Baby Boomer Life Skills, That Are Useless Today

There used to be certain skills that were taught to us that prepared us for living a productive life. These were things that our parents would pass along, maybe they were even taught to us in school, or maybe we just figured it out ourselves, but regardless, they were essential to us. Now-a-days, many of these life-skills have been abandoned, especially with newer generations. So, let’s take a look back at these baby boomer life skills that seem useless today.
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[@GodzillasaurusJr]

UNfolding a paper map is fine... REfolding a map is the real test of skill!

[@monkeygraborange]

Truer words were never spoken! 🤣🤣👍

[@karenh2890]

🤣 So true. I love Google maps, as I have a very poor sense of direction, but I grew up reading paper maps and still enjoy them!

[@freedomrings1420]

LOL 😂, it sure is.

[@FidelCastro128]

We would never say, I don't know what to draw or write.

[@melanycouch9749]

More like a test of patience!!

[@thegoodtexan]

There is no such thing as a useless skill. The more skills you possess, the better person you’ll become.

[@humboldthammer]

Knowledge + Experience = Wisdom. Wisdom is the true gift from Baby Boomers to the NEXT Generations. Never before now -- not in the entire history of humanity -- have so many educated people lived so freely and so abundantly. And for just 17+ years, we have been connected to a Shared, Worldwide Experience with near-instant communication. It is GUARANTEED to Wake "THIS" Generation Up. Because the Father knows what you need, before you ask.

[@wow561]

I’m 67, and I agree that our skills learned as youngsters are still transferable to our lives today! Simple things…making your own fun, writing a letter, Irving within your means, all are still valid and good!

[@mikemcgown6362]

Our skills are still valuable to us but seems like the current generation doesn't see a need to know how to do anything for yourself. Machines and technology can do it faster and better than you, don't you know that? Until the power goes out or your tablet or i-phone crashes. Then all of a sudden they come running to you for assistance. "I don't know" is not what they want to hear when they need help.

[@birdsfan57]

@@mikemcgown6362 And that's why they feel entitled, doing as little as they can and expecting the highest rewards, and still living in their parent's basements or on their parents' cell phone plans well into their 30's, while acting like perpetual adolescents, making and viewing de-mental Tik Tok videos.

[@lucone2937]

Besides you never know what old skill may be useful in a new situation. You can adapt the best of the both worlds, and there's no need to follow every new trend. I think it is quite despressing to see when the people meet everyone keeps on checking their smartphones. It would be more polite to concentrate to the actual people who sit around the same table. A normal clever conversation doesn't require constantly to rely on Google or Wikipedia.

[@markwiley5481]

Being polite to each other is a lost art that I miss.

[@Robert08010]

I can't talk to you since we haven't been properly introduced! (Old manners can backfire too!)

[@edwardcarberry1095]

A Question please? Are you noticing how Dumbed down so many people are in the last year or so???

[@areguapiri]

They stopped teaching that in the 1990s.

[@stevelopez372]

@@Robert08010 Nonsense. That might be A Londoner issue though, even today.Lol.

[@Robert08010]

@@stevelopez372 Oh Pee shaw!

[@Varykino1917]

We were taught to smile at everyone. No one was allowed to be cranky or rude. Courtesy was huge.

[@genxx2724]

Where did you grow up?

[@Varykino1917]

@@genxx2724 California and Washington DC

[@ralphchristianson]

Courtesy and comon sense were normal in the 60s and 70s. Seem to be lost in the chaos now.

[@susanpage8315]

@@genxx2724i grew up in three midwest and we were taught the same thing.

[@JamesMartinelli-jr9mh]

Say hello to everyone walking down the sidewalk.

[@Snargfargle]

I am a "boomer" and almost all of the skills I learned as a child have had application throughout my life. I grew up working on farms, learning to drive trucks, tractors, and combines, weld, maintain the vehicles and implements, build houses, and work cattle. At 17, I joined the US Army. This was normal for most farming-community boys my age. Now, it amazes me how immature and unskilled even college-age people are. At a time when they should be adults, many people still have the mentality and abilities of children.

[@brega6286]

Yup ! They also want $25/hour for doing the most basic jobs that a trained Orangatan could do.

[@FerretKibble]

@@brega6286 That's because that's how much they need to be able to afford rent and healthcare these days. And it doesn't matter what a job involves, being able to live off of your wages is the bare minimum.

[@kelli2152]

@@FerretKibble, that is exactly the point: do something to deserve the wage. This is the only generation that has expected to be paid “enough” and more, so that they can have their “bare minimum”. As if it is a RIGHT.

[@steveb6103]

Grew up on a farm also. Started driving equipment as soon as I could push in the clutch. I don't miss the getting up at 4AM to feed the livestock before school, though.

[@ShawnPatton-rm2hv]

@@brega6286 but the difference now is that since 1971 vehicles have increased 840%, homes 1,600%, college 2,300%, while household income has increased 688%. Also, in the 70s and prior household income was typically only one income, but now it’s typically two or more.

[@westernnut8407]

As a teacher, I used to amuse my students by looking at them while I typed on the computer keyboard. They were shocked that I didn't need to look at the keys. I learned touch typing in high school, and it stuck with me. Remember carbon paper?😅

[@eh4236]

and white out too? :)

[@jennyh4025]

I still do that with my younger colleagues. I can’t speak with them, because that messes my text up, but looking at them or out of the window? Easy.

[@birbluv9595]

I still have carbon paper, ancient carbon paper from my deceased father’s stuff, and treasure it along with the other old stuff I’ve saved that you just cant get any more.

[@sunshinelively]

And carriage return 😅

[@lesnyk255]

How about the smell of fresh mimeograph sheets?

[@barbaracollins385]

Im so glad i was raised in the good old days. We learned cursive in the 3rd grade, learned to tell time on a clock with real hands in the 1st grade. Had drivers edication leasons in high-school. Learned typing and shorthand, had homemaking classes and shop classes. Whe we git home from school, changed clothes and played outside until supper. Weekends were spent riding bikes and exploring with friends. Life was so good back then

[@RedEyeC]

My exact childhood in the 60s / 70s 🙂

[@paularhodes4283]

Had drivers edication leasons?

[@RedEyeC]

@@paularhodes4283- at 14 - just in time to take the drivers test and get my license at 15. Today it's 16 with permit and 17 (or 18?) for a drivers license.

[@ufosrus]

It was simple. Everything is so complicated nowadays.

[@RedEyeC]

@@ufosrus- a simpler time, yet people were stronger and had empathy towards others.

[@sharroncalundan7794]

Am 74, RN, worked until 72. Had computer glitch n the clinic one day. I reverted back to the “olden times” and informed the staff how to continue operating. The “kids” were amazed not only could we keep going but I did it with the ease. Live tech but we need to use our critical thinking skills and keep going.

[@joepangean6770]

You forgot the most important life skill missing today. ETIQUETTE. We were taught in school and mostly at home from Emily Post's book about how to behave in public. We learned proper speaking, attire, dining, dating and gifting. The phone skills were also part of this.

[@catherinelw9365]

Yes! One thing I've noticed is kids don't enunciate their words. Everything is slurred.

[@-_a-a_-]

Boomers were also arrogant, egotistical, narcissistic, selfish and irresponsible - leading to today's garbage world. 😢

[@raes8520]

That's how languages have evolved all throughout time.@@catherinelw9365

[@raes8520]

And your proper dating included domestic violence, sexual assault, child molestation, sexism, etc. But sure, it looked proper.

[@tma-1704]

@@raes8520 Unfortunately all that still occurs today. Maybe even more so.

[@CLdriver1960]

There’s an irony of ‘smartphones’: the smarter the phone, the dumber the user.

[@nickhammer6408]

Best part is todays generation thinks they were the ones instrumental in bringing the cell phone to the people. No sorry I'm 60 that was my generation to. 🤣

[@OpenCarryUSMC]

@@nickhammer6408it was from Star Trek. We had the tech but it hadn’t been put together. An engineer watched the STRek communicators and said “we can do that”

[@shiroibasketshoes]

As an example, I have never owned a smartphone, never will, and I remember my mother told me the real definition of "dumb" is one who cannot talk.

[@michaelwoehl8822]

So right.

[@michaeldavis2039]

True. Now, ask the younger generation raised on smartphones to dial a rotary phone...if they even know what those are!!! 😂

[@winnie2379]

I still have the dozens of letters that my boyfriend & I wrote to each other during the year we went to different universities. Phone calls were very expensive and we only called each other on Tuesday nights when long distance rates were less. We’ve been married for almost 40 yrs so it must have worked!

[@victormihai3929]

Good for you! Nice story.

