It’s been absolutely fascinating watching people catch on to what has happened literally every fucking time we invent paradigm-shifting advances.

True. Which is why you need to market your car as the world’s fastest horse that never needs to eat and doesn’t shit on things.

Wait, those are gone?

Weirdo here. We needed it for video games (pre-1990 at least).

We had a smokers’ wall in high school: a corner of the break yard next to the cafeteria that was designated by a yellow stripe painted on the ground. It was always full-to-bursting at every break, and if you had even a toe over it whilst smoking, it was immediate detention.

A pop and a puff of smoke meant we were going to miss the rest of our show, but would go on a fun trip to the electronics shop with dad. I loved that shop. So many cool things.

And the Netherlands. More than a dime, though.

Conversely, I remember rivers on fire.

(e: I think that was our biggest clue at the time we were fucking up.)

Fingernails ftw.

Calling in to the radio station to request your song, then sitting with your fingers hovering above the play and record buttons for two hours, waiting for them to play it. Missing the first few seconds because you got distracted, but you were the first one at school on Monday with the new song, so it was worth it.

We’re not old, we’re wise.

TV Guide. Every week, you’d get a little digest in the post with a listing of that week’s shows, trivia, Q&As and interviews with insiders, and puzzles & games. I was very interested in movies and television, and devoured it cover to cover.

e: link

I blame this for my inability to sleep without white noise. I fell asleep to the television throughout my formative years.

Holy shit, this one is depressing.

Back when ‘do you have Showtime?’ was sleep-over code for ‘will we get to watch porn when the ‘rents go to sleep?’

We smoked everywhere. Grocery stores, hospital rooms, planes, taxis, buses, restaurants – no place was off limits, and there were barely any designated smoking sections. Everyone smoked, even if they didn’t, because it was literally everywhere.

Go back far enough and people who didn’t smoke often kept cigarettes and ashtrays for guests because it was a polite thing to do for company.

It’s one of the biggest (and lesser acknowledged) cultural shifts we’ve seen over the last several decades.

My grandmother still had the list of her friends’ numbers tacked on the wall next to her telephone stand (which was a little table and chair in the entry way with the house phone, notepad, pencil, and ashtray), and each was a four digit number along with the city name to tell the operator. You’d pick up and wait for the operator – no dialing – and then say ‘Midland 4119’ or whatever, then a person physically connected you.

By the time I was young, they’d replaced that with dialing, but it was recent enough that she hadn’t taken down her cheat sheet yet.

That time was not wasted.

Yeah. We are laughing at them. It’s their own fault for being laughable.

They’ve been doing far, far worse to everyone else for thousands of years, so a bit of online snickering shouldn’t hurt them. Like witch trials, the inquisition, the crusades, the holocaust, lynchings – that’s all fine, but their god forbid we make a few jokes online… that’s too far.

Lol Prudence, fucking suck it up.

They’re not required here. You just plop your child in your regular car with no changes whilst they’re learning. It’s insane. I bought a magnetic sign to warn people though, because that seems nuts to me.

I was making a joke tho.