Baby Boomer Life Skills, That Are Useless Today

[@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.

[@arricammarques1955]

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

[@melanycouch9749]

More like a test of patience!!

[@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?

[@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 .

[@nonenonnenopenonenomorefor5556]

Trying to find someone to do sewing for me now since mom passed away

[@misslora3896]

The lack of needing to learn skills and use brain power beyond typing with thumbs and hand eye coordination for video games, has had devastating consequences. Like the saying goes, "if you don't use it, you lose it"... and that's exceedingly evident in todays world. The lack of basic intelligence and common sense is astounding. Every day we did something that challenged us in one way or another, especially while growing up. The lack of much challenge, has led to both adults and children who flip out or fall apart when faced even with something minor. There's also been a lack of emotional growth, leading to severe issues with people's emotional and impulse control. Many adults today have severely arrested development. They believe they live in a much better time because of the ease tech has brought to their lives... They have no clue and refuse to believe how detrimental it's been to their overall development. WHEN (not if) it goes out, they're going to be like helpless children. Things will quickly descend into chaos because they simply can't function without it. Many don't even know how to get around their own cities and towns, because they've always followed their GPS rather than pay attention to where they're going.

[@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!

[@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.

[@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.

[@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.

[@humboldthammer]

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, since Google bought KZbin, 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.

[@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 😂

[@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.

[@alohamom]

Here too! In ICU, computer down, the newer nurses didn't know how to figure out body surface area, cardiac output and calculate the cardiac index!

[@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

[@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.

[@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.

[@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 🙂

[@GRLFRMGA]

Had drivers edication leasons?

[@RedEyeC]

@@GRLFRMGA- 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.

[@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

[@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.

[@ScienceNotFaith]

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]

@@ScienceNotFaith 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).

[@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.

[@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?

[@Jakmak1480]

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

[@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.

[@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.

[@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.

[@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.

[@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.

[@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.

[@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

[@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.

[@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!

[@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.

[@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!😊

[@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.

[@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.

[@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.

[@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.

[@starmnsixty1209]

​@@raes8520There's one in every crowd... Sigh.

[@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!!!

[@ScienceNotFaith]

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.

[@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.

[@The-Friendly-Grizzly]

Oh, I don't know. I find courtesy goes a long way. I am no one's doormat, but I find courtesy gets a lot of nice responses. Then again, I live in the south where at least in rural, small town, and small city areas, the folks remain well-mannered.

[@RedEyeC]

@@The-Friendly-Grizzly - I sincerely hope your southern hospitality stays always. I have been to friendly and beautiful SE rural areas and can vouch for what you say. Sadly though, the courtesy and respect vanishes when you go in any direction from there. 😒

[@The-Friendly-Grizzly]

@@RedEyeC oh, not always. I once met a polite person from Boston. I've heard rumor that they have cast him into a block of lucite and have them on display in the museum somewhere. 😆

[@RedEyeC]

@@The-Friendly-Grizzly - ha! good one - that's probably right 😆

[@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.

[@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.

[@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.

[@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.

[@jeremy1350]

We used to use those "Trip Tiks" They were map booklets that were prepared prior to your trip, and you could order them for the region you were traveling through. I have sewing skills because my grandmothers used to sew, then I took it in junior high as part of a (4 part) class set. Typing/Home making/Graphics/Wood shop. I still sew to this day, when necessary. Cursive was taught in school, using those lined booklets and cursive practice sheets. My mother had a hutch in the dining room where she kept the "Holiday dish set." My grandmothers had very ornate dish hutches that they kept all the holiday dishes and silverware. I have my own "Holiday Dish" set in a cabinet in my kitchen that are only used on holidays. When I was a kid, I used to write my Grammy letters back and forth, I also had a pen pal who lived in Malaysia (this was in the 1970's) We wrote back and forth for a really long time, until I was at least in high school. And we finally got to talk on the phone together after writing for so many years. Back when you had to dial all those international routing numbers around the world.

[@giselesmith7795]

I used to create those Triptiks!

[@thejourney1369]

I had a pen pal in Germany. He and I started corresponding in high school in the early 70’s and continued to do so until sometime in the 90’s.