[@susanosborne8918]

That's you, not me. Not the guy next door

[@rodschmidt8952]

I have letters to my grandfather !!!

[@cochabambas]

I caught the last days of letter writing and pen pals in the mid-late 1990s. Letter writing is a lost art that I miss.

[@Leashadd]

I have all the letters from my nieces and brothers and sisters from when I went into the Army in 1974.

[@wesdowling1340]

As a trucker of 43 years reading a map was essential even today would give you a better idea of the whole area that your going into rather then a gps

[@ninasm]

Right. Same here (not trucker, but 43 and yes reading a map was super essential and I find it a valuable still till today). Which definitely makes you a late Gen X or early Gen Y. Therefore the title of this video in bonkers. This of course has nothing to do with you, I just don't like it, when the "author" uses these false attention grabing titles.

[@briancasey4917]

Was trucker also. I took my kids with me on the road from time to time and taught them to read maps. They still use maps and only GPS for local directions. They often complain about how ignorant their peers are at knowing geography.

[@janinewetzler5037]

Map reading, especially knowing N, S, E, W directions is still essential, don't kid yourself!! Also, sewing is always very useful, especially machine sewing!!

[@karenh2890]

I would read the map while my husband drove. We went across the country several times. I learned to sew on a sewing machine when I was 12, in 1967. It's a good skill, and a lot of fun too.

[@unkannyunkanny9232]

I got lost and thought "oh wait, I have a MAP". And that was when I discovered I could no longer read a map without serious reading glasses. Now my car has multiples of reading glasses as part of my emergency kit. Aging sucks.

[@virginiamoss7045]

I made most of my clothes as a teenager, even made my own wedding dress, and almost all my child's clothes. Then I divorced and had to go to work. Now retired, I thought I could return to sewing but the cost is prohibitive; it's been turned into a hobby instead of a utility. I won't pay $20 to $35 for one pattern. I also don't have the dexterity in my arthritic hands for efficient sewing. So disappointing. I garden instead.

[@StarFleet_Tech1701]

I still keep a RAND MCNALLY map just in case the GPS stops working.

[@antilogism]

Maps are even more important if you're the outdoorsy type. Solar chargers and GHz signals don't do so well in the woods.

[@warp9p659]

I still go inside the bank to the teller window. I still use a typewriter for some things, not just a computer keyboard. I still write in cursive. I still eat inside restaurants, and I know how to balance a checkbook! Oh, and I know how to count back change too! All of these are still very useful in my book.

[@marymisdom3955]

I've noticed not many younger cashier's count your change out for you as they give it to you. They hand you a wad of bills with the coins on top.

[@wayneanderson8034]

I was a cashier off & on from 1981 to 1999 & again briefly in 2022. I count back people's change to prevent an error, the old fashioned way. The last time I did it, the young lady looked at me like I was from outer space with that "why are you calling out numbers, what does this all mean" puzzled look. It's mostly for my benefit, not theirs, so I don't give too much back. It has saved me multiple times. To go further, another cashier taught me, when you accept the cash note, put it on the counter & put a paper weight on it. Then count back their change. That stops people who give you a $5 & claim it was a $20, it's right there & hasn't moved, so they don't even try to scam you.

[@oreally8605]

Our generation is grounded. Unlike the Tik Tok teenagers of today. It's sad to see.

[@sunshine3914]

@@wayneanderson8034We were trained to lay the bill crossways until you had given their change back.

[@firefly9838]

Boomer

[@mr.Drawgo]

Memorizing numbers is a skill we should still use, not only to call someone from someone’s else phone ( in case we lose our phone) but to keep our memory sharp

[@samanthab1923]

My son is always amazed I can rattle off my SS#

[@rebeccaa2433]

Now we have to remember a bazillion passwords.

[@drmasroberts]

Do you remember the smell of mimeographed copies? I always jumped up when the teacher would ask for a volunteer to crank paper through the machine.

[@Deborahtunes]

I loved the smell of freshly made ditto papers...

[@justsayin8734]

Huffing fumes.

[@monkmchorning]

But is that a life skill?

[@jackiemack8653]

All of us sniffed our dittos. A life skill. Got us through the day 😆

[@anamedrano-cruz9092]

By the time I was 10 years old, I knew how to sew, crochet clean our home, cook, iron, proper manners (much younger actually). I started working in high school to hel myself get through college and assist my parents financially, as their income was quite low. Our family was united and took every opportunity to share and support each other. Values, which unfortunately, have been lost. No complaints here. We did whatever needed to get done. I am currently 65 years of age and everything that I learned gave me the tools to overcome adversities in life.

[@canislatrans8285]

There's a gen x joke that we learned to make sandwiches at age 3, and cook food on a stove at 5, due to being latch key kids. LOL. I too learned all those life skills early, except ironing wasn't that much of a thing in our household. But I do remember a parent ironing at some point. I'm guessing dad's work shirts or any other wrinkling clothing that shouldn't be due to fashion. I wasn't a latch key kid until 8. The after school daycare place closed and that was the alternative.

[@Leashadd]

God- were you the only kid in the family? At least with a houseful of kids (I'm Catholic!) somebody else could divide the work!

[@equalopportunityoffender6732]

I’m a 64 yo MAN . Growing up where, when and how I did in my has made a well rounded individual . I wouldn’t trade my situation in for anything this current world has to offer .

[@bridgetmccracken1381]

The world seemed a much more polite place before the internet and so called "social" media. I would gladly trade all these "advancements" for the way it used to be

[@vicepresidentmikepence889]

Says the person commenting on the internet..If the internet is so bad, DON'T USE IT

[@hairydogstail]

You are a case in point the op was right lol..@@vicepresidentmikepence889

[@Roma-SRyan]

Lmao people were more polite during Jim Crow??😅 Social Media makes it harder to hide the truth. Everyone has camera and can share info rapidly. Meaning Social Media exposes the truth

[@Franky566]

@@vicepresidentmikepence889based

[@bridgetmccracken1381]

@@vicepresidentmikepence889 you are a prime example of rudeness that is now rampant in the world. Thanks for proving my point

[@navret1707]

The best anti-theft device today is a manual transmission. 90+% of Americans drive automatics. One of the best, if not THE best, class I took in high school was typing. Knowing the keyboard layout without having to look at it makes programming a lot faster. Hunt and peck or one or two finger typing didn’t cut it. I was a programmer for over 30 years and still play around with it.

[@RedEyeC]

Skills we were taught that are useless today? I can think of 2 right off: courtesy and respect.

[@genxx2724]

Isn’t that sad. These days people don’t respond to anything short of a 2 x 4 upside the head. Speaking figuratively, of course.

[@charliemessenger6537]

I work in Facilities at a university and have to navigate the hoards of clueless students everyday. I'm at the tail end of the Boomer generation and everything you talked about made me the self sufficient person I am today. I look around at the students and all I can think is, we're doomed.

[@aircooledhead]

Also a tail-end Boomer. I work in a HS and am floored by how little the students know, about anything. One student said Reindeers were female deers. I asked him if a Polar bear was a female Grizzly bear. He said they were different kinds of bear. But he still insisted that Reindeer were just female deers. 🫤

[@charlesgreen2647]

Of course, when we went to college, we were going to end war, and promote peace, love and understanding. See how that turned out. Those leading the charge are now our most corrupt citizens.

[@glennruscher4007]

​@@aircooledhead That child never heard of a Caribou.😊 They live in Canada mostly. Reindeer in Siberia. They probably don't know what an Elk is either.

[@aircooledhead]

@@glennruscher4007 The sad thing is; deer are commonly seen in this area. I should’ve asked him why we see deer, but not Reindeer. Probably thinks they’re stay-at-home deer wives. 😅

[@timvandenbrink4461]

GenX here. A few years back, when my kids were teenagers, their friends from the neighborhood would come to our house to put the chain back on their bikes. 17 years old and they didn’t even know what a wrench is or how to maintain anything. At that age back in the 80’s we were swapping engines in a afternoon.

[@deborahkish5411]

I'm so grateful that I grew up in the 1960's and 70's!!

[@meganruchwatercolors7186]

Me too! Magical times in many ways!

[@lee48lee68]

⁠​⁠​⁠​⁠​⁠@@meganruchwatercolors7186-Magical times? In the USA before 1974 women were not allowed to get credit cards, loans, have their own bank accounts or mortgages without a male co-signer. If they got a co-signer, they still had higher rates than men. Why the heck would anyone want to live in such a backward era?

[@deborahhebblethwaite1865]

Ditto🇨🇦

[@gemmalee3032]

me, too. 'have happy memories that i won't trade bcoz they help me survive stressfull times.

