The Great Testimony about Our Stand on Generation X

The memories are strong with this one! @YourFavoriteBiker makes some really good points himself! This is exactly how it was for many of us! #genx #memories #genxkid #boomers #xennials #feral

[@steph____]

GenX here too. I lived my final months leading up to high school graduation with my bags packed. Grew up with an abusive alcoholic father, and a mother who was too scared to defend us. The moment I got my diploma, I left home. Didn’t have a plan, didn’t have money. Didn’t care, I was outta there. I learned some brutal lessons in the years that followed… but, I was independent, hard working, and figuring it out. I never went to college, but earned my way up the corporate ladder the hard way. Nose to the grindstone. No whining about life being unfair… I was too busy taking responsibility for myself. Now in my early 50s, I feel like those times are many lifetimes ago. To my fellow generation: you’re badass! I see you! 💪

[@GodlyWisdom_Discernment]

Ha ha I did that too. I left FL and went away to College in WDC -- spent the whole summer after high school graduation living out of my suitcase b/c i was fully packed right after graduation. Didn't leave for College until August, but I didn't care. The guy in this video is sooooo right. Never felt welcomed at home -- and it was all I ever knew growing up. I had NO FEAR or hesitation of 'venturing out into the unknown' at 17 years old. And in 1986 WDC was internationally known as the 'murder capital' of the world -- i didn't care, it wasn't home. Never regretted it. And never got homesick.

[@loriace9841]

Ditto except I was thrown out the summer I graduated, made the mistake of pregnant at 17. Drive cross country to AZ to an adoption agency. I refused their order to have an abortion, because they were typical Catholic hypocrites. Had a baby, found her a dynamite family, went to work and am doing just fine. Working your ass off in corporate America. Started in a file room. I’m an executive in the technical staff. So, yes I’m a typical Gen X’er. I’m not a feminist and have Zero f’s for these 20something crybabies who don’t even know what a woman is

[@cski4048]

Split when I was 15. Forced back cause I got arrested at 17. Left again for good when I was 18 to the Army.. the tough times made me fight even harder and accept the consequences of my actions or my mouth.

[@jenniferoset243]

​@@cski4048 your story is just like mine. Ages and all.

[@WildlyEclectic]

Yep, I was out of the house at 17 and didn't look back. I didn't even have a step-father. My DAD didn't like me and mom didn't care.

[@gwenaguilar7049]

I don't really fit in this category. I'm a genxer but my parents house was the house all the kids flocked to. My parents let everyone stay there. Let everyone spend the night. We had a pool. We had tvs everywhere (we weren't rich TRUST ME), we had Atari. We had rules. So many rules. But my friends kept coming back. My mom drove us, dropped us off, picked us all up. I'm not lying when I say we easily had 15 kids at our house daily. My parents would go to sleep and maybe 2 or 3,but by the time my dad left for work there would be kids everywhere. All my friends were exactly like he describes. Hard lives, messed up homes. These kids became my family and I became theirs. I'm 53 and I talk to and visit nearly all of them. They still call my parents their parents to this day. Best years of my life.

[@patluvsrocky7249]

Same here. My friends still talk about my parent’s house. You are so right..best years of my life.

[@apsarasangreal84]

You were the 1 in 20 house, where all the kids could flock and drink from a cup. Me too.

[@badkyttiez]

My house was like that as long as you weren't my parents actual child. They were wonderful to our friends but treated us terribly.

[@gwenaguilar7049]

@@badkyttiez oh I'm sorry. I have heard this from a lot of people. My parents are the rare ones who actually loved all of us

[@rayf6126]

See, the rules were probably consistent in your home, and you spent time together.