[@sharihere8809]

I too used to keep grandmas and my moms china and crystal for use only on holidays until ten years ago and I thought why? Why only use it certain times of the year? I have been using it daily and really enjoy every meal served on it ever since. Just don't let your relatives help with the dishes; they tend to break stuff

[@cmozoo]

It was always fun turning the pages on the Trip Tik as you completed each leg of the trip.

[@kathleenroman9379]

Makes me sad to these gone! ❤️❤️🙏❤️❤️

[@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.

[@The-Friendly-Grizzly]

I still recall numbers from my childhood, but they go back so far that the numbers were not 261-8106, but ANgelus 1-8106. And if I wanted a taxi I didn't dial 625-1234, but MAdison 5-1234.

[@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?

[@debilionetti3211]

The "Cooky Book" was--and is--the best ever! So many unique recipes that you won't find anywhere else, plus all the classics. What a treasure!

[@Taldaran]

​@@debilionetti3211and the great benefit of using a physical cookbook, is not having to navigate tons of ads looking a recipe up on your cell phone.

[@sandradonnelly5427]

I still have my first Betty crocker cook book. I'm 74- & proud of it..❤

[@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. 🫤

[@Ratryggva1090]

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.

[@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 !!

[@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.

[@micheal_mills]

For boomers and senior citizens, the current market and economy are unnecessarily harder. I'm used to simply purchasing and holding assets, which doesn't seem applicable to the current volatile market, and inflation is catching up with my portfolio. My biggest concern is whether I'll survive after retirement.

[@donna_martins]

Just buy and invest in Gold or other reliable stock , the government has failed us and we cant keep living like this.

[@Walter_hill_]

Yes, gold is a great investment and a good bet against the devaluating dollar, been holding some for awhile now, I’m grateful my adviser’s moment by moment changes in the market are lightening quick, cos who know how much losses I would’ve had by now.

[@ilyaveysman.]

nice! once you hit a big milestone, the next comes easier.. who is your advisor please, if you don't mind me asking?

[@Walter_hill_]

Well, there are a few out there who know what they are doing. I tried a few in the past years, but I’ve been with ‘’vivian jean wilhelm” for the last five years or so, and her returns have been pretty much amazing.

[@ilyaveysman.]

I just looked her up on the internet and found her webpage with her credentials. I wrote her a outlining my financial objectives and planned a call with her

[@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...

[@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.

[@Mop5543]

I’m 68 now and I’m glad for all the things I’ve learned! Learning never stops!

[@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.

[@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.

[@kamalani808]

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.

[@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.

[@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).

[@annies805]

I started to teach my young teenage grandsons how to use my sewing machine. I had a table top ironing board for them to use. It gave me a bit of joy when the youngest one said, "This is weirdly satisfying". It makes me smile every time I think about it!.

[@leeanthony6101]

“weirdly satisfying” Thanks for taking time to share. That gave me a “bit of joy” this morning.

[@annies805]

@@leeanthony6101 Thank you for the nice comment and sharing your joy! Now I have even more to smile about!

[@reinhard8053]

I still learned sewing at school (for all genders). Like all were having a course in handcraft.

[@paulawashington3175]

There are now courses offered in "adulting." This means learning to do the things we took for granted: cooking, doing laundry, sewing on a button, hemming a skirt or trousers, changing a tire, following a map, setting a table for different occasions, balancing a checkbook, figuring out compound interest, dressing appropriately for different situations. The list goes on. There are some very educated young people whose companies are sending them to such courses because they cannot host a client for lunch if they don't know that you should chew with your mouth closed.

[@pauljefferies9087]

I know just what your youngest one meant. My mom showed me how to hem the leg cuffs on my jeans, and I felt empowered. How’s that for a term?

[@susanpixley4100]

I learned to drive in the 1960's, and learned on an automatic. I learned a stick shift in the 1970's. You can still buy a stick shift. I still balance my check book every month. With computers, typing skills are needed more than ever. Knowing how to write a letter is still an important skill. These few things are not lost. They may not be taught, but they are still around.