[@harveygraden7486]

No time will ever be like the late 60s in the early 70s magical music magical people the hippie movement.

[@AlldatJazz-rw9wy]

I encourage anyone, learn to read a map. There's this guy I was working with, and I was telling him how to get to storage facility. He would rather listen to the gps, and we got on the freeway, when we didn't have to. Some people are so clueless about tech, they'd rather drive off a cliff than listen to someone that knows the area, let alone read a map.

[@katehenry2718]

Reading a round clock. Reading a 24 hour clock. Math on paper. Keeping appointments. Good manners. Hand sewing, ironing. Mending. Repairing rather than throw away. Reading books for education and pleasure. Gardening. Cooking. Cleaning.

[@cwbrooks5329]

There is no such thing as a "useless" skill. Learning and repeating skills create neural pathways that develop problem-solving capabilities applicable to other tasks as well as confidence in the expectation that one can master future tasks successfully.

[@chrismiller5198]

I could not have said it better myself.

[@rodschmidt8952]

Note to self: Learn blacksmithing

[@m.dewylde5287]

OK Boomer!

[@cwbrooks5329]

@@m.dewylde5287 I'm not a "Boomer," just can't stomach the sad, "professional victims" of my own generation. But I guess you know all about that.

[@m.dewylde5287]

Sorry, I was joking. Sarcasm failure.

[@toddbu-WK7L]

When I was 18 years old, I drove across the country in my old beater '71 Mustang for the first time. I didn't even take a map with me. I just learned the roads that I needed to turn on and made it in three days. I listened to whatever radio stations I could dial into, slept in rest areas, and paid for my gas in cash. Roughly 40 years later I was on virtually the same drive when my iPhone died in Boise, ID. Suddenly I had no way to make calls, listen to music, or navigate with my GPS. So, I just did what I'd done before in 1981... Studied a highway map to make sure of my exits, tuned in whatever radio station I could find, and pointed my truck west. I knew that I was headed west because the highway signs told me what route I was on and the sun was on my left-hand side in the afternoon. I did manage to use my iPad to message my wife that I was offline while in the vehicle when I stopped for lunch at McDonalds. And since I was running a bit late that day I decided to stop for the night rather than push it and drive the last few hours in the mountains while tired. Did I stop at a five star hotel with a jacuzzi tub to soak away my troubles? Nope. I slept soundly in the front seat of my truck at a highway rest stop. Who wants to waste $150 or more for a few hours of sleep? 🤣

[@Robert08010]

Morning sun at your back, setting sun in your face. You will find the west coast eventually.

[@FatLu-zu2fb]

Been there done that, better yet with a Bucket of Chicken and no hurry to go wherever. Loved those days.

[@sandramariegray7894]

A couple of years ago I took my then 22yo son on a road trip to see some art silos with only a paper map. It was his job to get up to the next silo. He also had to factor in how far the next stop was and work out a place to spend the night. He had strict instructions I was not driving after dusk. Too many kangaroos and foxes. He lost our way just once during 5 days and about 3000kms. Along the way he found other stop off points. We got back home and I received a hand written thank you note.

[@ataboyboyboy8895]

The tools might be useless, but what you've learned is priceless, timeless and relevant.

[@dbchatt5486]

My husband and I were older parents and were stunned at what skills our children were no longer taught. We taught our kids to reference physical encyclopedias, dictionaries, and thesauruses. My children were the only two kids that passed using reference materials in their state testing. My husband replaced his car with a manual when it was time to teach our kids to drive. We even had to have a few lessons on how to use a hole punch, stapler, staple remover, and paper cutters. My brownie troop didn't know about licking stamps. They had always had peel and stick stickers. I taught them to count back change correctly at Girl Scout cookie sales. Older people were amazingly patient at letting them practice that. I never see anyone do it now. The few times its happened, I compliment them. It's a lost art.

[@leecowell8165]

Amazing skills that we took for granted. Today amazes me when these kids cannot make change properly.

[@debbiehanson9201]

I once had a teenage cashier ask me if I could figure out the change I was due because the cash register wasn't doing it for him. I not only figured out the change but explained a simple way to do that in case the cash register continued to give him problems. He looked relieved. To be fair, I doubt he had to deal with too many cash purchases, but it was only one item, and I had the cash to pay for it, so....

[@Wa3ypx]

How about giving "odd change" when paying? They look at you like you have a severed head! Or better yet, just using money to pay for an item!

[@elliebellie7816]

Today's cash registers tell you the change. If the total is $11.56 and the customer gives you a $20, that's what you enter into the machine and it tells you exactly what the change is. As well, nowadays, kids always have their phones with them which always have calculator apps.

[@johntilson2535]

What's even funnier, or sadder, depending on one's point of view, is the 'internet age' kids of today are barely capable of accessing usable information on the web, yet are whizzes at mind numbing social media sites like TikTok...smh

[@albertmarnell9976]

My grandmother was born in 1900. She could fix any clothing or even make it on her sewing machine. She was fast and played that machine like a maestro. People have lost their hearts and their brains. People have no patience today.

[@spocksvulcanbrain]

My mother was a dress designer and I spent many hours of many days over years in the sewing room with her absorbing the nuances of the art. I even was used as an "apprentice" many times to cut, rip seams, etc. Today, nobody I know knows how to sew. They all come to me for garment repairs and new special clothes. Just this last week I was asked to shorten a new tablecloth which was too long. In doing so, I did a professional job on the main cloth and was able to make 4 matching napkins from the salvage. Don't tell me sewing skills aren't important. And I'm a dude that makes many of his own clothes.

[@PinkPyramid]

that's true! those darn brains and hearts really get away from a feller if you know what I mean

[@albertmarnell9976]

No I don't know what you mean and your comment is silly and vacuous.@@PinkPyramid

[@fastted9390]

Or brains.

[@angr3819]

@@spocksvulcanbrain Many men have been excellent taylors, and made it to Saville Row. In fact, skilled men taylors are often better than women (sorry, sisters. They are usually born with longer arms and fingers and so are better at moving fabric into place. Also very good fine motor skills. Goes with the hunter genes).

[@elaine2539]

I just realized how I still practice many of these old skills, keeping my mother’s dishes for special occasions. Having a sewing box, watching my checkbooks, except I refer to my online banking. Even writing a check each month to pay the gas bill, since the online payment method got screwed up.

[@jameslaughlin3298]

There used to be a certain social decorum that seems to have largely disappeared. I saw a guy in a grocery store with only the F word on it in large letters. In my day he’d have been thrown out of the store and generally shunned. Today nobody cares.

[@shirleypatten6212]

And if you vocally disapprove, you're told to lighten up.

[@LM811]

I am 61 years old. When I started driving at 18, I would unfold maps and study them. Even today, I find them useful, even if it is to study a map online.

[@themagus5906]

Before I take a road trip, I always look at the planned route on a map. It gives me a sense of how to go, and where I am going. I'll never totally trust a "bitch in a box" to completely guide me, thank you. I got my "map & compass" merit badge 60 years ago, and it's a skill I'll always have now. Young people today rely on computers for much of their lives, and that's fine, but you need to learn some basic skills in order to not be such a fragile human being.

[@fum00A]

Yes. GPS usually uses express ways which means taking us out of the way to access them. The other day, our GPS recommended a route that would take us through one of the most dangerous sections of town; something I would not recommend.

[@katzmeow1180]

This one should never go away. IF/When SHTF, we will covet those maps!

[@createone100]

I love, love, love maps! And atlases! How do you know where things are IN RELATION TO everywhere else if you don’t have a map?

[@thomastaylor6699]

I'm 64, and I remember pulling out the big map for the United States road system and navigating with it. Travel back then was fun, and always an adventure!😊

[@rodneykingston6420]

Um, about 15 or so years ago, I read an article that totally shocked me. A woman in Maryland was ARRESTED for allowing her 10 and 6 y.o. children to walk to a local park by themselves. Her defense was that she was trying to raise "free range kids" who could navigate the world by themselves. When I was a kid, in the 70s, that was a parenting strategy employed by, well, EVERYBODY. ALL kids were free range kids then. I was sent out the door and encouraged to explore the neighborhood on my own almost as soon as I could walk. It was up to me to find my own friends. I never had a "play date" made for me in my life. EVER. The term didn't exist then. I guess I acquired a lot of now useless skills under that system, but I sure don't envy today's kids.

[@marktwain2053]

It's the "Progressives" that have made things that way. They have progressed us back to the stone age, when everyone was afraid of their own shadow...for good reason.

