My OperaFor all the that kids that miraculously survived from 1930 - 1980
Tuesday, April 8, 2008 3:01:18 PM
I don't normally respond to forwarded emails, but I did to this one. I also edited it and added an expletive here and there. Whoever originally sent it had forgotten most of the rules governing grammar:[/COLOR]
"First, we survived being born to mothers who smoked and/or drank while they were pregnant.
We took aspirin, ate blue cheese dressing, tuna from a can, and didn't get tested for diabetes.
We were put to sleep belly down in baby cribs covered with brightly colored lead-based paints.
We had no child-proof lids on medicine bottles, doors, or cabinets and when we rode our bikes, we had no helmets.
As infants, we would ride in cars with no car seats, booster seats, seat belts, or air bags.
Riding in the back of a pick-up kicked ass.
We drank water from the garden hose and NOT from a bottle.
We shared one soft drink with whomever wanted some and NO ONE actually died from this.
We ate cupcakes, candy, white bread, and real butter. We drank shit-tons of Kool-aid and soft drinks made with sugar, but we weren't overweight because we were always outside playing.
We would leave home in the morning and play all day, as long as we were back for dinner.
No one was able to reach us all day. We were fine with that.
We would spend hours building go-carts and other dare-devilish contraptions out of scraps and then ride down the hill, only to find out the brakes didn't work. After crashing and burning a few times, we learned how to solve the problem.
We did not have video games at all. No cable. No movies or DVD's. No surround-sound or CD's. No cell phones. No personal computers. No Internet or chat rooms.
We read...Books.
In order to find our friends, we left the house and found them.
We fell out of trees, got cut, and broke bones and teeth. There were no lawsuits from these accidents.
We ate worms and mud pies made from dirt. The worms did not live in us forever.
We were given BB guns for our 10th birthdays and made up games with sticks and tennis balls. Although we were told it would happen, we did not shoot or poke out very many eyes.
We rode bikes or walked to a friend's house and knocked on the door or just walked in and talked to them.
Little League and other such institutions had tryouts and not everyone made the team. Those who didn't had to learn to deal with disappointment. Imagine that.
The idea of a parent bailing us out if we broke the law was unheard of. They actually sided with the law!
These generations have produced some of the best risk-takers, problem solvers and inventors ever.
In those 50 years, there was an explosion of innovation and new ideas.
We had freedom, failure, success, and responsibility. We learned how to deal with it all."
Yay. Congrats to us.
Now throw away everything your kid has that you didn't and kick 'em out of the house til dinner time.
Make 'em run at breakneck speeds through whatever is left of the woods around your house.
Challenge them to assemble their own toys out of piles of garbage.
If they're hungry, tell them to grow their own food.
Lash them to the trunk of the car and go for a Sunday cruise.
Whip the Shit out of them. (I don't mind if you do it in front of me at the local grocery. "Fuck Yeah.", I say. "Take that, you little heathen.")
Ground them and stop acting like a bitch. Take away their phones and computers and padlock those little fuckers in their room. Wait a few hours, then throw them a box of books, pencils, paper, paints, and brushes. Or a guitar, violin, ect. Then walk away and forget about them for a while.
You get the idea.
The same batch of geniuses that made this world "a better place" have gotten old and soft. The idea that "My children are gonna have it better than me." has fucked us all up. Today's kids run wild with a total lack of respect and bitch and whine when they don't get their way. Yeah, I did as well for a minute when I was young until I got the shit smacked out of me. I quickly learned to respect adults and did as I was told.
We need to get back to were we came from. We need to go back to a simpler lifestyle where hard work, nature, spirituality, and love are the only distractions.
I can run with this diatribe until you're tired of reading, but I'm gonna follow my own advice, close this here laptop, and go for a bike ride. Maybe you should too. Bring your kids along.
Peace. [/COLOR]
Stardancer # Tuesday, April 8, 2008 8:26:34 PM
Interesting concept.
Great post, Dillon.
Dillon RobertsDillonRoberts # Wednesday, April 9, 2008 6:05:26 AM
Stardancer # Wednesday, April 9, 2008 6:37:13 AM
Everybody keeps telling me I need one in case my car breaks down or something. Well, ya' know what? I can walk to a phone. The bad guys can get me in my car as well as walking down the road.
Dillon RobertsDillonRoberts # Friday, April 11, 2008 3:53:48 PM
Stardancer # Friday, April 11, 2008 7:47:23 PM