[@actuallyitisrocketscience]

I’m GenX. My parents were awesome. We stayed out because there wasn’t anything to do inside. We hated rainy days. The TV had soap operas during the day, except weekends when there were cartoons. After school was the after school special program, then the news (I think) came on. Happy Days and other family programs didn’t start until 7pm. There were only four TV stations (ABC, NBC,CBS,PBS). We were outside because that’s where the fun was. We drank from the hose because it was convenient and we were probably spraying each other with it anyways. We played games like tag with our friends. We rode our bikes. We explored the forest and fields. We went swimming in the swimming holes. We made cardboard sleds and slid down grassy hills. We had Atari and Commodore 64, but those were often reserved for rain/snow day entertainment (along with board games). It was just different. We had to think for ourselves. There was encyclopedia brittanica (every house had a set), not google. We learned mostly by doing. There were no instructional videos. We all learned how to fix our bikes ourselves. When we learned to drive (age15/16) we learned how to fix our cars by getting the chiltons manual and taking it apart. The big difference was that we didn’t have as much adult supervision as kids have nowadays. But if someone got hurt we knew where the closest house was to go get help. People talk about us not being allowed in the house. Well we were filthy, sweaty creatures dripping mud and dirt everywhere. Mom wanted a clean house. You stayed out until it was time to come in for the night. Most of us had picnic tables outside that we gathered at for lunch. Koolaid popsicles were something every mom had and it was common to call all the kids to the door to get a popsicle. It might be more accurate to say we were loosely supervised by the entire neighborhood rather than we were unsupervised. I had a great childhood.

[@acolley2891]

When the boomers were home we weren't allowed to watch tv

[@michellemoore4585]

Loosely supervised is the best description. Grown ups had a general idea of what kids were doing but not the specific details. Being loosely supervised taught us how to think for ourselves, own our mistakes, accept consequences, forgive or least be diplomatic in our interactions, as well as function at a high level of ingenuity.

[@ForestGreen88]

I'm glad you got a good childhood.

[@shellylaurelwright-burroug555]

@@ForestGreen88right! I was thinking the same thing how special they are to not get treated the way some of us were

[@ForestGreen88]

@shellylaurelwright-burroug555 I'm genuinely glad they did get a happy childhood. I had a friend in grade school who could have written this comment. She lived about a block and a half from me and being at her house was wonderful. Her parents actually respected the fact that their children were separate beings and had their own thoughts and feelings. If I hadn't seen my friend's family life I wouldn't have known there were options for how to raise my own child.

[@margarethickey5114]

We were to be seen but NEVER heard! We were told to do it because I said so! And if we ever cried we were told to be quiet or we would REALLY get something to cry over! Yet we survived and we're tough as nails because of it!❤

[@kaeldare]

And we refused to treat our kids like that because we were kids and shouldn't have had to "survive" or be "tough as nails". Childhood shouldn't be something to survive, it should be a time to thrive.

[@gaia1577]

I'm not tough at all! I have multiple mental illnesses because of it ! That's not being tough that's realizing you had no parental help as a kid and calling it something else to make you feel better about it. I don't remember being told my opinion doesn't matter and feeling good about it.

[@g.m.4877]

​@@kaeldare You make it sound brutal but a lot of us were taught respect, manners and resilience in a loving way. I treasure memories of my happy childhood!

[@kaeldare]

@@g.m.4877 I was using the language that the original comment used but a lot of us were left to raise ourselves. I didn't bother coming home from school until 8 at night because no one was there. That's how it was for everyone I knew. Parents didn't get home until bedtime or later. Cereal or sandwiches for dinner because we could fix it ourselves. Sometimes I just didn't come home. I slept in the woods by my school more than once. We were feral children and they wonder why we turned out to have so many mental health problems.

[@g.m.4877]

@@kaeldare Sounds grim, I'm sorry you and many of your acquaintances suffered like that. We weren't well off and looking back we were poor by today's standards, but I always felt safe and loved and got good home cooked food so I was really lucky.

[@dianedewitt9832]

I am Gen X and I had a fabulous childhood! I am really really shocked to know that sooo many of my fellow Gen Xers did not. God Bless you all!

[@shanelowe4233]

Thank you, some moments were hard and some of us didn't make it back then...

[@sirisampurankaur3133]

Yes, suicide or road accidents were common. We all know some teens who didn't make it sadly​@@shanelowe4233

[@amywood5555]

Was beat daily at home from my ex step mom, then got bullied at school because she cut my hair short like a boy, cut my eyelashes, and my clothes..well, not like my peers. I forgave her, but have no contact with her. I left the day I graduated h.s. Joined the Air Force... my trauma and problem with authority was no fit. Only last 2 years, but I did it. Survived this long and rose to the top all glory to God.