[@ravenwolf7128]

You are so right, Rodney--every single kid in our neighborhood went out the door in the morning--either to walk to the corner to catch the school bus--or if it was a Saturday or summer time--the kids ran around unsupervised ALL DAY LONG, so long as they came home for dinner--usually dirty, hungry, rosy-cheeked, and quite satisfied with the days "adventures": like building forts in the woods, riding bikes, climbing trees, making mudpies and various other pretend food out of mud, catching crayfish or fishing in the local waterhole; hopscotch, jump rope, swinging on the tire swing, playing tag, red light/green light, stickball in the street--all of it the kids figured out on their own without adults hovering over them---It. Was. Awesome! And as the above commenter said--practically as soon as you could walk, you would be free to join the other kids in the neighborhood and just be a kid, playing as you wanted to. And if it was summer and the days were long--we went outside after dinner too--we all had to return home by "dark o'clock" but we could still sit on the porch after dark watching the fireflies light up the yard and woods---those were the DAYS! No one called child protection since you would literally have had to arrest the entire countryside--LOL people live in FEAR of everything today.

[@lucyh4355]

I grew up in the 80s & it was the same here in the UK - home when the streetlights came on. I wouldn't have had it any other way!

[@kimberlainodriscoll4781]

@@Lisa-di1wi It's unfortunate that your parents stifled your childhood by practically imprisoning you. The vast majority of us left our house in the morning, found our friends and had adventures together. When I was 7, my roaming range was usually within a few city blocks, but we also went to the park which was about a mile away. As I grew older and had a bike, my world expanded. In addition to this, I lived in Boston at the time. The MTA gave me access to anywhere in the city for a dime. I took advantage of it. What you started to do at age 17, I was already doing at 7.

[@northerniltree]

@@Lisa-di1wi You have lived in fear and restriction all your life. How sad.

[@Elise__Mae]

Sewing is still very useful. Perhaps not to make clothes, which is more complex, but window treatments, duvets, etc. as well as hemmng pants and skirts? Still a great skill to have. Receiving letters has become an exciting process now -- it can be very special. I love sending and receiving them from friends.

[@frankfriedlos3721]

At a grand old age surpassing the three score and ten, I still harbour a grudge about the continual persecution I suffered at school because my handwriting was "untidy". Good grief! Sod 'em. Good luck to the modern generation that don't have to suffer from this.

[@tomhammer1784]

You covered sewing your own clothes, but forgot in the days before permanent press and tumble dryers, you had to also iron them after every washing. A skill I still possess at 75 years old.

[@goattrails]

I've always liked ironing. I started earning money ironing for my Mom's friends when I was in elementary school.

[@SofDiane]

I also love ironing. I’m 75 and people make fun of me for loving it. It’s calming.

[@johnchandler1687]

At 72 I still have my set of the steel frames you put down pants legs before hanging to dry. Puts those sharp creases in them.😊

[@ScooterFXRS]

Ahh yes, pressing my own military pleats on my uniform.

[@PeggyTheGhost13]

I still possess the skill, andI even own the equipment, but that weekly time spent ironing is not missed.

[@Douglas_Blake_579]

None of the things listed here are actually "useless" today. They are unused, but still well worth knowing ... just stop and think what happens if the power goes out and does not come back on. We are returned to bank books, handwriting, making change, etc. in a heartbeat.

[@freedomrings1420]

LOL 😂, the younger generations would be committing suicide without the use of their cellphones. When I withdraw my money at the bank for some reason it takes them forever now while looking at their computer screen for what seems like 10 minutes.

[@buckbulkley2179]

Right! We'll see how 'useless' these skills are over the next 50 to 100 years.

[@bvm3925]

I consider most of these lost arts. I'm not sure why typing with your thumbs on a little phone keypad would be considered progress.

[@CLord-gs7nj]

I loved having bank books. I really wanted one for my child but could not find them anywhere.

[@Douglas_Blake_579]

@@CLord-gs7nj You can still get them at Stationary stores and the stationary departments in some stores. They're not official bank books but it will give the kids a sense of money management. If nothing else, depositing most of my allowance to save up for things, all tracked by a bankbook, taught me how to live a lifetime free of debt.

[@bearg-ma9168]

It was a big day in typing class when we graduated from the manual to the electric typewriter. No spell check but there was the invention of liquid paper and correction reels. The real skill was lining up the paper to make corrections with a reel after one had already pulled the paper out. And those eraser pencils with the brush top and rubber eraser where the lead on a regular pencil would be.

[@AlistairKiwi]

Everything you said was accurate. Today, people want nothing at all to do with others. But then, these were the simple pleasures of relating to our fellow humans.

[@jons.6216]

Taking typing classes in junior high and high school turned out to be invaluable to me being the upcoming generation to the computer age! I have no regrets about it!

[@tea4223]

That's true... the order of letters never changed.

[@robertmontgomery3892]

Back in the 11th grade on the very last day I struck up a conversation with a friend who was taking a Data Processing Course. After listening to him I decided to do whatever was necessary to add Data Processing in my final year. That required me to take a typing course during the summer which I did. I remember that I was one of the few male students; the unairconditioned classroom was hot and it was a bit of a struggle but I did it. After having completed the typing course I took the Data Processing Course during my senior year and it was lifechanging. I went on to college and learned to program and that lead to a decades long career as a software engineer. Without knowing how to type I would have been severely limited so devoting myself to that typing course was one of the best things I did in high school.

[@itinerantpatriot1196]

I was self-taught on an electric typewriter when I was an undergrad. Managed to pass a 60 word a minute test for a job I later turned down. But it was cool to know I had it in me.

[@frankmitchell3594]

@@tea4223 My last laptop (not my current one) has the 'home' keys indicated.

[@virginiamoss7045]

My high school typing class was the most valuable class for my future. When I divorced and had never worked or knew much of anything about the world back in the 1970s, I applied for a receptionist job and got it because I could type (which I had not done in 7 years). It got me started, without any college. It ended in 2020 when COVID forced me to retire from my self-employment where I was using computer-aided drafting and design programs to prepare floor plans. It all started with that high school typing class.

[@Lindyanne622]

Learned to sew at age 10 and still enjoy it. Take a lot of pride in creating a garment I won’t see walking toward me in a crowd. Still drive a stick shift and use cursive, love texting, but hand written cards are still important. The most important things from my boomer years are empathy, courtesy and honesty.

[@Wa3ypx]

My older sister (7 years older) had to make clothes for a class in high school. Her and her circle of friends would trade patterns. They would meet at each others houses, lay out the patterns on the floor and cut cloth. It became a hobby for those girls.

[@joanneferguson3784]

And as a quilter, sewing is relaxing, and joyful experience..

[@chicanica64]

Wish I had learned!

[@robert-zg8or]

Sewing was important. But then again we didn't wear pants with the butt cut out. Lol we even knew how to wear our pants up to our waist.

[@angr3819]

@@robert-zg8or Oh lor'. Those baggy jeans worn with the crutch around the knees and the boxers showing! They look like their nappies have dropped 😂

[@lisanidog8178]

We never had a sewing machine. It was one of our cleaning ladies who showed me how to sew. And now since I have no thread I use tea bag string. Works just as good. And I’m careful not to lose the only needle I have. Mom did have an elaborate sewing box and she knew how to hem. Dad knew how to sew so when a button fell off he sewed it back on.

[@ninjasipad7924]

Love your video! As a baby boomer born in the 50’s and thinking about your message that skills we learned are useless today. I think it’s the opposite. We learned by researching, using maps, etc taught us to problem solve. By not growing up with technology we learned people skills, we talked, laughed, cried, had disagreements and learned compromise. By learning to repair something, sew, etc we learned not to be a throw away generation like today. They are literally throwing away their history. I am so glad that I grew up in a time when morals, values, character and lifetime friendships are more valuable than technology. Great video❤

[@dianekessler5842]

I am so grateful that my parents taught me all the “outdated” skills , many of which I still use today.

[@visceratrocar]

You still listen to 8-track tapes? And remember how they worked?

[@williamspangler566]

Those arguments are spurious and off topic. Fear of Math is a modern skill. The whole society is diminished. For the lack of learning skills. If they had been replaced with other skills that would be relevant in the current times. That would be useful. Instead some seem to have abandoned all thought and productive critical thinking. I may be wrong. Please provide a list of skills this generation has developed that are useful

[@pghrpg4065]

My parents (baby boomers) met because my mother was a bank teller and my father was a customer.

[@stewpadasso297]

Same here. 😂 it's a funny story for my folks.

[@TheHeat55]

My father was an accountant and founded a bank. In those days, you had a booklet in which the bank teller would write your transactions. I had account number 3. No hackers though.