[@martinbachmann6283]

susanpixley4100, me too! I bought a new Toyota Corolla with manual 4-speed in my third year of college, then a new Ford F-150 in 1983 that was automatic, but had that wonderful 300ci straight-6 cylinder, and finally traded the Ford in a 2nd generation Dodge Ram with a manual 5-speed that I still own today. And to be honest, I think my old Ford would have even been better with a manual-shift. Other things I still do: write with a fountain pen, have a manual wind, and an automatic wind watch both, and yes! I STILL balance my checkbook to this day, & would NOT feel comfortable NOT doing so. Now, if I could just find an "in-excellent condition DIAL-Phone?

[@laurag7295]

If no one bothers to teach them, they will be lost. I personally regret the loss of gratitude in society. Entitlement, its replacement is rather hard to bear.

[@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

[@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.

[@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.

[@ninamartin1084]

Which is why it is so important to keep cash in circulation!

[@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.

[@nickoD509]

@@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!!🙂

[@davehendren4996]

This isn’t just for Baby Boomers. I’m a late Gen X (born in ‘81) and I remember most of this list. The only one I couldn’t relate to was learning to sew in school, but my mother had and used her sewing machine often. This was a nice trip down memory lane. Thank you for that.

[@TheKeeperMadz]

Deliberately took sewing as a subject in high school

[@cmmochalatte]

You’re also technically a millennial

[@Anakinuk007]

Gen X is 1980 onwards. You’re an early millennial. So you won’t quite fit in with Gen X or millennials. I know this as I’m an 81 too lol

[@davehendren4996]

@@Anakinuk007 I guess we're both too good for any one generation to hold us.

[@Desiree_Rose]

We're xennials. Welcome to the club! (1977-1983).

[@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.

[@The-Friendly-Grizzly]

I am sick to effing death that every effing person I effing encounter uses the effing word eff to express their effing selves every effing time.

[@KelleysKorner]

I love writing in cursive. As a southpaw it was more of a challenge but my 2nd grade teacher Mrs. Roy never gave up on me. Now I have beautiful handwriting.

[@The-Friendly-Grizzly]

My penmanship could get me a full-ride scholarship to any medical school in the world.

[@juliamiller2299]

The best skill I ever learned was to touch type in high school. Sure, we don't use typewriters anymore, but we do use a computer keyboard and the key layout is exactly the same. It is still a useful skill and I am touch typing this right now on my laptop over 40 years since I learned to touch type.

[@standupandbecounted972]

lol, I was a qualified typing teacher. fff space fff space...carriage return..

[@AlldatJazz-rw9wy]

Yeah keep those hands off of the table.🤣.

[@judythompson8227]

I have my old typewriter and I miss using it. You can't even find ribbons now for it, and our hands, I suspect, no longer have the strength to hammer along the keyboard. Sad.

[@Galastel]

Today, I don't think people need to "learn" typing; it sort of comes through doing it all the time. I was never taught to touch-type, but the letters have long since got erased from my keyboard through heavy use.

[@juliamiller2299]

@@Galastel I can type on a computer keyboard around 40-50 words per minute. If you think whatever you are doing is fine, then great for you.

[@rebekkad.2092]

I am 69 and used every one of the life skills you referred to in this segment. Although there isn't time for all of these skills (cursive) I believe they were the things that made the strong connection to my brain for critical thinking. I remember taking a letter from my boss in shorthand and typing it up in triplicate. I did not want to make a mistake because correcting all the copies was a bit of a nightmare. But after 39 years of teaching, I am once again working for the state and using all of those skills in a different way. I also have a stronger work ethic than most. I feel so fortunate that adults took the time to train us as children. Now everyone is in such a hurry that it's kind of a hit-and-miss society. I appreciate so much of how the world operates today (spell check for example) but there are certain things that are still necessary for good brain development.

[@psidvicious]

Agreed. They’re not wasted skills. They helped to develop and train your brain for any number of tasks. It’s like algebra; it’s not so much that you know how to solve a particular algebraic equation, but the thought process of ‘one-step-at-a-time’. Solve for the easier things first, then let those help you figure out the rest.

[@lorinapetranova2607]

Start paying attention to all the braindead Zombies due thanx to alexa... how do I wipe my butt? Social media has helped turn people into pathological liars. But whatever.

[@lisajean228]

Work ethic is definitely not what it once was. I often wonder how people where I work are able to take so many days off.