[@UnashamedCaliforniagirl]

My grandparents raised me for the first 12 years of my life after that I lived with my aunt. I was usually at home I played outside a lot but our apartment was often the place the neighborhood kids flocked to because my grandma and aunt were hospitable and my uncle was fun .

[@MsGenXodus]

My spouse had an excellent childhood, too. The difference is that his parents were older, his mom was in her late 30's and his dad was in his early 40's. Baby boomers often got married VERY YOUNG. My mom was married at 18, had me at 19. My dad was 22 when I was born. There's a ton of Gen X adults who were raised by teen parents. Some of us even have siblings who are 20+ years younger. I'm pretty sure a lot of the neglect and abuse Gen X kids experienced could be directly connected to having teenaged parents.

[@qwq203]

Moved out at 16. Condition was to finish school. I worked a full-time job, all while playing after-school sports. Was only allowed to take my bedroom furniture. No roommate, completely independent. Not forced to, chose to. That's how independent we were raised. You could ask for advice, but the situation was never handled for you. We had an open campus and no attendance policy at my high school, so attendance was your responsibility. Straight from high school into the Army. That was the norm for most Gen X'ers. School then military. We were hardened externally, yet loyal to the death. We always had each other's 6, no matter the personal cost. We are a generation of self-made "FAMILIES." We had already lived a lifetime by the time we became adults.

[@Love-Is-Kind]

💯🎯

[@Whitetail7]

🙏❤️🕯️

[@ataraxigrace822]

You did alright getting the bedroom furniture. I was lucky to keep my clothes and was told to put the doona back because it didn’t belong to me.

[@KieroSi]

Yeah, and if you went to uni without the military, chances are you were either homeless (though, that might have meant you were squatting in an abandoned building) or living in a dorm and lingering around all night diners, hoping people leave before they finished their food, so you can grab some food. Younger X'ers started intentional communtiies and co-ops, buying up nearly condemned houses as group purchases in nearby towns, often semi-rural or in the ghetto as it were... oh, and travel, was the plot of many a horror film, no internet, rarely even a newspaper, you'd just go somewhere and look for someone to crash with.. no plans, no background checks. . . and the job market, you went where the work was.. no matter what your field was or likely, more so for older gen x, you'd risk being unemployed for months, even years. I worked in tech (which I have to obnoxiously remind my fellow X'ers just when the online world started) but oh, we were so taken advantage of... like most of the big tech companies, there's one person that gets all the credit, when really, all they did was recruit talent and make it so they couldn't claim the rights to their own work. So, then I moved into music which was largely the same with studios. And could you imagine a band of the tiktok generation today, traveling in a van with no a/c or privacy, in 100+ degree weather with a coffee can because reststops were far and few. Albeit, a few years of that over several countries, and found myself back in tech to feel like a grown up, but never feeling grown up. And whatever the gig was, you went where the work was... most X'ers I know have very diversify resumes, we all had side hustles.. and chances are, since we were knee high because our parents/guardians were charging us rent. I have trouble feeling empathy for the younger gens when they talk about student loans or can't buy a house.. most didn't buy a home til their 40s, and those that did in earlier years, their first home, sure as heck wasn't in a nice suburb or the big city unless they inherited it, or again, it was a shared purchase with a group of other people. and call Zs boomers 2.1 because they want to come after us, not like boomers did, because in the activism world, we don't play up to world causes... yet every town, we've got history, because that was our battlegrounds... we had no support, they were afraid of us, vilified us, we fought on the local level and somehow to that lot, that doesn't count. You find that among the numerous subcultures we created, especially in the music scene... .the mass hysteria and fear mongering. And of those being mallrats,, the reason they were mallrats is because they were banned in most other places... like X'ers fell into that category when they were kids, all the youth centers were geared to boomer teens and when we were teens, they redirected everything to millennial kids. More than two of us hanging out anywhere was called loitering.. and we'd be harassed by the police. so, we'd either have parties in the middle of nowhere- the bush/forest/beach, abandoned underpasses/buildings, etc. no surprise, we were the generation of raves or just cruising... because either you gathered in secret or you were going somewhere/nowhere, they didn't bother you so much if you were just driving or endlessly riding the train/subway. I remember a few subway raves because of that too. But yeah, malls, malls liked us because provided the illusion of customers because we had nowhere else to go...