[@jeepliving1]

Nowadays both banking and dating are usually done on line! 🤣

[@BeltFedToys]

@jeepliving yeah with many accounts hacked and people hacked up by the loons online.

[@jeepliving1]

@@BeltFedToys Yes, because in the old days, nobody ever forged checks or stole checks out of mail boxes or assaulted people they were dating. At least now if a bank account is hacked, the customer doesn't lose their money.

[@Robert08010]

I'm glad I learned how to and had the experience of hitchhiking and hopping on a freight train. I wouldn't recommend it now but I am still delighted to have those memories.

[@MrsColumbo823]

No skill is “useless”. That remark is insulting.

[@lindaveal5124]

You can also add telling time on a face clock to the list. I recently encountered 2 people in their mid 20s who had no idea how to read a clock. I was so shocked to find out they no longer teach it in school.

[@robertschmidt9296]

If I remember correctly, that was the first thing we learned.

[@psidvicious]

Wow, that’s crazy. Can you imagine them getting a nice dress watch with no numbers, just hands? They’d probably look at you like, ‘what do I do with this?’

[@lorinapetranova2607]

It took me several minutes to figure out the total digital time for what I was cooking. I'm really not a huge fan of a lot of digital stuff. It makes ppl lazy n inefficient and Rude. Stupid. Communication skills are vanishing. Guess soon it's goodbye daytant. Just endless warmongering and genocide and fascist braindead zombies. God what a wonderful world and future.

[@lindaveal5124]

@@psidvicious , they are so dependent upon their cell phones nowadays. Brand new clock on the wall, and they don't know how to read it. I actually gave a tutorial. lol

[@lindaveal5124]

@@robertschmidt9296. my grandfather taught me how when I was in third grade. They didn't teach it in class until 4th grade back in the late 60s. He got tired of me asking what time it was when I wanted to watch my favorite afternoon tv shows.

[@joycampi7233]

Cursive writing is an art. It's different from one person to the next. I wish it was still taught in school.

[@GygyMy]

What do you mean 'not taught in school'? People don't learn to write now?

[@cynthiar6426]

@@GygyMy Not for a while, apparently. My great niece got her father to teach her how to write in cursive. I'm proud of her for even wanting to.

[@GygyMy]

@@cynthiar6426 Oh wow...i m getting real old then hahahahha .... And it seems very sad to me that it is no longer taught...very strange...even weird . Good your niece seems to be interested in learning it !

[@cynthiar6426]

@@GygyMy She is also sentimental and gets called a hoarder when she saves a keepsake. Kinda sad. She's a strong young woman, though.

[@bobmorgan1575]

I believe there is a very dark reason for this. All of the documents from our nation's founding are hand written in script. Without the ability to read it for yourself you will have to rely on someone else to read it for you, or rely on a printed transcription with no way to spot any potential changes. One of the foundation blocks of creating a totalitarian society is limiting educational opportunity for those that are not in the favored group(s).

[@yesiownfrodo]

When I was in college, I took a class called IT464, obsolete educational technology, and it was the last time the class was offered. We were taught how to use it all, and we practiced mounting posters on foamboard, using carbon paper, etc. Some years later, I was working at a school where our principal had limited the number of copies each teacher could make. Each of us had a code, and that was it. There was no limit on paper. In storage, I found an old mimeograph machine and I was the only person in the school who knew how to use it. And I did. I can't say the principal was happy. LOL

[@OwaissaAltheaDickey]

Before connecting with strangers on the I-Net there was penpals. My first penpal was a little boy named Bobby Wolf when we were both 6yrs old. An awesome way to learn to read and write back when I was a kid(1960s-1970s).❤❤❤❤

[@d.l.l.6578]

We also learned common courtesy and good manners. We learned to look both ways before crossing a street. And we learned to pay attention when driving. Cell phone distraction is the most dangerous thing that ever happened to driving a crippling death machine.

[@dogmonday]

And we hustled across the street so a car wouldn’t have to wait for us!

[@KBD607]

Haa,. And drinking and driving was acceptable, there were ashtrays in every vehicle. Kids were not put in seat belts.

[@I.M.A.Panther3619]

Please remember ….. who made cell phones and smart cell phones ? Who created all the worst things about social media ? Fully grown adult people created this stuff. Our younger children didn’t have anything to do with this.

[@willhorting5317]

Everything mentioned are things that are still EXTREMELY useful. Unfortunately, too many people simply don't bother to use them.

[@sandrapicton6349]

Or acquire them.

[@delawarepilot]

It wasn’t home economics, but when I was in high school they had a required class where you learned to balance a checkbook, write a check, apply for a loan, make a budget. All the little practical adult things to do.

[@veiledzorba]

They have "adulting" classes for this now - in college!

[@ronica2623]

Schools are starting to incorporate basic finance skills in schools…yay

[@Deborahtunes]

​@@veiledzorba~ It needs to be taught a lot sooner than college age...

[@Deborahtunes]

I had an economics class in the 10th grade. It was a required class for graduation...

[@veiledzorba]

Agreed! @@Deborahtunes

[@stevemcdonald1033]

I remember when I was 12 years old, on the first day after school let out for the summer. I got together with the kids of several families on our street and spent the whole day, running around and playing games that required no equipment and cost nothing at all. I was thinking then, how good it was to be alive and have all these friends, just reveling in the joy of being with each other. Boys and girls were fully mixed and no discrimination existed among us for any reason. No pecking-order existed and it didn't matter whether your family was rich or poor. No time of my life has ever been better than it was right then. That was the natural way people existed, before modern times gradually took much of it away. But this can be easily re-kindled, as it's ingrained in every person's basic makeup. One day, I think we will become collectively smart enough to bring it back.

[@cvent8454]

You forgot to mention stenographer. At one point in my life I was an Executive Secretary who could take steno at 180 words a minute. A phenomenal speed. It isn't needed any longer but I still use what I can remember of the Gregg system whenever I want to take notes quickly. I don't agree that reading a map or sewing are useless skills now plus I still write in cursive. All civilized people do.

[@IceSkater8491]

I took Gregg shorthand too but my speed was only 120. Quite slow compared to yours! Amazing! My typing speed was 110 wpm. The good 'ol days.😊

[@ShawnPatton-rm2hv]

What does civilized mean?

[@stevenscott2136]

I'm pretty civilized, but I learned long ago NOT to write in cursive, because neither I nor anyone else could read my handwriting! My dad taught me to write in draftsman's lettering (another lost skill), which (usually) allows me to create readable notes.

[@Athena621]

I used to write my diary in shorthand, didn't have to hide or lock it!!!

[@spocksvulcanbrain]

I took shorthand in high school. I was the only boy in the class. Kids laughed at first, but I didn't care. When I got to college and professional school I used it and especially all the short forms to rapidly take notes. Nobody bothered borrowing them because they couldn't read them. Sucked to be them.

[@dantzmusic]

Actually, it was the "baby boomer life skills" that helped build or pattern much of the current Technology such as Computer and Internet functions. Some retail cashiers find it difficult to count change after a purchase without looking at the printed receipt. Reading, writing, and arithmetic has given way to the 'instant gratification' digital age.

[@bobtaylor170]

This is how bad things are: when I buy deli meat for sandwiches, I always ask for approximately 2/3 of a pound per package. In the last ten years, there have been possibly three occasions when my request for 2/3 of a pound has been met with a package which weighs somewhere between .65 - .70 of a pound. So help me, I have been handed packages which have as much as .95 and as little as .25. Ladies and gentlemen, we are well and truly screwed.

[@blackdandelion5549]

I recently learned this as I have not worked in a restaurant or retail job since I was much younger and I did in the past year for short periods to help out with fairs and events. They asked me if I knew the alphabet and knew basic math and I was like "of course" and then I was given such an easy math problem like "We sold 5 pairs of sock for $5 each and the customer gave you $30, how much do you owe in change?" and I thought they must be joking. They were not and I was told most people are unable to do that kind of math in the blink of an eye like I can. That made me very scared for our workforce.

[@dawnelder9046]

Bought a doll for my daughter in the early 90s. Thirty dollars, 1/3 off. Came up full price at the checkout. So I explained it was 1/3 off. She called her supervisor who confirmed. Then they both got out calculators to figure out the price. Both the older woman behind me and I told them it was 20 dollars. It was priced at 30 dollars exactly. After a few times they managed to get it and looked very proud of their accomplishment. Another time my daughter and her friend were working on calculating something. And using a calculator. The moment the answer came up, I knew had to be wrong. Way off. It was a problem which would require pencil and paper, but the answer they got was massively wrong. And I knew it instantly. I told them about where the answer should be. I had got the calculators are the modern way lecture more than once. You do not need to learn math. But to humor me they both redid it. I was right. My daughter had hit a wrong button the first time. I explained the the beauty of basic math skill is you can recognize when you did something wrong with a calculator. They both became much more skilled in math after that.

