At Age 26 - I Didn't Have This Stuff

I have been in a contemplative mood of late, which may have been induced by lying in 86 degree sunny weather complimented by a constant gentle sea breeze, and a certain adult beverage called The Nutty Irishmen, which seemed ever so apropos. Nevertheless, today when I was introduced to our latest employee, age 26, I was suddenly brought back to when I was that age....a distant memory at best, and watching him I thought to myself, that kid has no idea what it was like when I was 26. A lot of stuff just did not exist. Here's a brief look at what did and did not exist when I was 26.

• 1. The computer did not exist, yes I had a typewriter and something called white-out. You either got it right the 1st time, or stroked a white liquid over the mistake, blew it dry, and tried to type over it. That's why every exec needed a secretary, without one they would have spent all day typing one memo.
• 2. No copy machines. There was something called the mimeograph that depended on a solution that I swear to God when inhaled would make you high. Very seldom seen in offices, but prevalent in school systems.
• 3. No Cordless phones. No such thing. You were compelled to be only a phone cord away from the phone, hence it was easier to go and see the person when you were a teen-ager than to try and find the privacy you needed for a conversation.
• 4. No Cell phones - see cordless phone
• 5. No Caller ID - We actually had to pick up the phone to see who was calling.
• 6. No Cable TV - We had 4 networks ABC, NBC, CBS and PBS, occasionally with the help of rabbit ears, you may be able to reach the UHF stations which made a living out of showing reruns of F-Troop and Bozo the Clown.
• 7. No e-mail, snail mail was the only mail I knew, and people actually took the time to write their thoughts and feelings on paper and exchange them with one another.
• 8. No Microwaves - Leftovers were always yucky, generally dried out from rewarming in an oven, or blackened from rewarming on the stove top - either way leftovers were not exactly a gourmet treat.
• 9. No remotes - You actually had to get off of your butt and turn the channel. I am convinced that many couples decided to have children just to be able to have someone to turn the channel.
• 10. No video games - closest thing would have been a pin ball machine, sad but true.
• 11. No fast food - No McDonalds, No Burger King - the closest thing to this was the counter at the local Woolworth's
• 12. No digital camera - Film, you only got one chance to get it right, and there was nothing called photoshop that would get the "red-eye" out, you just had to live with it.
• 13. No blow dryer - women would sit for hours under portable hair dryers, with their hair in rollers all in all not a pretty look
• 14. MTV - nope the closest I came to this was American Bandstand, and it was only on the air for an hour a day. (I believe that was all the time my parents could bear)
• 15. No debit cards, no credit cards - you either had cash or you didn't buy, sometimes a local store would let you purchase something on the layaway plan- you would be able to pay X amount of dollars each week toward the purchase until it was completely paid for, then you could take it home.
• With everything that is happening in the financial markets today, I think getting back to number 15 would not be such a bad thing.