[@foxlancaster4044]

Hahaha! I only had bedroom furniture too. Twin size. My living room was a wicker chair that came from my bedroom.

[@Sinjinator]

I grabbed whatever I could carry and moved out as soon as I could… I wasn’t going to give my parents another chance to beat on me. Made sure to move at least a few hours drive away. Now I have my own garden hoses. 😉

[@Whitetail7]

🙏❤️🕯️

[@LoganGraceHope]

Same! Best decision ever.

[@PolishBehemoth]

Damn... abuse was real😢

[@Ninjanimegamer]

The worst thing about that abuse is it was legal and the scars aren't visible. The best thing about growing up is knowing the parents will need help as they age.....who will help them? Do we give them the same kind of help they gave us? I too moved hours away and it's been the best decision I made.

[@mom.left.me.at.michaels9951]

I also ran away soon as I could. I had started working at 14 with a work permit. 40 hours or more on top of school, just cause it kept me away from my abusive mother. Bought a car off a friend for 500 bucks the second I got my license at 16 and drove off with just whatever would fit in the car. Dropped out moved states away and finally started getting my life on track. Eventually I got a G.E.D. and a Degree, a great job and a place if my own. Now my mom always guilt trips me for not wanting to talk to her and being low contact 😅. Like "you never wanted me to before!"

[@ubergeek1968]

"not welcome at home" perfectly describes my childhood... I moved out 3 months before my 18th birthday and FLED halfway across the country. I've been taking care of myself every since.

[@veraabing8639]

I would love to know what your relationship with your parents is like now, and if you have more perspective about their "methods" now.

[@ubergeek1968]

@@veraabing8639 For other reasons I had no contact with my mother for 20 years, until she died in 2021 and my father is in prison for life. SO... there are numerous factors that have affected things.

[@MagnoliaPantherWoman]

Similar here. I counted down the days until I turned 18. My biomom told me enough times she didn't want me and couldn't wait until I was 18 and not her responsibility. In the 70s, couples had kids because "that's what you did." Now we know that not everyone wants kids or would be good parents.

[@MagnoliaPantherWoman]

​@@veraabing8639 I've been no contact with my bio-mom and bio-dad for over 20 years. She'd apologize but never change (kept up her abuse and denial). He was alcoholic, absent and unavailable, and eventually delusional, then got alcohol dementia and later died of lung cancer. We kids still showed up to move him into a care facility etc. Talk about loyalty, that was mostly from my brothers. My stepdad and I kept in touch until my bio-mom made that impossible. He acknowledged my experience growing up and told me how proud he was of me when I was a young woman, which meant a lot. He and I have been in contact again for over 10 years now. He's great to talk to, knows a lot about history and has interesting stories from his life.

[@marypierson9825]

Same here... Moved from Ohio to Alabama the summer after my junior year at 17. Have only went back to visit a handful of times. Since then I have been homeless and slept in a tent on a few occasions. Never once did I call anyone crying or ask for any help, because that's not what we do. I'm doing fine now, but all of these Gen X videos are completely accurate. We are the toughest breed of human beings for sure!

[@jayearl9848]

Yep, Saturday morning cartoons. By 11am....gone til 7pm. Came home, took a bath, watched TV. Then did it again on Sunday.

[@LovingSocialDistance]

Sunday=30 minute mass(cuz we were in and out)back home in time for Shirley Temple and The Three Stooges, then we hit the streets.

[@mbagirl9567]

What?!!! No 3 hours of chores??? We had to clean the entire house, weed the flower beds and mow the lawn before being released into the wild on Saturdays.

[@amarie8769]

What no soul train?

