Throwback Thursday # 66 That Was Then And This Is Now

I’m going through a crazy time in my life right now. I’ve gone from trying to herd kittens to running after a few ducks that keep getting out of line. I have surgery next week and I’m uncertain how long I will be out of commission. So, I’m cheating a bit this week and asking questions like I did in a former Throwback Thursday. They are different questions, but the same style.

If you care to join in, it’s easy.

• Write your own post sharing your memories and leave a pingback to this post in the comments.
• You can use the photo above in your post to make it easier to find.
• Tag it with #TBTMemory or #IRememberWhen.
• If you do not wish to write your own post, feel free to tell your story in the comments below.

This week’s rerun prompt is: That Was Then And This Is Now

1) When you were a kid, what were your creative outlets? As an adult, what have you created that you are most proud of?

2) Have you ever saved someone’s life? Did you ever witness someone’s life being saved? Did someone save your life?

3) Did you ever get lost as a child? How did you handle it? Do you get easily lost now?

4) Did you search out presents your parents hid from you? Did you get caught? Do you hide presents from family members as an adult? Are they ever found?

5) Do you have a special song that was sung to you by either of your parents? Did you sing to your children? (or pets) Care to share the tunes?

6) What’s something you were afraid of as a child? What is something you are afraid of as an adult?

7) What do you wish you would have learned more about in school?

8) Is there something outside of school you were so interested in you taught yourself about it as an adult?

9) What made you laugh most when you were a child? What makes you laugh out loud now?

10) What’s something from your childhood that helped to shape your outlook on life?

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1) When you were a kid, what were your creative outlets? As an adult, what have you created that you are most proud of? As a child I loved to draw and make paper dolls. As I grew older, I liked to make Barbie clothes and furniture. I am very proud of my scrapbooks and the quilt tops I have made. Hopefully, they will be enjoyed for a long time.

2) Have you ever saved someone’s life? Did you ever witness someone’s life being saved? Did someone save your life? I’ve never personally saved someone’s life, but as a kid I did see lifeguards up close saving a life. It was very cool to me. My mom’s questioning me as a little kid saved my life. If I had gone to sleep after eating the entire bottle of baby aspirin, I would not be here today.

3) Did you ever get lost as a child? How did you handle it? Do you get easily lost now? I did get lost as a child. I was very frightened when I couldn’t find my mom at the beach. I had wandered off, and I was sure I would never find her again. I stood crying on the shore until a nice woman came and asked me what people I was there with and what colored towels were we laying on. She walked around with me until we found my mom. From then on, I always kept track of where we were and what umbrellas were around us.

I am directionally challenged to this day. I have a great fear of getting lost. Thankfully, with navigation on my phone and in my car, I am much more confidant when traveling.

4) Did you search out presents your parents hid from you? Did you get caught? Do you hide presents from family members as an adult? Do they get found? My brothers and I always searched for gifts. Sometimes we found them and shook them to see if we could figure out what was inside. As a teen, I became an expert at removing tape and returning it to its pristine appearance.

When my kids were young I did all sorts of sneaky hiding tricks. I hid gifts at neighbor’s houses. I put the wrong tags on the gifts so if they actually found and opened them they would not be seeing the right presents anyway. The trunk of my car was a great hiding place when they were young.

5) Do you have a special song that was sung to you by either of your parents? Did you sing to your children? (or pets) Care to share the tunes? To the best of my knowledge, I was not sung to as a child. I did sing to my daughters. I sang the chorus from  “K-K-K-Katy (Beautiful Katy) using my children’s names when they were young. I learned the song from a very good friend of my mom’s when we moved to the east coast for a year. She was a wonderful woman to get to know. The song touched my heart and stayed with me. I also sang it to my grandchildren as babies.

6) What’s something you were afraid of as a child? What is something you are afraid of as an adult? As a child I was afraid of enclosed places. I still am claustrophobic. I am very frightened of snakes and mice. Spiders don’t bother me at all though.

