Those were the days!

[2Sirius]

Actually, the best part of having kids is that you can say you and your wife are there at that G-rated Disney movie (without the kids) in order to... make sure it's age appropriate... and... uh...has a good message. Yeah, that's it! That's the ticket.

[pkt]

Zelda,

Times change.
There are more people and therefore as a result more bad people who prey on kids.
Hence the wish for many parents tp move to smaller communities to recapture that innocence we lsot in big ciies.
There are a lot more drug addicts who, IMHO, are the cause of a lot of our property crimes.
There are a lot more perverts who prey on kids.
Those are the realities.
Of course in the States, add the profusion of guns...

PK

[pkt]

2S,

Hence the genius of Walt Disney:
He wrote the classic cartoons at 2 levels to appeal to both the kids and the adults.
Listen to the music of his cartoons. They add another dimension to the cartoons that if you don't know the music you won't get. All's the shame.

PK

[Zelda]

PKT,
Yes I know those are the realities, but sometimes you dont want to have the responsibilites of being an adult, you just want to remember what it was like being a kid again.
Z

[Soldier]

Originally posted by Zelda
Thats why I have harry potter band aids, regularly hijack the swings at the local park, and happily build sand castles in summer. Thats why when I walk along the beach with my dog we frolick in the foam, and I just DONT CARE what people think. I intend to live my life my way, being happy in any way possible. Its why I swing around light poles at midnight coming out of the theatre, and dont care what people think!

I can't jump off swings anymore! It makes me so mad!

We used to have a swing set in the backyard (naturally), and my sister and I would go flying off, and tilt ourselves right so that we could land on our feet, and the momentum of the landing would leave us standing upright. A bunch of my friends and I went to the park one night last year, were on the swings - and I lost that right balance! I can't do it anymore, I go rolling now! It's awful!

[arcon]

This hurts to even think about. Have you ever known
anyone to slide down a 2 x 8 board and get a splinter in there
A--? Well, it wasnt me, thank God. It took a surgeon to remove it.
All six inches.

[MikeHarm]

I didn't have such good luck with swing jumping either. The first time I tried it I realized just after I did the jump that I should of had a plan for landing. I did this flip in the air and landed mouth first. Didn't knock any of my teeth out, but cut the hell out of the inside of my upper lip. Blood was pouring out of my mouth, and I freaked out a bunch of the teachers and other kids on the playground and ended up getting sent home to go to a doctor.

Originally posted by Soldier
I can't jump off swings anymore! It makes me so mad!

We used to have a swing set in the backyard (naturally), and my sister and I would go flying off, and tilt ourselves right so that we could land on our feet, and the momentum of the landing would leave us standing upright. A bunch of my friends and I went to the park one night last year, were on the swings - and I lost that right balance! I can't do it anymore, I go rolling now! It's awful!

[Soldier]

That's the thing - I used to be able to, and now I can't!

[Avril Roddam]

Well, I was born in the late 80's but I remember running around our neighborhood in bare feet in winter (10C) and climbing trees and breaking arms when we found out they were really a bit taller than they seemed from the ground and jumping out of them, and watching "Captain Planet" or "The Teenage Muntant Ninjah Turtles" then running outside and fighting over which character we'd play. Oh, and racing go karts down the hill. Yeah, I miss the good old days.

While we're on the subject, who out there played "truth or dare" and what was your worst dare?

Mine would have to have been: jumping into the Tamar river off the pontoon in the middle of winter! (10C)

[xcr]

I was born in the early 80s, and some things have changed since then. Playground equipment is being changed to prevent the posibility of injury (some of it could crush hands, or cause other serious injury, but I recently read that even swings are now being considered to unsafe, let alone climbing equipment). On a bike we would somtimes wear helmets, but not worry if it was forgotton. Walking to scholl unsupervised was the norm. Backyard hockey in winter, and baseball, cricket, basketball and so forth in summer were generally prefered to ideo and computer games, althogh they did exist by then. (Less complicated, less ingrousing i suppose)
Ultimitly, helmits are sensible for biking, banns on lead toys as well. However the attemt at eleminating the possible of injury is excessive, and will prevent learning from experence.
Incidently, iolent crime rates have gone down since the 60s, but reports of it have gone up massivly.
the media is alarmist, because scaring people is a good way to sell news, and stories about haw we are all in constant danger scare people very effectivly.

