So maybe I didn’t have to walk up hill — both ways — in the snow to and from school, but that doesn’t mean my generation didn’t have its own challenges. And, thanks to technology, here are just a few of the things my kids will never have to worry about. Do any of these sound familiar?

1) Learning to fold binder paper into perfectly passable triangles.

2) Calling Popcorn (767-2676) to get the correct time to set the clocks after the power goes out.

3) Putting a tape recorder up to the stereo speakers and waiting for that awesome new song to come on the air, and onto the blank tape.

4) Then hoping the DJ says the name of the song, and the artist, but not — absolutely not — over the rockin’ instrumental intro.

5) Watching parents argue over a paper map while driving. (Or fold it, for that matter.)

6) Hearing the camera click, and the film rewind, right before that all-important picture-taking moment.

7) Waiting to go to the bathroom or grab a snack or answer the phone until a commercial break.

8) Wondering if a pesky sibling is listening in on a private call from the phone in the other room.

9) Carrying spare change or memorizing a calling card number for a post-practice-pick-up payphone call.

10) Having to spell whole entire words and use proper punctuation.

Phew, being a kid in the good ol’ days was no joke. (And I have the paper cut scars to prove it.)

Posted on 3/19/2014

Written by Amy Heinz

Amy Heinz is a San Francisco Bay Area mom of three and the writer behind Using Our Words — a parenting blog filled with lessons she’s learned (usually the hard way), laughs she’s enjoyed (mostly at her own expense), and tears she’s shed (this mama’s got heart). You can also find her on Facebook and Twitter.

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