Over the last several decades, a lot has changed. So much so that some concepts, like technology and traditions, are no longer considered part of common knowledge. Here are some things that younger generations will find unbelievable.
Table of Contents
Calling to Hear the Movie Showing Times
Movie times used to be listed in the newspaper or by calling the movie theater and going through a phone tree.
Calling the Lottery on a Saturday Morning to See if You Won
You could either wait for the local newspaper to have the lottery numbers or call the lottery number.
Rolling Up the Hand Crank Car Windows
“Rolling down the windows” comes from the old car windows where you used to have to manually turn a handle to roll them down. Now all you do is press a button.
Recording Songs off the Radio
When Spotify and other streaming services didn’t exist, you could either buy and 8-track or cassette or record the song directly off the radio. One commenter even said they remember “calling the radio station and politely asking the DJ to not talk over the intro.”
Hearing the Dial-up Modem Sound
Redditors reminisced over memories of the late nineties when you would put the free AOL CD into your computer and connect to the internet after several minutes of the memorable noise.
Moving Ashtrays at Fast Food Joints
It wasn’t that long ago when smoking was still an option at many restaurants, and you had to specifically ask for the
“non-smoking” section if you wanted to not inhale smoke throughout your meal.
Smoking on Airplanes
Older generations also remember being able to smoke just about everywhere, including airplanes.
Inserting Little Plastic Spacers to Make 45 RPM Records Fit a Standard Spindle
Although vinyl record players are coming back in vogue, many members of younger generations won’t remember these converters. One poster even remembers “putting a nickel on the needle arm to steady it on case the record tried to skip.”
Skipping Records
This applies to CDs as well, but younger generations will never understand the frustration of jamming out to your favorite song only to have it stop because of a scratch on the disc. All they know is streaming music now.
Riding Bicycle Banana Seats
Bikes in the 1960s had seats that resembled bananas and handles that resembled those of chopper motorcycles.
Staying Out All Day With Your Friends, and Your Parents Didn’t Know What You Were up To
When cell phones didn’t exist so parents could get updates from the kids at all hours, kids used to stay out all day and never check in with their parents. One commenter even said, “parents called you home by yelling out of window.”
Making Long-Distance Calls After 5 PM
Younger generations don’t even know what long-distance calling is, let alone why you had to wait until 5 pm to make them.
Making Collect Calls
Nowadays, if you receive a phone call from a collect number, you may expect the person on the other end of the line is in jail.
Waiting a Whole Week for a New Episode of Your Favorite Show
Binge watching didn’t exist until Netflix and other streaming platforms started releasing entire seasons at once.
Reading a Paper Map While Driving
Google Maps on your phone didn’t exist before smartphones so you either had a folded map, map book, or later MapQuest printed directions.
Putting Tape Over the Pulled Tab of a Cassette Tape to Dub Over It
Like previously mentioned, many people used to record music off of the radio. But if your cassette tape had the pull tabs removed, technically, you weren’t able to record over it…unless you taped over them.
Calling the Local Phone Number to Get the Temperature and Time
The Weather app didn’t exist since smart phones didn’t exist. Besides watching the local news on TV, you could call a number to get the temperature and time.
Adjusting Rabbit Ear Antennas
And having to move them around to get a good signal.
Sorting Through Card Catalogs in Libraries
Card catalogs provided quick, reliable access to a library’s collection. Now everything is stored in an online database. According to Peter Devereaux from the Library of Congress’ Publishing Office, some libraries even “held mock funerals” for the card catalog when they transitioned to the computer catalog.
Driving Stick Shift
This is definitely true in the U.S. Many young Europeans still know how to drive stick shift.
Answering Pagers
When cell phones became the de facto portable communication device, pagers were no longer needed. Many younger folks were too young to need to be contacted by phone until cell phones were commonplace.
Using Walkie Talkies
Similarly, walkie-talkies mostly disappeared with cell phones. They were great for talking to friends in the woods or coordinating rest stops during a caravan.
Dialing with Rotary Phones
Rotary phones are surprisingly making a comeback with Gen Z’s “vintage” obsession. But it’s unlikely any of these youngins know how to use one.
Skimming the White Pages
Also, before cell phones and the internet, the White Pages were the easiest way to find the phone number of your local pizza shop.
Calling Your Love Interest and Having to Get Past the Parents
When landlines were the dominant form of phones, the adults of a household were usually the first to answer the phone.
This post was inspired by this Reddit thread.
Featured Photo from Shutterstock
10 Worst Things About Owning an Electric Vehicle
10 Worst Things About Owning an Electric Vehicle
12 Unspoken Rules That Are Not Completely Obvious
Some social rules are obvious, while others are not. A recent Reddit thread asked users to write in about what social rules existed that were not necessarily obvious.
12 Unspoken Rules That Are Not Completely Obvious
10 Words and Phrases That Make You Sound Stupid
10 Words and Phrases That Make You Sound Stupid
15 of the Worst Cities in America, According to Reddit
A Reddit thread posted a few months back asked a simple question, “What city is the worst in America?” A whopping 594 comments followed, and here are the worst cities according to those posters.