7) What do you wish you would have learned more about in school? I wish I had learned more life skills in school. Things like keeping a checking account, getting credit cards, budget planning, and menu planning were all foreign to me as an 18-year-old wife.

8) Is there something outside of school you were so interested in you taught yourself about it? I taught myself about home improvements. There was no internet back when I was starting my own home. I read books from the library and had loads of trial-and-error experiences. I built shelves, painted walls, installed paneling, made my own stencils and stenciled patterns on my kids’ walls, and made a wonderful garden growing my own veggies in the back yard.   

9) What made you laugh most when you were a child? What makes you laugh out loud now? Saturday morning cartoons made me crack up as a kid. I enjoy watching Robin Williams comedies and stage acts when I need a real belly laugh.

10) What’s something from your childhood that helped to shape your outlook on life? My outlook about alcohol was shaped by the time I was 4 years old. I don’t ever drink because of bad experiences. Numerous positive experiences from my childhood came from my elementary teachers. I saw teachers as kind, helpful, caring adults that could be life changers for their students.

Throwback Thursday # 62 Suds, Buds, and Vino

Happily, spending time on my computer is not a banned activity. The fact that I am taking pain meds daily, has brought today’s topic to mind. I’d like you to think back to those teen years (and later) to respond to today’s topic.

Depending on when and where you grew up, the common consumption of beer, marijuana, and wine may or may not have been a part of your teen life. I was in high school in the late 60s and early 70s. Marijuana and beer were a common factor in most high schooler’s lives. For the majority of people I knew, it didn’t become a problem. For a few, it negatively altered their lives.

Everyone knows, the marijuana of the 70s was far less potent than what is available today. Yet today, in many parts of my country, it is legal. Times change how people feel about controlled substances.

If you care to join us, it’s easy.

• Write your own post sharing your memories and leave a pingback to this post in the comments.
• You can use the photo above in your post to make it easier to find.
• Tag it with #TBTMemory or #IRememberWhen.
• If you do not wish to write your own post, feel free to tell your story in the comments below.

This week’s prompt is: Suds, Buds, and Vino

1) Did you grow up in a family that had beer or wine at family meals? Were either beverages part of your parent’s “relaxation” time?

2) Was wine consumed as part of religious or family celebrations? If so, when?

3) Were you allowed to have a “sip” of the adult beverages?

4) When you were a teenager did it bother you that your parents had one set of behaviors, yet you were expected to have another?

5) When you were in high school, did you or your friends drink alcohol? If you were underaged, how did you acquire the booze?

6) Were you offered marijuana or other drugs while in high school? If you chose to partake, did it get you into trouble, or were you never caught?

7) Did you ever get too drunk or too high to function? How did your body react to that?

8) Have your opinions about taking drugs and drinking alcohol changed over time? Are you more conservative or more liberal than you were in your youth?

9) If applicable, did you raise your children with the same beliefs that you grew up with?

10) If you had any input over alcohol or marijuana laws would you change them?

My post follows.
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1) Did you grow up in a family that had beer or wine at family meals? Were either beverages part of your parent’s “relaxation” time? I don’t remember alcohol being at the family dinner table when I was young. Beer was overused by numerous stepfathers in my life. The one stepfather who used marijuana also used pills for his high.

2) Was wine consumed as part of religious or family celebrations? If so, when?Wine was used at family gatherings. It was awful, sweet Manischewitz wine.

3) Were you allowed to have a “sip” of the adult beverages? I was offered a sip of wine a few times. It tasted awful to me so I wasn’t about to ask for more.

4) When you were a teenager did it bother you that your parents had one set of behaviors, yet you were expected to have another? As a teen, I was the one who never drank or smoked. Growing up with alcoholics made me never want it in my life.