[@mustangracer5124]

I like to hand them a $20 and ask for change (2 $10s and a $5 ).. lol.. you'd be surprised how many time they did it.

[@stevenscott2136]

​@@bobtaylor170 Is that a lack of math skills, or simple apathy? The guy cuts "approximately" 2/3 of a pound and goes back to whatever he was doing. It's not his meat, or his money.

[@daler.steffy1047]

As a baby boomer (born in 1948), I can relate to this video on many levels, especially because I still write letters using the "cursive" writing style, and I (still) balance my checking account using my check register book. Oh, yes, one more thing: I still have a landline that I use all the time; and I do NOT have a cell phone. ( It's annoying to see people's addictive behaviors with respect to their cell phones, and I don't care to have any part of those really inane preoccupations!) Now, an aside: I enjoy watching the Recollection Road videos; they are refreshing to both see and listen to (the latter for the added interpretation). To the narrator of this video: It was a little difficult to stay focused on what you were saying, because you have an annoying/distracting way of extending out your word sounds at the end of each comment or sentence; i.e., you "drag out" your individual word pronunciations/ending syllable(s) unnecessarily, and it is tempered with an "upspeak" style. It's just something to be aware of, as it can be/become annoying to some of us viewers. Otherwise, a great job! (P.S. i.e., Postscript: What was popular for a bicycle during the era you are focusing on here, was what we called the "Three-speed English Racer;" it was a fairly light-weight bicycle (relative to the that era), and it had a three-speed gear shift on the handlebar, usually mounted on the right side, which allowed the rider to shift from "Low" to"Medium" to "High," depending on the terrain. In 1965, a friend of mine road such a bicycle, and I rode my five-speed Schwinn, which weighed about 40 pounds, and we set off on a months-long journey from the San Fernando Valley of Los Angeles, through the Mojave Desert, and then followed US route 395 north, along the eastern escarpment of the Sierra Nevadas. We continued over Spooner Summit into Lake Tahoe and eventually ended up at Donner Lake. We then crossed over Donner Pass on the old US Route 40, because the I-80 freeway was (just) being blasted through the mountainside to the north of us at that time. We ended up in California's Gold Country bicycling on California State Route 49 before going into Yosemite Valley by way of State Route 120. We then meandered through the hills of California's famous Gold Country before finally crossing east over a segment of the Tehachapi Mountain range. The last leg of our adventure had us doubling back to L.A. over the same segment that got us out of the city. We were gone one month. It was a successful trip, and we did not need $3,000-$5,000 bicycles on which to do it...nor did we wear spandex!) ~drs (12/21/23)

[@genxx2724]

Please use paragraphs. 🙂

[@sandrapicton6349]

What a great trip.

[@pastormatthew4362]

Thank you for your arduous labors to present such accurate presentations of the '50s, '60s and '70s, reminding me of youth and encouraging me to continue being appreciative of the gifts my parents gave me. To God be the glory.

[@marilyntaylor9577]

Remember the paper we used in grade school? It had dark lines separated by paler lines for cursive writing. And little splinters of wood floating around!

[@robertl7239]

I'm old. Remember those Big Chief writing tablets? Those things were awesome!

[@marilyntaylor9577]

@@robertl7239 Sure do, I was in elementary school in the 50’s.

[@edwardzarnowski5558]

Better have a number two pencil !!

[@caroldragon7545]

Actually, paper maps are very useful. Having a bird's eye view over a large are helps you determine how to go somewhere so much better than a tiny slice of a map on a screen where you have to scroll endlessly to see the whole thing. One glance at a paper map shows you things like where one road crosses another one,, or where one road is closest to the one you want, which little roads will allow you to shorten a detour, etc. Also, a paper map has things on it you might never have known about when you are away from home, but that can end up being great to visit.

[@virginiamoss7045]

I agree wholeheartedly! I need the big picture; I can even hold it in my head for a long time to use there on top of my shoulders. I have never used GPS.

[@uncralph4354]

Yes, the gps view is very, very limited. We are now retired and travel a lot, keep an up to date Atlas in the pocket behind the drivers seat so it is handy for the passenger to get a good overall view of where we are going. Also, many times something will happen and you are stuck in traffic because of a wreck or construction and wife is very good at finding a route around the problem, something GPS is useless at.

[@retiredyeti5555]

I carry a US atlas in my car when traveling, don't have GPS in my car, don't need it as long as I have my atlas. I find that all of the states are still where they were 60 years ago!

[@dianem6951]

Even locally the GPS doesn’t always take you on the better route. I try to get maps for long trips now because the GPS leads me to unsafe roads.

[@AyeCarumba221]

Agreed. A full paper map gives the user the full picture. Hard to believe that younger people don’t see the value of a full map.

[@HeronCoyote1234]

Cooking from scratch, often using handed down family recipes. How many of us used and/or still have, the Betty Crocker Cooky Book with the red cover? Remember mom making Christmas cookies from that book, to store our in decorative round tins, for our teachers?

[@johnmartlew]

I’m so glad you included the positive aspects of these skills. I don’t agree they are useless today. We need to honour our forebears as we honour our veterans. They got us where we are, for better or worse. I learned to shave with an antique straight razor as a deliberate action to honour our past. I had to learn to sharpen it, polish the edge on a leather strop I made and use it. I kept up the practice when I realized I’ll never have to buy disposable blades again. That was twenty five years ago.

[@stevenlitvintchouk3131]

Should we learn how to ride a horse or an ox in order to honor our pioneer ancestors?

[@jeandarbyshire4391]

As a grandmother it is my role to teach the grandchildren some of these skills in case they need to be self-sufficient some time in their lives. We do cooking and sewing so far.

[@debby8428]

Me too! I teach my grandchildren cursive and cooking!

[@trishamoran9703]

These skills may not be used but definitely not useless. I am a teacher and we still teach cursive.

[@randallfabian6640]

The people that can't or won't learn these things are the ones I find useless.

[@truthtell4life]

Where do you teach because in California where my kids are in school they don't teach it.

[@traybern]

A LOT of schools DON’T. High school kids CAN’T EVEN SIGN their NAME now!!!!

[@oliviamoore3426]

I learned cursive back in the day, but Jesus Christ one needs a Rosetta Stone to translate cursive. It’s just so difficult to read some people’s handwriting. Writing normal letters is easier to read even if a person have bad handwriting.

[@bcaye]

Yeah, I'm 4'11", I will never not need to be able to sew. It's okay-I was born in the last official year of the Boomer years.

[@erinwoempner1228]

Life skills are NEVER WASTED!

[@bonniebabird]

Other skills people today don't have : counting back to make change and reading a clock!

[@karenh2890]

I learned to count back change when I was 16, in the early 70s. I was quite proud of myself. It's a very easy skill to learn.

[@ericgeorgetruckgrilling]

I used to work nights in a gas station when I was in high school (back when you didn't have to pump your own). I would get bored and would count the change back starting with the highest denomination just to keep my mind alert. You should have seen some of the looks I got!!

[@willhorting5317]

​@@karenh2890yes, it is. Unfortunately too many young people today cannot do it.

[@aloysiusdevanderabercrombi470]

​@@karenh2890You should have learned it in second, third grade.

[@BigD53]

I was in a store recently and bill came to $15.19. Not wanting to have a pocketful of bills or coins, I handed the cashier a $20 bill and a quarter. She looked like a deer in headlights.

[@rujo2k]

Also, recording that clever/snarky/humorous answering machine message is a lost art 😆

[@steveurbach3093]

Mine started 'Yea, ya got the machine..."

[@lisaharmon5619]

I love recording my cell phone reply!

[@dragondancer1814]

My answering machine message is pretty straightforward: “Now hear this: Leave a message after the beep. That is all!” The one I use on my cell phone is just plain evil-I go “Hello? *pause* Hello? *pause* Hello?? *longer pause* Ha, ha! Gotcha! Leave a message after the beep, and I’ll get back to you!” Both are great for punking/deflecting robocalls!

[@billtisch3698]

Mine says, "Talk radio. You're on the air." [stolen from 'True Lies.']

[@juliejackman2649]

We used to love calling up customers who really went all out on creating their answering machine message, with sound effects and clever greetings, in the bookstore I worked in in the early 90s.

[@scottjackson163]

Regarding telephone related behavior, what was being practiced, in addition to memory skills, was common curtesy and conscientiousness.

