. Now days you keep your kids within reach so to speak.

    I told my wife I miss the days of telling the kids to go outside and play, now they are older and aren't kids anymore.

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  4. Rob...I think I tend to stroll down memory lane more these days because the world around us is so screwed up. It is necessary sometimes to remember good times in order to maintain a bit of sanity.

    I think that houses and schools and city blocks all shrink in size when we grow up. Some time ago I visited places where I lived as a child and had the same impression.

    I wish my grandkids could know the kind of freedom I had as a kid. It is a shame that most of their activities have to be planned. It was a lot more fun to get together with neighborhood kids and say, "OK. What are we gonna do today."

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  5. Those were the days when kids played - and were not constantly entertained by "gadgets".

    I miss them...

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  6. I agree that it is a good thing to relive memories, mostly the good. I took pride showing my kids their great grandparents home as it was my hang out.

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  7. Dani...I miss them, too. It isn't just the gadgets, although they play a big part in why so many kids don't just go out and play. I think our world today is so far removed from my childhood world as far as lack of God-fearing, trustworthy, moral people goes, that it is far less safe now for kids to play as we did. I find that the most sad of all, that kids have lost that freedom due to adult perversions that seem so much more prevelent now.

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  8. Rob...Remembering keeps me grounded and gives me a glimmer of hope that maybe, just maybe there is a chance of things getting better.

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  9. We used to carry a broom with us when we went roller skating so we could sweep the sidewalks of sand and dirt. Kept us occupied all day. Then we would fly! We were totally unstructured and the only rule we had was to be home for dinner. We spent hours playing hopscotch. Searching for just the right marker took hours, lol. Yeah, I miss seeing kids actually playing real games

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  10. Tewshooz...If I had been smart enough to sweep the sidewalk before skating, I might not have spent so much time with skinned up knees. :)
    I haven't seen a hopscotch game chalked onto a sidewalk in more years than I care to admit to. You reminded me of a marker stone that stayed in my pocket for years. And woe be to anyone who touched it! I'd much rather see a kid playing hopscotch than staring at a screen.

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  11. Gorges...You have to wonder how we all managed to grow up without screens to stare at. I think we did just fine. :)

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  12. This post reminded me - of all things - KITES. Paper kites with dad helping me to get it started and watching as it got higher and higher. Even the neighbors would look up and point. Now? I don't think people even look up anymore!

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  13. I had forgotten all about kites. My Dad would buy us one of those paper kites every summer, and take us somewhere open to fly it so we wouldn't tangle it up in the power lines. I remember many of the neighborhood kids flying kites as well. You're right. I don't think people look up any more. Too busy looking at their phone screens.

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  14. Wasn't there a big bruhaha about some cities banning the sale of jacks some years ago? I seem to remember it for some reason.

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  15. PioneerPreppy...I wonder if you might have been thinking of the effort to ban the toys included in a box of Cracker Jacks (and McD's Happy Meals). I didn't find any mention of banning Jacks, but I wouldn't be at all surprised if it had occurred somewhere. After all, we need to be protected from using small pointy objects even if they are in a child's game that has been around for generations. :)

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