5) When you were in high school, did you or your friends drink alcohol? If you were underaged, how did you acquire the booze? The few parties I went to always had alcohol. I was never pressured to imbibe along with the others. Typically, an older brother bought the booze. I did have one neighbor who bought a keg for his three sons whenever they had a party. He was of the opinion, better at home and not on the road. I thought he was criminal because he allowed lots of underage teens to drink and drive themselves home.

6) Were you offered marijuana or other drugs while in high school? If you chose to partake, did it get you into trouble, or were you never caught? I was offered drugs on many occasions. Once, while at a friend’s house, her boyfriend had a joint. When he lit up, everyone took a drag. I decided to try it. Much to everyone’s dismay, I immediately began vomiting all over everyone’s shoes. After that time, whenever I smell marijuana, I gag or vomit. No pot for this lady. LOL

7) Did you ever get too drunk or too high to function? How did your body react to that? The only time I ever got really high was a couple of years ago. I had shingles and was in horrific pain. My doctor had ordered prescription pain meds and then narcotics. Nothing touched the pain. I sent her a question on the patient portal and asked if she felt Gummies with THC might help. She recommended I try it. The first time I took one I ate the whole thing. I was high as a kite. It didn’t take away all the pain, but it made it bearable. I spent 7 weeks in agony and I have no regrets that I used Gummies for the last three of them.

8) Have your opinions about taking drugs and drinking alcohol changed over time? Are you more conservative or more liberal than you were in your youth? Because of the trauma I suffered as a child, I would never allow alcohol in my house. I made it clear to my spouse that being married to me would mean never drinking. I would never allow my adult children to have alcohol in my house either. I don’t know when or why, but I acquiesced and allowed friends to bring their own alcohol to drink when I invited them to dinner. I am still more comfortable without having alcohol in my house.

I have family that use marijuana for medical purposes and do OK with not abusing it. I also have family members who are unable to not smoke pot for even three hours. It has negatively impacted their lives by their getting in trouble with the law, losing jobs, and losing family members.

Personally, I use ½ of a Gummy when I am in extreme pain. I limit my usage because I am truly afraid of addiction.  

9) If applicable, did you raise your children with the same beliefs that you grew up with? I explained why I didn’t want alcohol in my life to my daughters. I explained that alcoholism runs in both their parent’s families. Neither followed my path. I have seen my daughter drunk, and it breaks my heart.

10) If you had any input over alcohol or marijuana laws, would you change them? If I ran the world, I would get rid of all alcohol. I have lost loved ones to drunk drivers who killed repeatedly. I have seen good men abuse their wives and children when drunk. My daughter had an extended family member who ended up killing his spouse and himself after a weekend binge. And yes, I do believe that no one NEEDS alcohol.  As far as marijuana is concerned, I think it has some miracle qualities. I don’t believe in the smoking of it because of the damage that causes. I do have family that smoked pot when dealing with cancer treatments. It made a positive difference for them.

 

 

 

 

Throwback Thursday #57 – What You Say

I am back today with cooler temperatures and happily both my internet and electricity are working. I was finally able to catch some rays without fainting.  It’s a real bummer that the high 90s are on their way back soon. I was hoping that the beginning of fall would mean better weather.

I’ve been digging getting stuff done around the house. My latest project is cleaning out my scrapbooking room. I have more materials than many stores do. Jeepers creepers, I’ve spent a lot of dough on supplies.  I’m such a spaz though. This afternoon I managed to bang my foot on a door, breaking a toe. It’s the third broken toe in as many months. It’s a bummer that I can’t seem to tell when my feet are in danger. I feel I need curb feelers for my big feet.

If you care to join in, it’s easy.

• Write your own post sharing your memories and leave a pingback to this post in the comments.
• You can use the photo above in your post to make it easier to find.
• Tag it with #TBTMemory or #IRememberWhen.
• If you do not wish to write your own post, feel free to tell your story in the comments below.

This week’s prompt is: Slang
I think this should be no sweat, but I’ll provide some questions to help you along. You can always free write if you’d rather.

