REMEMBER WHEN .....

Close your eyes.....and go back in time....
Before the Internet, the PC or the Mac....
Before the Big Mac and Double Whopper....
Before semi-automatics and Crack ....
Before Playstation, SEGA or Super Nintendo...
Before mobile phones, DVDs, satellite TV, 'political correctness' and multi-million pound footballers.

Way back....

I'm talking about....

Hide and seek in the park,
The shop down the road,
Hopscotch, Donkey, skipping, handstands, football with an old can,
Dandy, Beano, Eagle, Bunty, Twinkle and Roly Poly,
Hula Hoops and catapults,
Jumping the stream, rolling down the hill,
Building a swing from a piece of rope tied to a tree,
Tennis on the street,
The smell of the sun and fresh cut grass,
Bazooka Joe bubble gum, Penny Gobstoppers, Lucky Bags and Spangles,
Wagon Wheels as big as your face,
An ice cream cone on a warm summer night from the van that plays 'Greensleeves':
Chocolate or vanilla or strawberry or maybe Neopolitan.

Wait......

Watching Saturday morning cartoons...short commercials,
Battle of the Planets, Road Runner, He-Man, Multi-Coloured Swapshop, TISWAS and Why Don't You,
Transformers or staying up for Knight Rider.

When around the corner seemed far away,
and going into town seemed like going somewhere.
Sticky fingers and mud all over you.
Cops and Robbers, Rounders, Tip the Can, Zorro, climbing trees;
Building igloos out of snow banks,
Walking to school, no matter what the weather;
Running till you were out of breath,
Laughing so hard that your stomach hurt,
Jumping on the bed. Pillow fights.
Spinning around, getting dizzy and falling down was cause for giggles;
Being tired from playing...

Remember that?

The worst embarrassment was being picked last for a team;
Water balloons were the ultimate weapon;
Football cards in the spokes transformed any bike into a motorcycle.

I'm not finished just yet...
Eating raw jelly, orange squash ice pops.

Remember when...
There were two types of sneakers - girls and boys and Dunlop Green Flash
and the only time you wore them was at school, for "P.E."

It wasn't odd to have two or three 'best' friends;
When nobody owned a pure-bred dog;
When a shilling was decent pocket money;
When you'd reach into a muddy gutter for a penny;
When nearly everyone's mum was at home when the kids got back from school.
It was magic when dad would 'remove' his thumb;
When it was considered a great privilege to be taken out to dinner at a real restaurant with your parents;
When any parent could discipline any kid, or feed him, or use him to carry groceries, and nobody, not even the kid, thought a thing of it;
When being sent to the Head's office was nothing compared to the fate that awaited a misbehaving student at home.

Basically, we were in fear for our lives, but it wasn't because of muggings, drugs, gangs, etc.
Our parents and grandparents were a much bigger threat, and some of us are still afraid of them!!!

Didn't that feel good?
Just to go back and say, "Yeah, I remember that!"

Remember when....
Decisions were made by going "eeny- meeny- miney-mo."
Mistakes were corrected by simply exclaiming, "do over!"
"Race issue" meant arguing about who ran the fastest.
Money issues were handled by whoever was the banker in "Monopoly".
The worst thing you could catch from the opposite sex was germs.
It was unbelievable that Hula Hooping wasn't an Olympic event.
Having a weapon in school meant being caught with a biro barrel pea shooter.
Nobody was prettier than Mum.
Scrapes and bruises were kissed and made better.
Taking drugs meant orange-flavored chewable vitamins.
Ice cream was considered a basic food group.
Getting a foot of snow was a dream come true.
Abilities were discovered because of a "double-dog-dare".
Older siblings were the worst tormentors, but also the fiercest protectors.

If you can remember most or all of these, then you have LIVED!!!!

Pass this on to anyone who may need a break from their 'grown up' life...