[@bobfeller604]

Agreed, I'm 67 and I use these skills constantly.

[@veronicafullford1697]

Shorthand is my secret code.

[@ataboyboyboy8895]

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

[@The-Friendly-Grizzly]

I never learned to use a slide rule despite my age, but finally started to comprehend math when I HAD to learn how to use a Reverse Polish Notation system calculator back in 1980. I also believe that - although I have not owned a manual-shift car since the 1980s, learning to operated a manual shift car skillfully makes you a better driver. You are also more aware of what your car is doing. Although automatics were relatively common when I learned to drive all of our family cars were manual. My mother's Pontiac was 4 on the floor, my step-mother's Volvo was four on the floor, and my father's Studebaker was 3 on the tree. I even learned to drive a truck where the trans had no synchronizers. I learned REAL double-clutch shifting.

[@the23rdbryan]

My parents were "baby boomers". I can assure you, every one of these skills were taught but never considered "useless". I learned all the same skills in the 70s and 80s. It was just how things were taught at home, public school and other parts of society. You are right that some are disappearing, but I think you are off by a generation or two. I still CHOOSE to make myself memorize and manually dial as many phone numbers as possible whether I have them saved or not. I do other things on this list because I want to.

[@RottenInDenmarkOrginal]

Yup! Wait until they lose their phone and can’t recall a single phone number to call someone!

[@the23rdbryan]

@@RottenInDenmarkOrginal EXACTLY my point ! Thank you !

[@annmarieknapp2480]

A Gen Xer here. The issue that sewing isn't important is not a useless skill. As clothing costs more with inflation and curtains and other items that are insanely expensive are not useless.

[@RottenInDenmarkOrginal]

@@annmarieknapp2480 Gen Xer here as well and married to a Boomer! First thing I bought when I moved out of my parent’s home (at the age of 17) was a sewing machine. My daughters know how to sew as does my Hubby! I do believe this here video is the only thing that is a waste! 🤣😂🤣😂🤣

[@QueensNativeNYC]

They weren't considered useless to you because you are a part of Gen X.. You still needed to learn all of the same things that baby boomers did.. But how laughable would these skill be for someone born after the year 2000..

[@billc2054]

My gosh, I’m so glad that I grew up during those times! Also I’ve been studying Morse code and the instructors prefer that you copy messages in cursive writing to speed up writing it down. Great video and thanks for sharing!

[@animeevergreenathena]

I wish Morse code was taught more in schools. It’s quite a practical skill.

[@sunshine3914]

So grateful not to have been born any later.

[@TylerG7777]

@@animeevergreenathena I’ve always been fascinated my Morse code. How does one go about learning it? Is it very hard? How long a commitment is it to learn Morse code? I wonder if there are clubs for Morse code enthusiasts?

[@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.

[@debby891]

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❤

[@whitneyranchproductions4637]

I think you nailed it. Where once we had to socially interact with nearly everyone for our existence, now personal interaction is either a choice or no longer required. Not hard to understand why we are so polarized today and can't solve any of our problems.

[@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.

[@IslandMarigold]

As a millennial, I learned and/or use all of these skills: done in variation are using a typewriter (computer now) and balancing a checkbook (I keep track digitally). I learned to drive a manual transmission, but I do prefer my automatic. Writing shorthand is another skill many people don't have these days, but it really helped when taking notes in school. No skill learned is wasted, in my opinion.

[@mizzury54]

Both of my sisters learned shorthand because they worked for my father in his law office.

[@angr3819]

I am told it is useful for shopping lists, too. I only learnt some speedwriting. Shorthanded was on the way out in the 70's.

[@shellz831]

EXACTLY. I dont know what these ppl talking about. I learn ALL these skills in high sch - type writing, shorthand, computer, office procedures, accounting, home economics (sewing cooking, etc). I really think they just like to hate on the younger generation for no reason. Who benefits from us standing in long lines to deposit a check, .. who...WHOOOO???

[@tma-1704]

@@shellz831 The tellers who have a job!