[@joachimgoethe7864]

Yup. I remember using a rotary dial telephone on the kitchen wall to call a girl for a date and hoping her father didn't answer. And having to pay the, "paperboy" once a week.

[@chrisneuhaus7188]

Before my mother passed away last summer at the ripe age of 87, I sat with her for hours on end just remembering old times and talking about everything that interested us. The evening before she lost consciousness from her illnesses, we had a contest between the two of us as to who could remember the most phone numbers from our past. She beat me hands down remembering many of the phone numbers of our many neighborhood friends as well as many of our extended relatives. She had truly perfected the practice of memorizing important numbers.

[@Ripplenator]

Memorizing phone numbers came naturally. After you dialed the same number a few times, you knew it. Also, memorization was a skill practiced in school when I was growing up. We were required to memorize things like prayers & poems & lines in the plays we would perform.

[@leecowell8165]

I still remember many of my phone numbers from being a child. I'm 81.

[@mjh5437]

Me too and I`m 60@@leecowell8165

[@aolvaar8792]

Harrison, HA, 4 2(Harrison 2 and 4 and 8) Frontier, FR, 3 7 (Frontier 3 and 5 and 7) Harrison 4- U812

[@roberttreasure1986]

@@leecowell8165 I do too. It makes me wonder why the brain insists on hanging onto useless information...

[@Coupal1]

Remembering all those phone numbers, learning to write cursive and knowing how to read a map made us smarter!

[@angustheterrible3149]

Really? Then why do retail clerks in grocery stores always have to tell you boomers where everything is? Y'all are too lazy and entitled to do anything for yourselves half the time.

[@nickd920]

@@angustheterrible3149 You just made that up.

[@Coupal1]

@@angustheterrible3149 Don't be ridiculous. If anything, boomers are very self sufficient.

[@TheRealDrJoey]

Well, I must admit, the kids today are positively BRILLIANT. They're all walking encyclopedias....until their phone dies.

[@Coupal1]

@@TheRealDrJoey HA!!🙂

[@Jockeylotforfun]

Memorization of knowledge taught in school/ university, numbers, directions, etc. Is still vital. These days, it's rare to meet someone who automatically knows an answer.

[@KennethScharf]

Learning to type in school is one skill that hasn't disappeared. Only today, they call it 'keyboarding'. The layout of computer keyboards is a little different from that of a typewriter, though most of the letter, number, and punctuation keys are in the same places. I remember having an electric typewriter with a dual ribbon that included a correction ink (white out). Correcting mistakes with this was almost as easy as on a computer word processor, but much slower.

[@Tradewindsvintagehi]

As a baby boomer, I remember learning all of these skills. But I just accepted them as something we all did and don’t have to anymore. Thanks for reminding me that these skills mattered.

[@cynsi7604]

⁠@@kurtm.7494 I’d say most of them still matter. That’s why we are in the state we’re in. It’s like the kids & grandkids from the children boomers had (after GenX) seem to have no sense whatsoever. And I’m guessing that if things that are happening NOW happened back then A LOT of crap would NOT have happened. Some ppl have really been dumb down. ✌🏻

[@starmnsixty1209]

​@@cynsi7604You got that right.

[@nickwinn7812]

He's telling you they mattered then and don't matter any-more. Are you sure he got that right? I'm using my "useless" typing skillsto have this interaction with you.

[@SilverDreamer62]

Have you ever had Google maps get drunk and sit down to sleep it off at 1a.m. in the middlw of the Nebraska sandhills? That paper road atlas sure came in handy. A friend calls a maual transmission a "millenial anti theft device"

[@gaidhliglass]

😂😂 anti millenial and anti gen z device... Also, cursive is a secret coded language 😂 Oh, and yes, gaggle maps or any other electronic mapping has its issues, because, you know,...technology. Ain't it wonderful? (Note: sarcasm)

[@dragondancer1814]

A stick shift also worked well on some of us Gen Xers too-my dad tried to teach me to drive a stick once. Just once. I’ll spare you the gory details, except to say that the words “epic fail” were a generous understatement!

[@gwesco]

Sadly I've seen valet parking signs that specify "No stick shifts." I drove 4 and 5 speed manuals up until 3 years ago when I bought an EV. I still sometimes reflexively reach for the stick on the floor. And for goodness sake's, modern folks do not know how to spell or use the proper words! I've seen some illegible gibberish passed off as answers on college level tests.

[@jaquigreenlees]

and with a manual ( aka standard ) transmission you could start a car with a dead battery without any cables or jump pack, just get it rolling in neutral and push in the clutch, put it in gear and release the clutch, instant start.

[@greatplainsman3662]

Hello from Custer County.

[@user-qr1yv5ip3b]

Even Book Bonding is useful. Everything we actually write by hand for family records, shows handwriting that give a sense of one’s personality, knowledge, depth of emotions, sincerity and talent. Fills a heart with love and the receiver recieved LIFE.

[@anthonysaunders345]

You covered a lot. I might add cooking, shop/power tools, and fixing things yourself around the house. I'm stunned how little young people know about those things today.

[@zwiftingwithdemonhunter]

Yes, one life skill missed in the video is respect for your elders.

[@theodorerelic2718]

My mom (born in 1933) taught us to respect our elders, but respect must be earned. My mom was a church teacher.

[@TheUtuber999]

Or maybe respect in general.

[@davecasey4341]

@@theodorerelic2718 Respect is something you give to everyone until they prove unworthy of it.

[@theodorerelic2718]

@@davecasey4341 And some prove unworthy of it as soon as they open their mouth to you or treat you with disrespect. I've dealt with them all my life.

[@eh4236]

@@theodorerelic2718 How do you earn respect? My niece and nephew don't respect me...I rarely saw them growing up and my sister made sure to have them not be influenced by me in any way. Now, my sister and niece live less than 2 hrs away from me and have no contact with me. I guess as my niece said when she and my sister visited me at my home before moving to the state I live now "...I want this one day when you croak..." in my OWN house!!!! I was so shocked/stunned. Horrible.

[@gordoncarmen9433]

Great job. One thing I think you forgot is kids Playing outside with friends all day. Being active skating, bike riding and playing games outside interacting with peers, and not staying inside all day.

[@kbombach]

My mother used to put us outdoors and lock the door to the trailer we lived in so we couldn't come back in until lunch or dinner. She even had my stepfather install a drinking spigot on the side of the trailer so we didn't have to come in for water. We played outdoors all day and evening. Being shut up in the house was miserable and so boring!

[@psidvicious]

@@kbombach I remember having to stay inside was actually a punishment. Given the choice, I would have taken a spanking any day over being “on restriction” in the house.

[@pch2230]

I can honestly say I've never needed to know how an oxbow lake is formed or how to do a quadratic equation or logarithms since leaving school. On the other hand, habitually avoiding debt and knowing basic sewing and cooking have all been very useful indeed.

[@joshm3342]

I've developed many skills for the purpose of saving money and, while challenging, often frustrating, and time-consuming, I've saved a LOT of money over the years on house and car repairs. I will call in a pro for a large or complicated job, or if I'm pressed for time. One advantage we have today is KZbin, where you can learn the various ways others tackle a particular task. Practice helps. When I became a home owner 30 years ago, I reluctantly began working on plumbing. Still don't enjoy it, but I get the job done (and know when it's time to call the plumber).

[@Valicroix]

We interacted with more people on a regular basis. There were grocery store clerks, tellers at the bank and other salespeople. This bred a degree of politeness that I find sadly absent today. Taking personal responsibility seems to be a thing of the past as well.

[@PatrickMcAsey]

No it isn't. We still deal with shop assistants almost every day. We still need to be polite and friendly, I can tell you.

[@hiccuphufflepuff176]

It's not that people are less polite, the expected manners have just changed, as they do with every generation.

[@Valicroix]

@@hiccuphufflepuff176 The "expected manners" have changed? That's an interesting idea. I'm not sure I agree. After all manners are manners. Or are you talking about social mores? I don't think the use of "please," "thank you" and "excuse me" have gone out of style. Neither has the use of "sir" and "madam" when addressing older folks. On the other hand mores have certainly changed. "Smoking" is now generally frowned upon and some things we find "acceptable" would probably have given my mother's generation a stroke. Do you have an example of what you mean?

