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Madinat al-Muslimeen Islamic Message Board
| A timely report |
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| BroHanif |
| 09/03/03 at 13:54:08 |
| According to today's regulators and bureaucrats, those of us who were kids in the 70's and early 80's probably shouldn't have survived, because... Our baby cots were covered with brightly coloured lead-based paint which was promptly chewed and licked. We had no childproof lids on medicine bottles, or latches on doors or cabinets and it was fine to play with pans. When we rode our bikes, we wore no helmets, just flip flops and fluorescent 'clackers' on our wheels. As children, we would ride in cars with no seat belts or air bags - riding in the passenger seat was a treat. We drank water from the garden hose and not from a bottle and it tasted the same. We ate dripping sandwiches, bread and butter pudding and drank fizzy pop with sugar in it, but we were never overweight because we were always outside playing. We shared one drink with four friends, from one bottle or can and no-one actually died from this. We would spend hours building go-carts out of scraps and then went top speed down the hill, only to find out we forgot the brakes. After running into stinging nettles a few times, we learned to solve the problem. We would leave home in the morning and play all day, as long as we were back before it got dark. No one was able to reach us all day and no one minded. We did not have Play stations or X-Boxes, no video games at all. No 99 channels on TV, no videotape movies, no surround sound, no mobile phones, no personal computers, no Internet chat rooms. We had friends - we went outside and found them. We played elastics and street rounders, and sometimes that ball really hurt. We fell out of trees, got cut and broke bones and teeth, and there were no lawsuits. They were accidents. We learnt not to do the same thing again. We had fights, punched each other hard and got black and blue we learned to get over it. We walked to friend's homes.We also, believe it or not, WALKED to school, we didn't rely on mummy or daddy to drive us to school, which was just round the corner. We made up games with sticks and tennis balls and ate live stuff, and although we were told it would happen, we did not have very many eyes out. We rode bikes in packs of 7 and wore our coats by only the hood. Our actions were our own. Consequences were expected. The idea of a parent bailing us out if we broke a law was unheard of. They actually sided with the law. Imagine that! ******************************************* The majority of students in universities today were born in 1983........They are called youth. They have never heard of We are the World, We are the children, and the Uptown Girl they know is by Westlife not Billy Joel. They have never heard of Rick Astley, Bananarama, Nena Cherry or Belinda Carlisle. For them, there has always been only one Germany and one Vietnam. AIDS has existed since they were born. CD's have existed since they were born. Michael Jackson has always been white. To them John Travolta has always been round in shape and they can't imagine how this fat guy could be a god of dance. They believe that Charlie's Angels and Mission Impossible are just new films out last year. They think that N-Trance "set you free" is an Old Skool song. They can never imagine life before computers. They've never heard of Pac-Man or Space Invaders or BBC computers that have Bat n Ball games. They'll never have thought Jazz was the sexiest aftershave ever. They'll never have pretended to be the A Team, Red Hand Gang or the Famous Five. They'll never have applied to be on Jim'll Fix It or Why Don't You. They can't believe a black and white television ever existed and don't even know how to switch on a TV without a remote control. And they will never understand how we could leave the house without a mobile phone. Now let's check if we're getting old... 1. You understand what was written above and you smile. 2. You need to sleep more, usually until the afternoon, after a night out. 3. Your friends are getting married. 4. You are always surprised to see small children playing comfortably with computers. 5. When you see teenagers with mobile phones, you shake your head. 6. You've developed more and more feelings about your work. It's now your life. 7. You spend less and less time talking on phone with your friends daily. 8. You meet your friends from time to time, talking about the good old days, repeating again and again all funny stories you have experienced together. |
| NS |
| Re: A timely report |
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| lala |
| 09/03/03 at 23:16:35 |
| [slm] just when i'm feeling youthful.. i look at my cousins who are younger and shake my head... 1. 14 and 16 yr olds with cell phones 2. 4 and 5 yr olds surfing the net! and noone likes to ride bikes anymore..its all about those stupid scooter things...! I dont get it!? during rough times in the ol motherland the parents fed me sugar water! Im healthy and striving and eating pretty well ..thanks be to God... peace |
| Re: A timely report |
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| humble_muslim |
| 09/09/03 at 16:43:52 |
| AA Thanks for the memories Hanif! See my comments. If you understand what I'm on about, then you're as old as me. They have never heard of We are the World, We are the children, and the Uptown Girl they know is by Westlife not Billy Joel. Some of my friends used to wonder how the world's richest model (at that time) could marry someone as ugly as Billy Joel. They have never heard of Rick Astley, Bananarama, Nena Cherry or Belinda Carlisle. I'm sure they've never even heard of Stock, Aitken and Waterman. For them, there has always been only one Germany and one Vietnam. Hey, England beat West Germany to win the World Cup. CD's have existed since they were born. I'm trying to think what happened to my LP collection. Michael Jackson has always been white. I remember comparing his skin color between the covers of "Off the Wall" and "Thriller". To them John Travolta has always been round in shape and they can't imagine how this fat guy could be a god of dance. And they probably think the Bee Gees has something to do with insects. They believe that Charlie's Angels and Mission Impossible are just new films out last year. Anyone know that the voice of Charlie in the original series is the same guy who played Blake Charrington in Dynasty ? They think that N-Trance "set you free" is an Old Skool song. They can never imagine life before computers. Anyone remeber time share computer systems? They've never heard of Pac-Man or Space Invaders or BBC computers that have Bat n Ball games. How about the offshoot, Ms. Pac Man ? And what about the Sinclair 1KB RAM SX80? They'll never have pretended to be the A Team, Red Hand Gang or the Famous Five. Or even pretend to play Thunderbirds Are Go! They'll never have applied to be on Jim'll Fix It or Why Don't You. Amazingly, Jim'll Fix It was the most watched show of its time. And anybody rememeber the full name of Why Don't You : Why Don' You Just Switch Off Your Television Set and Go and Do Something Less Boring Instead? They can't believe a black and white television ever existed and don't even know how to switch on a TV without a remote control. And that it took TV sets a couple of minutes to warm up. And that your favorite cartoon was on only once a week, unlike today where Scooby Doo is on Cartoon Network about 5 times a day. And they will never understand how we could leave the house without a mobile phone. And before they had phoncecards, remember the kind signs on shops's doors that said "No change given for phone" ? Now let's check if we're getting old... 1. You understand what was written above and you smile. LOL 2. You need to sleep more, usually until the afternoon, after a night out. What night out ? 3. Your friends are getting married. We're all almost there. 4. You are always surprised to see small children playing comfortably with computers. My 5 year old, who can barely read, can get to all her favorites in IE. 5. When you see teenagers with mobile phones, you shake your head. Where do they get the money from? My last bill just came to $164!!! 6. You've developed more and more feelings about your work. It's now your life. Used to be 8 hours work, 8 hours sleep, 8 hours play... now its Work, work, and maybe a bit of time with the kids. 7. You spend less and less time talking on phone with your friends daily. I just called a very good friend of mine after no contact for over a year. 8. You meet your friends from time to time, talking about the good old days, repeating again and again all funny stories you have experienced together. I don't get to meet too many old friends now (they are in England while I am in the states), but this often happens in our e-mails. When I get nostalgic, I bore my kids about the strange teachers we had in school. |
| NS |
| 09/09/03 at 17:40:42 |
| humble_muslim |
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