[@Christycat927]

I was once a teller and I don't miss that job at all. Standing on your feet all day in heels, dealing with a long line of cranky people- esp. during the lunch hour, trying to show those people why they have 10 NSF charges that they continually argue about, having to wait for the branch to balance perfectly at the end of the day before everyone could go home (or you had to find the mistakes made), being pressured to sell products to customers, long drawn out process to open accounts, the IRS process we had to do with someone who deposited 10k or more in cash (usually restaurants), the long process to deal with a counterfeit bill if found, all the paperwork everywhere.... and being paid very little. So, yea, those jobs are mostly gone now but I think modern banking is much better. @@tma-1704

[@Laine2539]

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.

[@roberthurley6860]

I loved the part about the good china dishes for use only on holidays and very special occasions. My parents were both quite poor growing up in the 1930s and when they bought a set of "good" china when I was a kid I remember it as being quite a happy event in the house. My wife and I are both now 70 and we still use that same china from my parents on Thanksgiving, Christmas, Easter. It may sound silly to some but for me it adds a certain almost cosmic connection to those family no longer with us. All of us now around the table enjoying our food and holiday, served on those very same plates that once served my childhood family.

[@paulawashington3175]

My father served in the Air Force in Germany. My parents bought a Rosenthal china service for 12 at the Post Exchange as well as the Encyclopedia Americana, the Book of Knowledge, and an enormous two-volume dictionary. The latter items filled in any holes in my public education and engendered in me a lifelong love of reading.

[@laurelnotley9541]

I have sets of plates from my grandparents that will be passed on to my kids, too. At this point though, I am hearing that having good dishes is passe'

[@sohiniagrawaal9613]

This is amazing, I am so touched by your comments. May God bless you and your beautiful family ❤

[@samanthab1923]

I grew up in a house that had a formal dining room. Crystal & china only used on holidays. Silver came out along with the table leafs & pads. Table cloths & napkins. All washed by had after. No DW for the good stuff. It’s funny now I have three sets from family members long gone & I can’t remember the last time I used it. Shame

[@vivianriver6450]

If you immigrate to the USA from China, what do you call your finest dishes?

[@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.

[@eladiocofresi5202]

Being short, my mother used to tailor my trousers to fit appropriately. In recent years, learning to tailor my own clothing (and make my own accessories such as neckwear) has been a major help. Every year for Christmas, my mother would send a greeting card with a message. I have them stored away, and I just realized this will the first time there will be no card nor phone call.

[@quademasters249]

Sewing is really the only one I don't agree with.

[@JadestonePony]

Oh, I'm sorry to hear that. Blessings to you and your family this holiday season.

[@ThundermansThunder]

@@quademasters249 I agree. Sewing will always be a useful skill.

[@ChubbyChic]

I’m so sorry for your loss. Please have a blessed Christmas.

[@laurelnotley9541]

Very sorry for your loss.

[@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.

[@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

[@alexandrakennedy8078]

I worked as a bank teller in the 80's and 90's for Canada Trust in Kingston, Ontario and in southern Alberta. We were professional, helpful and friendly. We had so much fun within the staff but also with the customers because we'd see them at the store, movies or at the mall. I remember coming home and my face was so sore from laughing😅🤣😂 and smiling 😁 so much that day at work. I will never forget that day because I thought not many people may ever have that happen to them.

[@MissBabalu102]

The part about on-line dating hit a nerve. First of all, the platforms collect very personal data on you, and perhaps sell it. But it's a horrible way to get to know someone intimately, or even a beginning.

[@slactweak]

We won't even get IN to the fact that there is no way to actually get to "know" someone online when the whole point of the online community is anonymity.

[@MissBabalu102]

@@slactweak On-line dating is about anonymity? How extra depressing.

[@slactweak]

@@MissBabalu102 Heh, I see what you did there. Nice.

[@sunshine3914]

You don’t meet anyone on them anymore, because the apps themselves post bogus profiles. Besides, if you were to meet someone, they would no longer have you forking over $ to them.

[@MissBabalu102]

@@sunshine3914 Whoa, So, if you are actually interested in a profile, you eventually find out it's a bogus Man? Than it's just an on-line flirting platform. Do serious searchers know this?

[@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.

[@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.

[@Nightbird1914]

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

[@gregshonle2072]

Regarding phones of yesteryear, while there wasn't caller ID, the ability to do mass-scale spam/scam calls didn't exist, either. While telemarketing was (un)popular back in the day, it still required the telemarketer to have people ready to make the pitch, when the call was answered. And, I definitely have to agree with the others who have posted that a manual transmission is the best anti-theft device on the market today!