[blue_falcon]

Originally posted by MyraTrue
oh! Swimming in the lake by my grandmothers house! We'd cover outselves in mud from the bottom, and then stick water weed all over, and chase the younger cousins pretending to be "mud monsters"

The way you could never sleep on Christmas Eve!

How I always tried to build things- the hang glider out of a lawn chair, etc.

The "raft' I built to run away on, just drift downstream to somewhere fantastic (made of a piece of plywood and some twine and 2x4's). I didn't even hacve a river or stream nearby, but I spent days scheming.

learning to ride your bike "no hands!" and to stand on the seat while you did it.

Playing poker with cheerios because we didn't have money. Playing rummy for chocolate.

Long hikes up into the hills behind my parents house with the dog and noone else...

Ok, thats it! I want to quit this "Adult life" and be a kid again!

Uhhhh.......... you turned out to become an engineer, right?

[blue_falcon]

Originally posted by Zelda
Thats why I have harry potter band aids, regularly hijack the swings at the local park, and happily build sand castles in summer. Thats why when I walk along the beach with my dog we frolick in the foam, and I just DONT CARE what people think. I intend to live my life my way, being happy in any way possible. Its why I swing around light poles at midnight coming out of the theatre, and dont care what people think!

And that's why I have a coffee mug in the shape of Wile E. Coyote. That's why I have a yo-yo in my office drawer and why I still use that yo-yo quite frequently. (I tell the other lawyers that it helps me think!) Hey, I can still do loop the loops, the waterfall, and other yo-yo tricks!

Oh, and that's why I have a Darth Vader mask in my office, a magic snake on my desk (anybody remember that?), an Opus stuffed toy next to the computer monitor and why I still have a Lego set at home.

I actually find that "play" or "playing" helps the thinking process -- if you release your mind and actually PLAY, your mind actually rests! It helps me figure out complex technical or legal problems, and it helps me realize that, at the very heart of it, we need to let go and PLAY -- otherwise we actually DO become adults! And, of course, that would be tragic.

But, of course, reality does have rear its ugly head. No clients are allowed into my office

By the way, Hawaiian shirts are fun. Is that not really the crux of it all? Somehow, when we become "adults" we seem to lose track of how to have FUN. The simple joy of having FUN as a kid gets lost in the clutter that is mortgages, car payments, insurance, credit cards, billable hours, clients, speeding tickets (ok -- that's an outgrowth of fun), etc., etc.

I vote that we all have at least one hour of fun a day. It's amazing how much better you feel if you take that temporary break from the seriousness of the "real world".

[blue_falcon]

Originally posted by xcr
Playground equipment is being changed to prevent the posibility of injury (some of it could crush hands, or cause other serious injury, but I recently read that even swings are now being considered to unsafe, let alone climbing equipment). On a bike we would somtimes wear helmets, but not worry if it was forgotton. Walking to scholl unsupervised was the norm. Backyard hockey in winter, and baseball, cricket, basketball and so forth in summer were generally prefered to ideo and computer games, althogh they did exist by then. (Less complicated, less ingrousing i suppose)
Ultimitly, helmits are sensible for biking, banns on lead toys as well. However the attemt at eleminating the possible of injury is excessive, and will prevent learning from experence.
Incidently, iolent crime rates have gone down since the 60s, but reports of it have gone up massivly.
the media is alarmist, because scaring people is a good way to sell news, and stories about haw we are all in constant danger scare people very effectivly.

Ok dude..... I understand but at the same time I also understand the other point of view. It's called liability -- if you don't exercise the proper duty of care, you can get your butt sued!

I still remember a line from Shakespeare -- First thing we do is kill all the lawyers. I think it's from Henry VI Part II. Not really a bad idea but think of the ramifications........ It's a balancing act but it would seem that we've overbalanced to overcautiousness due to the seemingly litigious nature of man. (Oh, and of course contingency fees!)

[Aestro]

I yell at my mom every time she drives him over to his friend's house. They live next door to MY best friend when I was his age, and I remember walking over there every day.

I used to think I was spoiled...then I met his generation.

He has right now a Dreamcast, N64, Gamecube, Playstation1 and 2, and a Gameboy Advance. Granted, most of these were bought old and used and cost about $30, but I remember a time when anyone owning more than one video game system at a time was both too rich for their own good AND spoiled rotten.

On the other hand, Miyazaki films have really given me a fresh breath to when I was younger.