What kind of dangerous toys did you have?

[cowboy357]

We Survived
Every time I read about some kind of political correctness psycho-babble, I think of the Good Ole days?
To all the kids who survived the 50's, 60's, and 70's
We survived being born to mothers who smoked and/or drank while they carried us.
Our Mom took aspirin, ate blue cheese dressing, tuna from a can, and didn't get tested for diabetes.
Our baby cribs were covered with bright colored lead-based paints.
We had no child-proof lids on medicine bottles, doors or cabinets
When we rode our bikes, we had no helmets.
We rode in cars with no seat belts or air bags.
Riding in the back of a pick up on a warm day was always a special treat.
We drank water from the garden hose and NOT from a bottle.
We shared one soft drink with four friends, from one bottle and NO ONE died from it.
We ate cupcakes, white bread and real butter and drank soda pop with sugar in it, and we weren't overweight because WE WERE ALWAYS OUTSIDE PLAYING!
We would leave home in the morning and play all day as long as we were back when the street lights came on. No one was able to reach us all day, and we were O.K.
We would spend hours building our go-carts out of scraps and then ride down the hill, only to find out we forgot the brakes. After running into the bushes a few times, we learned to solve the problem.
We did not have Playstations, Nintendo's, X-boxes, no video games at all, only 12 channels on television, no video tape movies, no surround sound, no cellphones WE HAD FRIENDS and we went outside and found them!
We fell out of trees, got cut, broke bones and teeth and there were no lawsuits from these accidents.
We ate worms and mud pies made from dirt, and the worms did not live in us forever.
We were given BB guns for our 10th birthday, made up games with sticks and tennis balls and although we were told it would happen, we did not put out very many eyes.
We rode bikes or walked to a friend's house and knocked on the door or rang the bell, or just walked in and talked to them!
Little League had tryouts and not everyone made the team. Those who didn't had to learn to deal with disappointment.
The idea of a parent bailing us out if we broke the law was unheard of. They actually sided with the law!
This is pretty much how I grew up. It's a different world today.

This is about the best & accurate post I beleive I,ve ever read here . Very well said & its exactlly how I was brought up . I agree with every word . Bob

 

[Stargazer]

Wasn't this an Andy Rooney comentary? I know I have seen this years ago but yes mostly true except only 3 channels of TV.

 

[mjarrels]

Use to hang out and watch the "chain Gangs" work... usually about 12 guys in white/black strips cut brush and clean out ditches. Always one armed guard with a pistol and shotgun setting in the shade. Don't know why we can't use prison labor nowdays? Sure would help state budgets.

mark

 

[QueBota]

Yard darts.

Picked up a vintage set at a yard sale a couple of weeks ago.

All metal construction, just need to sharpen up the tips a little.

Nice change of pace from horseshoes, plus they help aerate the lawn!

Dave

 

[polo1665]

I can't help but remember all the fun during the winter season, having grown up in snow country. If you were from the north you might remember "bumper hitching" a ride through town. Hiding out like snipers and throwing snowballs at passing cars (got chased through neighborhoods more than once).
My dad used to tie a rope to the back of his truck and tow us down the back roads on our sleds. He would take sharp turns and fling us into snow banks and then LHAO. Sometimes when I look back I wonder if they were trying to get rid of us

Mark

 

[woodchuckie]

I'm amazed at the number of toys I see here at my house for my grandchildren.Three rooms full. Me and my brother had this one cardboard box in the floor of our 4x3 closet to keep our indoor toys in. I'm 59.
Out side we had this crawl space under our house with lots of concrete columns. The dirt was always dry with lots of dire clods which we threw at each other from behind the columns. When they hit the column they left dirt where they hit and I guess it's still there today.

Our backyard pool (which may be one of the most dangerous toys today) was 1/2 mile through the woods at a small creek. The water going through a culvert had made a nice swimming hole 3 to 4 feet deep. I don't remember anyone getting hurt bad with all the wrestling going on. I had to be sure to get dirty again before going home as I wasn't allowed to go there.

I grew up in the city but behind the neighborhood was a 5 or 10 acre hardwood stand. That's really where I grew up. We would dig a hole for a hideout and cover it with logs we cut with our scout axes and cover that with dirt and cover the floor with pine straw and sit down there with candles or smut pots burning looking at whatever good magazine we could fine and smoking cigarettes. That was a step up from the cross vine we smoked before. We didn't have but one fire and it was on one we had built a log room on top with a trap door in the floor. The fire department came to put it out. By the time they got there we had connected 5 or 10 of the different neighbors hoses together to try to put it out. There were no backyard fences and we would cut through everyones yard to get around.

When we got old enough to be able to handle a bicycle good we became mobile. Sometimes 2 or 3 to a bike(according to how many people had flats at the time and how many bikes we could borrow) Of course no helmets were available in 1960 but I guess the roads were much safer then they are now in that area. All this happened while my parents were working. One day we had gone riding and went downtown maybe 10 miles from home and were stopped at a red light when my mother, who worked at the court house, just happened to be crossing the street on her lunch hour. It hit the fan after that.

Those seed things on the ceder trees in the neighborhood made great things to throw at other kids during the cowboy wars.

We had probably 1/4 mile of storm sewer pipes to crawl through.

There was also a farm with watermelons, and sugarcane. There was a rumor he would shoot you with ice cream salt but just a rumor as far as I know.

We would camp out in the back yard and after all the neitghborhood light were off we would start wandering. A couple of miles away was a golf course we could find lots of golf balls. Once we were stopped by the Police because it was after 3am and were were checking the outside coke machine for change when he saw us. This was the same weekend after George Wallace had stood in the door at Foster auditorium to block the registration of the first black at the University of Alabama. There was a curfew imposed in Tuscaloosa for eight-o-clock. The policeman just told us to go on home. We had to be home by five anyway because my dad got up for work at that time.

I feel sorry for todays kids. They just don't have anything to do.

 

[jimmyj]

What a trip down memory lane, the lawn darts, rockets, bows and arrows! ha ha ha

I remember once my genius pal and I shot an arrow straight up in the air to see what would happen We lost sight of it and ran away scared to death! Never did find the arrow.

Anybody else have those water pressure rockets? Or how about a good ole fashioned wrist slingshot and marbles!!

 

[RobertN]

I agree! We never had all the toys the kids have now. Of course, they were not so cheap, either price, or quality.

I'm amazed at the number of toys I see here at my house for my grandchildren.

 

[2manyrocks]

It was three channels of TV here (CBS, NBC, and ABC) growing up. Since they went digital, it's no channels for us, and we don't miss them.

Pressurized water rocket, potato gun, M80 firecrackers, Cub scout hatchet, BB guns, wood burning kit, --all the good stuff.

 

[weldingisfun]

We Survived
Every time I read about some kind of political correctness psycho-babble, I think of the Good Ole days?
To all the kids who survived the 50's, 60's, and 70's

We did not have Playstations, Nintendo's, X-boxes, no video games at all, only 12 channels on television, no video tape movies, no surround sound, no cellphones WE HAD FRIENDS and we went outside and found them!

Hey, wjoerob, agree with what you said 100% and I can remember when there were only 3 channels.