What were the words you would have used to describe something cool or popular?
How about those things that were uncool?
What were the hairstyles of the day?
Did they have a name everyone used to reference them?
What were the styles of the time?
What word would you have used to describe something distasteful?
What about peers you were not fond of or were not part of your tribe?
Any phrases you remember that were used (or overused)?

My post follows * * * * * * * * * *

Things that I liked were considered groovy, a gas, boss, bitchin’, and of course bad. You always had to be aware of the latest correct term, so you were not out-of-it. Things and people that were uncool were referred to as candyass or certified.

Back in my day your hair was either stick straight or you had an afro. I had straight hair most of the time. I did get a perm in red rollers once. I’ll have to look for a picture.

The styles of my teen years were off the chart different from my younger days. Most of my friends were decked out in the same threads: mini shirts, go-go boots, frayed jeans, tie-dyed shirts, and we went braless. We thought we were groovy, funky, and badass.

Something distasteful would be considered a bummer, a drag, or a downer.

Peers who were not part of my small tribe would have been considered square, dweebs, or flakes.

The most used and overused that I remember were radical, mellow, and heavy.

It’s very late so I’m off to try and sleep. I’ll catch you on the flip side.

Throwback Thursday #53 – It’s A Formal Affair

While most of us grew up with school clothes and play clothes, there were occasionally those special clothes, aka glad rags. Clothes can bring up strong memories and emotions.

When we were very young, our parents were in charge of our wardrobe. It was their job to make sure we weren’t inappropriately dressed. Because formal wear is not our typical way to dress, we often remember those special garments.

If you care to join us, it’s easy.

• Write your own post sharing your memories and leave a pingback to this post in the comments.
• You can use the photo above in your post to make it easier to find.
• Tag it with #TBTMemory or #IRememberWhen.
• If you do not wish to write your own post, feel free to tell your story in the comments below.

This week’s prompt is: It’s A Formal Affair

I am proposing a different way to write to the prompt today. Because we all had very diverse upbringings, I am going to list several reasons why you might get dressed up. Please feel free to add any occasion you had to get dressed up.

What were your special clothes like?  Did you get your hair done for the occasions? Was a mani-pedi part of the process? Were you instructed on how to behave? Did you have any input on the formal attire? Did you feel comfortable in your special outfit?

Please feel free to write about as many of the occasions you’d like to share. Pictures would be an awesome addition.

* A wedding – either as a member of the wedding party or as a guest
* A Baptism, a Bar/Bat Mitzvah, or Some Other Religious Ceremony
* A funeral
* A formal dinner party
* A Night at the Theater, the Ballet, or the Opera
* High School Prom and/or Formal School Dance

My post follows * * * * * * * * * * * * *

The first dressy dress I remember wearing was when my mom married for the 5^th time. We moved out of the house I grew up in to move into L’s house. I was not too happy with the idea of moving. My mom kept telling me the house was bigger than ours and had a pool. The new “fancy” dress was a bribe to make me accept the marriage. I did love the dress. I had a beautiful corsage. The best part of the day was meeting Clooney, the boxer. (The marriage lasted a few months.)

The next time I remember wearing formal clothing was the Spring Fling in high school and the Junior Prom. Those occasions were special because they were formal attire. Because I bought my own clothes, I got to choose what I wanted. My formal for the Spring Fling had to be altered because I was so thin. I had my hair done at the hairdresser. I didn’t have a mani/pedi for the occasion. For the Prom, I had a dress made for me. A neighbor that did alterations took my pattern and velvet blue fabric and turned it into the best fitting garment I have ever owned. I did not have my hair done at the hairdresser for the prom.

 I didn’t have a need for truly formal clothes often. I did buy nice dresses for special religious dinners with my paternal family. Dress clothes were fun to shop for. When my high school friend and I would go to concerts at the Forum, I would buy “funky” dress clothes. It was our way of being somebody other than who we were.   

The last time I bought a formal dress was 22 years ago.