[@LovingSocialDistance]

@@amarie8769>Of course, once I got bigger. I never forget my mom beating the hell out of my cousin with her pink and blue platform shoe, because she too busy watching Soul Train and I almost fell out the window throwing water balloons. lol.

[@RitaLady]

It was Saturday morning cartoons and Samurai Sunday for me.😊

[@JohnnyAyala-ok5xj]

Gen X here, so many of us came from Hard families like that. Rules, never speak unless spoken to. You Will do what I tell you to do. Here's the best one, " I'll give you something to cry about", and trying not to show pain when you did get it(I won't even try to describe it)For some of us it was less painful and safer just not to be at home, that was our safe space. I'm 57 now, looking back " I'm grateful for it" sometimes when life gets hard, I know I'm harder and WE DON'T QUIT. Y'all take care, Sincerely Texas.

[@Jetz316]

“If you don’t stop crying I’ll give you something to cry about”. I heard that so many times. My mom used to spank me with a wooden paddle. One time she hit me so hard it broke. I turned around and laughed at her. That was the last padding I ever got.

[@JohnMacleod-wo3ou]

You didn't make a sound, because if you did they would call you a pussy. In yor head what you thought, was is that all you got, figure out real early pain goes away embarassment does not.

[@thomasmehall5742]

How about asking for money?it was like, "Sure,just go out to the money tree and pick a few.and you would be like,uugghh!you know that money doesn't grow on trees!and they would be like,That's right!

[@LoriB-vc4el]

Yeah, I think you hit a nerve with genX.You lucky millennials who got therapy and people cared about you and coached you and you need somebody to mentor you and show you the ropes...we're jealous. No one gave us that c***No one cared enough to give us that.That's why you get this Is cynical bitter kind of attitude from us. What makes you so special that you get all this nice wonderful treatment??I have to say I'm lucky.I had a good upbringing; my parents weren't divorced. They were the silent generation my dad always had A job and worked very hard. I rarely saw him Because he worked the third shift in a manufacturing For Honeywell, and for tonka toys.He loved the third shift because he didn't want To be around Management. My mom was at home when I came home from school But I was not the typical latch key kid. Biggest thing about her upbringing is privacy. For us to tell you all this is just such an honor really. I honestly believe janex is going to be the only ones prepared for when the bond market goes shooting off to the moon and inflation bankrupts everybody. Our generation as the one building houses out in the woods growing food Sharpening equipment , building small armies and militias for when The bond market goes shooting to the moon and we all go bankrupt because of inflation..shtf time

[@eviltwinnancy4561]

I'm Gen X. My parents always said things like "I don't owe you anything but a roof over your head, clothes on your back and food", "If you start crying, I'll give you something to cry about", and "Children are meant to be seen not heard". They parented through fear and loved corporal punishment. Survival meant staying under the radar and being invisible. I survived my childhood. They couldn't break me. I won't be broken and heaven help those who try.

[@franciswright6672]

@@eviltwinnancy4561 jeez I’m so sorry. But you made it on your own way. Good for you.

[@aidagray6227]

Gen X is the storm

[@frankw7266]

I’m going to contradict most of this. My dad was an Army lifer, Vietnam vet, & drill sgt… he wasn’t a mean man, but he was certainly firm. Looking back, he was a great dad. All of our houses were open & welcome to each other’s friends… the back doors were never locked. We got the hell out of Dodge because if you were hanging around the house, you got put to work… we drank from the hose so we didn’t show our face and get wrangled into doing something. And we left home at 17 or 18 as a matter of pride to show we learned enough to be on our own. It was tough, but we sure weren’t living with mommy & daddy until we were 25.

[@tooniemama6959]

Gen X here. We were brought up with tough love. Children were meant to be seen & not heard and we respected our elders. We played outside until dark. We knew the world before the internet & smart phones. We had to figure things out on our own. We were independent and know how to get shit done.

[@ArcadiaOccult]

Tough love? Okay sure let's go with that!

[@gaia1577]

True but we didn't like it! It was all we had but I always wanted a better childhood.