[@Hevynly1]

I'm a proud Xennial that knows how to do all of these things (except driving a stick). I can sew my own clothing and I'm even collecting my fine china which, yes, I do use for special occasions. There are certain things (most that you listed) that are just too nice to let go of, and even if outmoded, I will cling to them until the day I die!

[@mjh5437]

What is a "Xennial"?

[@jwb52z9]

@@mjh5437 It's someone on the cusp between being GenX and Millennial.

[@kaitiscarlett9022]

I wish that fabrics were not so expensive nowadays. One reason sewing one's own clothing has lost its appeal is the cost, especially when factory-made clothing is cheap (and cheaply made, but that's another issue). But I do a lot of mending and alterations, and have never paid a dime in my life for someone to do that for me. It's a great skill.

[@angelabluebird609]

Good, good, good on you! Enjoy!

[@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.

[@mizzury54]

Some of the current young people may not realize that all those useless skills gave us the basis for learning the tasks needed to survive in today's world. We also had a front row seat watching all these comforts develop.

[@jphwife]

A lot of places in the world still use manual transmissions. I’m glad that not only can I hop in one and drive myself with the help of a paper map, I can wear something I sewed myself while I’m doing it.

[@KAT-dg6el]

I just recently sold my 2003 Hyundai that was a five speed. It was a front wheel drive but it’s easy to “rock the car” when stuck in the snow.

[@davestang5454]

The most reliable way to prevent your car from being stolen is to get one with a manual transmission. Thieves tend to pass them by.

[@legiontheatregroup]

That’s funny. Both my cars in 2024 have manual transmissions. Ironically, I learned to drive on an automatic and drove only automatics for decades. But after learning to drive a 5 speed, I am never going back! I just find it a more fun and interesting way to get around.

[@jn1mrgn]

Yes, in third world countries, automatic transmissions are quite rare.

[@davestang5454]

@@jn1mrgn I don't agree. I have been all around the world. Your claim was probably accurate 20 years ago. Not so now.

[@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

[@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.

[@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

[@Jimothy-723]

@@vicepresidentmikepence889based

[@bridgetmccracken1381]

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

[@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.

[@1anthonybrowning]

I learned to type my senior year of high school. It was a filler class. It ended up being the most practically useful thing I learned in high school. I’ve been using it regularly for the past thirty years.

[@brega6286]

I never took typing but from computer use for years ..I can find the letters in the dark now. My mother was a fast typist and very proud of her skill. Unfortunately, she never helped me and I went bonkers only because in my second degree ,as an adult program, no errors were allowed and no cursive either ! I went nuts and finally gave up until the computers were actually allowed. I later found out the secret...those with extra $$ just hired pro typists ! Damn made me mad !! I had great handwriting but was punished. Later also found out that 1/2 at least of my contemporaries paid for most of their degree with hired help. Higher education was on a slippery slope and now....go figure !!

[@DoubleDogDare54]

Same here. My mother insisted I take a year of typing as a Freshman. That and getting a driver's license as a Sophomore are the most useful skills I learned in high school. Algebra? Not so much.

[@leecowell8165]

Yep about the only useful thing I learned in high school besides algebra (I still use both, I'm 81). Well I was always a good speller too but I think that has more to do with memory than learning.

[@dantzmusic]

Some baby boomers may recall that their parents would not let them go outside while eating or dressing properly. This included no bare feet and your hair not properly brushed or combed. Your neighbors could also discipline you if misbehaving and then let your parents know. Your parents would then often punish you for the same offense.

[@mjh5437]

Yes,in the 1970s when I was a schoolboy visiting my cousins my Auntie used to make me lean over a chair spank my bum with a plastic cake-mixing spoon if I misbehaved😁...My mum did the same thing too occasionally,but no lasting harm done,it was all forgotten by the following day.

[@leecowell8165]

Yep. And you didn't think anything of it. You didn't go "RATTING out" your neighbor. Nowadays most people don't even know their neighbor much less talk with them. This has become a very messed up society in the USA, folks. And it only took THREE generations to do it.