 

 

 

 

 

Throwback Thursday #51 – Learning New Skills

It’s my turn at bat. I’ve been pulling my hair out trying to think of something Maggie and I have not done before. I know we’ve talked about learning to drive, learning to cook, and learning to swim. I am going to follow that path and ask about your childhood approach to learning new skills.. As kids we are exposed to a huge variety of learning experiences. We can never succeed unless we  are willing to make a commitment to the process.

If you care to join us, it’s easy.

• Write your own post sharing your memories and leave a pingback to this post in the comments.
• You can use the photo above in your post to make it easier to find.
• Tag it with #TBTMemory or #IRememberWhen.
• If you do not wish to write your own post, feel free to tell your story in the comments below.

This week’s prompt is: Learning New Skills

You can either free write using these questions as inspiration or answer the question as they are. If you prefer you can pick and choose the questions that apply to you. Have fun.

1. When did you learn to ride a bike? Were you self-taught or did someone teach you? Any major injuries on the way? Did you master the skill? Do you still ride? If applicable, did you teach your kids?

2. Did you learn to play a musical instrument? At what age? Who taught you? How often did you practice?   Were you in band at school? How good were you? Do you still play? If applicable, did you encourage your kids to play?

3. Did you sing in a choir in church or at school? At what age? How often did you practice? Did you enjoy it? How good were you? Do you still sing with others?

4. Did you have formal instructions on speaking a second language? Were you fortunate enough to be raised in a house with two or more languages? Did you learn a second language in school? Are you fluent in more than one language?

5. Did you to play on a sports team or learn martial arts? At what age did you start? Did a parent become a coach? Did you practice at home? Do you still play sports? If applicable, did you encourage your children to play on a team?

6. Did you ever take dance, tap, ballet, baton, cheerleading, etc. lessons? When did you start? How long did you take lessons? Did you practice on your own in addition to the lessons? How skilled did you become? Did you encourage your children to do the same?

7. Did you learn to roller skate or ice skate? Did someone teach you or did you take lessons? At what age did you learn? Did you become skilled  quickly? Can you still skate? Did you teach your children.

My post follows.
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I learned to ride a bike at about age five. It was a hand me down from a neighbor. I was thrilled to ride a “big bike.” I was always falling and getting bruise and bumps on my legs. I honestly don’t remember who taught me. I have memories of standing at the curb and starting off on my ride. I felt like I was learning all over again when I got a ten-speed bike. I taught my daughters to ride as soon as they could reach the ground and pedals safely. I haven’t ridden in years. I live where there are mostly hills and I can’t afford a fall at this stage of the game.

I took the clarinet in 5^th grade. I was awful. I never mastered the instrument. Much to the chagrin to my family, I practiced at home almost daily. I was in the band at school. As I recall, we were all pretty bad. My older daughter played the flute. She became very good at it. I tried the choir in elementary school, but I was even worse at singing.  My younger daughter was in choir through school. She was very talented. Thank goodness, neither of my kids took after me.

I took Spanish in 6^th grade, 7^th grade, 8^th grade, 9^th grade, 10^th grade, 11^th grade and two years in college. I can’t speak the language more than basic terms. I understand more than I can speak. I wish I was fluent. I envy those that can speak multiple languages.

I played sports with my brothers. Nothing formal of course. Back then, girls couldn’t play on boys’ teams. In PE we played all types of sports. Softball was the cause of numerous injuries for me. I enjoyed the game, but it wasn’t anything I really mastered. I never learned any style of martial arts. My daughters played softball as 3^rd and 4^th graders, and they took karate for a short time.

I never took any type of girlie lessons. I was a tomboy all the way. Luckily, my town offered free lessons for tap, ballet, and baton so my daughters took all of them. I had roller skates with a key as a kid. My shoes were often abused by the skates. I had real roller skates as a teen. Roller skating was a fun “date” activity. I ice skated a couple of times, but not well. I had my daughters take roller skating and ice skating long enough to be safe. Again, I wouldn’t dare do it now.