[@hiccuphufflepuff176]

@@Valicroix I disagree that the specific usage of things like "please" and "thank you" haven't changed. Their sentiment is still there, but they might be misread if you're expecting to hear what you would have said at that age. It obviously depends on the area you live in and the context of the interaction, but a 20 or 30 year old addressing a 50 or 60 year today is going to sound different to their counterparts 30 years ago, just because language and culture is always changing. When I was a kid in the 90's I remember my grandmother, who grew up in the 30's, commenting of a tv show how strange it was to hear an adult call his mother "Mum" instead of "Mother" because that's how she always addressed her mother. To her, "Mum" sounded childish and silly, equivalent to a grown man saying "Mommy" but that's just how people talk now. An example today, in some places and contexts, you might hear an exchange like "'Thanks.' 'Uh, huh.'" where you would have said "'Thank you.' 'You're welcome.'" and think it's less polite, when really that's just how those people express those sentiments, and there is no less respect or appreciation between them.

[@Valicroix]

@@hiccuphufflepuff176 I hear you. The sentiment is the same but the way it's expressed may be different. That's a fair point but I still think even the sentiment is often missing.

[@keithu9999]

Typing on a typewriter was good practice for typing on a computer. Not a useless skill at all. In fact, high school typing was probably one of the best classes I took.

[@mizzury54]

I will always regret not taking typing classes. I had several jobs in my career that required a lot of letter writing and of course heavy use of email exchanges.

[@Wa3ypx]

Typing class for sure, mostly chicks and few guys!

[@BOBXFILES2374a]

It helped me in college and helped me start writing stories. No one will repair my 3 manual typewriters!

[@xbubblehead]

I consider the typing class I had in high school to be one of the most valuable to me during my life. Oddly enough, I never have had to take the square root of a number in the last 60 years.

[@snowfleas5426]

@@BOBXFILES2374a Do a search for typewriter repair and you will find lots of places to have them fixed.

[@trialcritic7625]

Writing things down is something I still use. I maintain notebooks at work and find that writing important information by hand makes it easy to remember. If a colleague asks a question, I can go back and give them the information. I have cursive writing, though my quality has gone down, I still use it.

[@endigosun]

They’re not USELESS, they’re just USED LESS, which is the fundamental problem. We’re dumbed down and vulnerable to disaster when we don’t understand fundamental concepts.

[@susanmolnar9606]

I’m so happy I’m a boomer. I loved reading the encyclopedias to broaden my knowledge. A time when learning was a good attribute. I aced typing in H.S. and helped others. My father told me I was the best navigator with a map and more importantly knew how to fold it properly! I really miss not having my sewing machine! Oh the simple life. And loved driving manually.

[@cvent8454]

Couldn't agree more. Loved our growing up time and wouldn't trade it for all techo discoveries of today.

[@Ryarios]

We had a set of World Book encyclopedias and a set of science encyclopedias. I used to read the science ones like they were standard books. I loved those things. Map reading may not be necessary today, but it’s a very good skill to have, especially if you like to hike and may come in handy again if the SHTF. My sister-in-law sews and is very good at it. For decades, all my birthday gifts from them were clothes she made me. They were fantastic and I was always happy to get them. All her children wore clothes made until they were teenagers. The dresses she made her little girls were the envy of other parents. They were far better/prettier than what you bought in the department stores. She made her own wedding dress. They saved a fortune in clothing costs. It’s funny, I bought my first computer back when the 286 was king and never looked back. However, I didn’t get my first smartphone until about 2012 or so and that was only because the company I worked for bought it for me. I didn’t switch my landline at home to cellular until about 2020 and even then it was 2 generations or so out of date.

[@berniemcfadden7760]

Absolutely Susan! We had a set of encyclopedia and I also liked going to the library to do research. and you gotta love a gal who can drive a stick shift!

[@thejourney1369]

My parents didn’t buy encyclopedias for me, but they did for my younger sister. I wasn’t a great student, but I loved and still love learning. As a young adult, I would sit in our family room on a Sunday afternoon and pour over the encyclopedias. I was never able to drive a stick, because at 4’6”, my legs were too short to push the clutch all the way to the floor. Same with typing, my feet didn’t reach the floor, so my legs dangled, which was very uncomfortable. About 10 years ago I took a keyboarding class, and the instructor couldn’t believe that my typing teacher made no accommodation for me like a foot stool. It was the 70’s. Accommodations were unheard of.

[@bethlovcy1276]

Going to the library and using the Dewey Decimal Card File, lol. Librarian was an honored profession.

[@lisapolanski9379]

I used to sew in junior high, and I sewed my clothes when I was in my 20s and 30s. I still have a sewing machine and sew.

[@annsutherland4631]

I still enjoy my sewing machine, knitting and crochet. I can still mend a rip or a tear, replace a button or darn a hole in a jumper!

[@IMeMineWho]

I had a neighbor (who admittedly was a nightmare) in the apt building who got arrested. He had his one call..but was so used to his smart phone that he could not remember his 1 call.

[@SusanCox-pl9qp]

Balancing a checkbook and knowing how to cook should be taught to this younger generation.

[@marynewman9902]

Hardly anyone uses checks anymore. So why learn to balance the book. While I do keep track of my online banking (most others I know do not, they just take for granted it is correct), I can not tell you the last time I wrote a check and this is not coming from a young person, I am 67.

[@richardscathouse]

I had that down by 10 years old. I know what curry is and why I never want to eat it 😂😂😂😂

[@richardscathouse]

​@@marynewman9902Theyll get my checkbook when they pry it out of my cold dead hand 😡👌

[@oklahomaisok]

That should be a minimum.

[@NickatLateNite]

A proud Baby Boomer here (73). I'm proud that I have not let a lot of these old values go, but I'm even prouder that I've adapted to current way of doing things and staying relavent!

[@gloriagarrison5387]

I not only learned and taught cursive, I used it all through graduate school. I mapped all my husband’s trips from Alabama to the Gulf Coast for 20 years because I learned map reading skills. He could never read a map, even in Viet Nam! I learned cooking and sewing not only from my mother, but budgeting, meat parts and how to cook them, how to plan a party, how to manage a household from Girl Scouts and Home Ec classes. I learned team work and taught that to my sons from my PE classes. I learned how and taught my students and sons to write an essay, highlight lesson points, make an outline, write a letter, talk to a professional about a related problem.. the list is endless. But then, my parents sent me to school as I did my boys, with a good breakfast, a reasonable expectation of effort, and a promise of a happy settled home after 3 pm. Church on Sundays was a given, along with prayer before class, and the Pledge of Allegiance recited daily.

[@cynthiamurphy3669]

@@gloriagarrison5387 Very well said, thank you!

[@dsmarty6395]

Boomer here. . .72. My first paid typing job was at Bergdorf Goodman, NYC. using a manual typewriter.

[@collnss]

There will always be future generations saying “back in my day.” Nothing stays the same for better or worse.

[@albertafarmer8638]

Being able to read paper maps is still important just like driving with a manual gear stick, budgeting, and knowing the alphabet.

[@MENSA.lady2]

Probably the best skill my parents taught me was to be polite. No matter who I was talking to. Never did me any harm.

[@cdldriver2348]

I took a typing class in high school in 1988, that skill helped me get an easy job/career in the Navy for 21 years!

[@jamesmiller4184]

THERE ya go! 👍

[@jackilynpyzocha662]

Yes, and later, computers!

[@josephgaviota]

I took typing (on old manual typewriters) in gosh, 1969? I had a 40-year six-figure career in IT and programming. Don't think these basic skills are not worth learning--they ARE.

[@cdldriver2348]

I see it in 3rd - 5th grade as a substitute, the kids use 1 finger and try to type fast for a kids game called nitrotype. Sometimes I will say, can I try it? They let me and then get happy when their car comes in first because they go from basically last place or 5 words per minute to 57 wpm. @@josephgaviota

[@lisaobrien4898]

I'm Generation X, but still learned many of these things growing up, and I'm glad I did!

[@kduncan8811]

Same! My adult children can't read cursive writing 😮‍💨. Sad .....but true

[@angelinimartini]

I love the idea of Legacy Box, but I feel very uneasy about sending my priceless memories in a box off to God knows where…

[@nncdrmr]

I took lots of road trips with my dogs. Had an Atlas from WalMart. So fun to start the day thinking of which road to take, which direction had the most sights to see. It was an adventure in itself. At the end I would find my friends, family, all the people and places I wanted to see! Good times.

[@LilannB]

I was surprised to find out cursive was no longer being taught. People had distinct handwriting. Men used to write love letters to women. I still have love letter written to me. They were in his handwriting and when I see the letter I instantly think of him.

[@tonycollazorappo]

Such a shame, I know.

[@Franky566]

@@tonycollazorappowhat are the words that you are writing now comprised of? oh yeah... letters.

[@jamesmiller4184]

They are being converted into The Borg, slowly but surely.

[@robertkroberjr.157]

It's because they don't want kids to be able to read the Constitution! All part of the plan!

[@queenbunnyfoofoo6112]

​@@robertkroberjr.157You're absolutely right.