[@donnaleeah5075]

Lololol daily my Mom got the calls. I'm better for it.

[@KJ-of6lf]

Your parents would beat you worse if they got "that call"; punished for misbehaving and moreso for embarrassing them.

[@Douglas_Blake_579]

Old school wisdom: "It takes a whole village to raise a child, but only one bad influence to ruin him."

[@jindejak93]

My grandma insisted on teaching me the "womanly arts" (her name for sewing, embroidery, needle point, knitting, etc). When I was 9 i got it in my head that i could make a doll out of a sock (I had seen one of those monkey sock dolls and figured that I could do that). I took a sock and embroidered a face, added hair and arms then made her a bonnet and dress (I was reading the Little House books at the time so she HAD to have a bonnet lol). 45 years later I still have that doll and still sew by hand and machine (a few years ago my son bought me a serger for my birthday - a game changer for sure) and a sewing machine for Xmas. I felt sooo spoiled 😂. I make 90% of the gifts I give and always get a "you made this WOW!" Lol

[@terencejay8845]

I recall 'Lamb Chop' way back was little more than a sock puppet!

[@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).❤❤❤❤

[@julianneller4658]

As a child I was taught by my mother how to set a coal fire, using paper spills made from old newspapers. Now that coal fires have vanished from domestic homes, this has become one of my most redundant skills. Indeed there was a whole culture surrounding the use of coal fires, which has all vanished. Raking out the ashes, filling the coal scuttle, using the shovel and a newspaper to draw air through the fire and increase the combustion, using the poker to poke the fire into extra life. There was nothing quite so cheering on a winter's day than arriving home to a roaring fire in the living room. That's not even getting into things like toasting forks and cooking toast or baked potatoes in the fire. Things might be more convenient now, but there was a richness of culture back then which has now disappeared.

[@kerrynight3271]

I never had a coal fire, but I love my woodburning stove when it's snowing, like today.

[@jasonrodgers9063]

I remember so well burning coal in the living room fireplace! GREAT memory! Thanks for "re-kindling" it!

[@robertrobinson4619]

Banking the coals so it would still be burning in the morning.

[@gerardacronin334]

I grew up in a house built in 1901. It had 6 fireplaces. I used to have a fire in my bedroom so I could study there.

[@marleneclough3173]

Yes that was the best toast!

[@jhonwask]

I was never that talented at cursive writing, but I adore beautiful penmanship. I still remember my family's phone number from 1969.

[@leecowell8165]

Well I'm left handed thus around the 7th grade my teacher and I took up an "agreement". He'd give me a "C" and I'd look the other way when it came time to try to teach me to write in cursive. Since then the only thing I've ever written in cursive was my signature. We had 31 kids in that class and I was the ONLY left-hander. Actually 7% worldwide are left handed though.

[@KathyW5]

Yes, at 76 I still remember my phone number from when I was a kid. Of course back then they didn't need area codes.

[@claudioremonti6740]

I remember the number from 1971 and still remember the home phone numbers of the parents of my closest friends. Certain skills are still useful.

[@indigobunting5041]

I'm a lefty and have decent cursive handwriting. I learned cursive in 2nd grade. Being a lefty doesn't mean you are destined for bad penmanship.

[@burtonwilliams5355]

ditto

[@jonthebru]

My family did a 3 month camping trip around the country in 1963. Along the way we stopped at AAA offices and picked up trip-tics. They were narrow tablets with maps of the routes were to take in the following days. You flipped from page to page as your travelled.

[@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.

[@chuckprichard3691]

Typing is one of the few skills I learned in High School that I still use.

[@irishhi8333]

I had a knack for tuning the radio dial to receive the strongest signal. This was cherished by the family on long road trips in the car. I could catch signals so that the music would last for hours until our father would grant another bathroom break. 🤓

[@humboldthammer]

AM radio, too, no doubt.

[@leecowell8165]

AM radio. I never listen to radio any longer... especially AM. Like TV nothing but commercials (which fall completely upon deaf ears (almost everyone over 60). I've never purchased so much as a toothpick based upon people blowing their own horns. I do like my Kia Soul but guess what? They don't advertise and even if they did it wouldn't matter. What I look for is price/performance and this vehicle has that.