[@g.m.4877]

​@@ArcadiaOccult 'Tough love' made us resilient and respectful though, qualities sadly lacking in the current, mad world. 🥰 X

[@darrylmuse9948]

@@ArcadiaOccultIt was tough love I learned the law of the switch and belt from my Mom and Grandmother and the verbal ass chewing from my Grandfather.And we knew how to respect our elders unlike the monsters being bought up today 👍🏾👍🏾

[@ForestGreen88]

Tough love? Nah, it was just tough to get someone to show love at my house.

[@motherdaughtermix768]

He's so fuckin right, my step dad was and still is a mean bastard and would beat the shit out of my brother and I, my mom was just as guilty because she was just as mean if not meaner... They disowned me because I wouldn't let them be abusive towards my kids...

[@Wild-Moonchild]

Wow mine too!

[@Whitetail7]

Too both of you, I am so sorry that you had to endure that 😔😭 Some how the "BS" we came up from made US who we are! Stronger than we ever expected 🙏❤️🕯️

[@pipermaisiemae1999]

Good on you. We're much better parents than our parents were.

[@stacistewart815]

GOOD!! NO DRAMA FOR YOUR KIDS!

[@ariq911]

I remember during holiday parties or gatherings in the home, us kids were put in a room while the adults socialized. At 10 I was responsible for taking my 4 year old sister to her school and then walking 5 blocks to my own school. It's not because I wanted to but I had no choice.

[@stacistewart815]

and they would PARTY HARD

[@kpace985]

Same. Only instead of holiday parties it was going to my aunt's house. The kids had to stay outside while the adults were inside socializing. And at a young age I was responsible for my younger siblings as well as the 2-3 kids my mom babysat on a daily basis. Walked by myself to school at a fairly young age too. I was terrified of getting kidnapped.

[@TraceyStark]

I stuck around an extra year after high school to help my mom pay rent. I worked two jobs at the mall and drove a $500 car. I was hustling and happy and thought I was making it!

[@deshunallen8486]

Gen X are the greatest hustlers of all time. We are the last generation to have a real work ethic, in my opinion.

[@forapps9364]

Making it... remember that song? Bill Murray in meatballs?

[@MagnoliaPantherWoman]

Yeah, single moms were the best then. They had good relationships and fun with their kids, while working together on home stuff. Kudos!

[@magdalenem4949]

We were the generation that our parents didn’t want to be our friends, but it made us self sufficient

[@hilariefortune3909]

Wow, so true. I could add to this, it seems like trauma dumping and talking negative, yet it reality, or was the reality for our generation.

[@Ninjanimegamer]

Got kicked out at four years old, did all the housework by five and started babysitting other people's kids at 8 years old. I hated getting beat for things i never did, or because i acted like my father, or because i was breathing too loudly. When mom said get out, i was more than happy to leave. I ate from gardens around the neighborhood and drank from the hose, because I was not allowed back inside. I learned to be resourceful. I moved out after college, but mom said if i go i can't come back. Why would i want to?

[@pavlovsdogman]

You sound like you grew up in 1800s Appalachia not the 1980s 😂

[@ginag8723]

@@pavlovsdogman don't be an idiot.

[@joycee5493]

Keep in kind that later boomers are not the parents of generation X, but are the parents of millennials. I was born in 1960 and had a son when I was 24. He is a millennial. The later boomers experienced the same things that generation X did, we just did it first..We lived outside, we drank from the hose, rode our bikes behind the DDT truck as it sprayed our neighborhood, went far from home unattended, climbed trees, played dangerous games outside, rode in the back of pickup trucks, bought cigarettes any age (legally), no helmets for anything, wore no seat belts, rode in cars filled with cigarette smoke, lived on pop tarts and captain crunch, had to do the yard work, clean the house and garage once a week, got hit with wooden paddles, etc,etc, etc. We are also virtually indestructible and we don’t give crap… tough as nails… don’t mess with us. Life was good…we learned to be independent and self sufficient.

[@ralphemerson497]

Drinking age was 18. Driver’s license by 16. Joined the Marine Corps at 17. Don’t regret a minute of it.

[@Angela-el3gp]

100% agree..born in 1965 but my boomer sister and brother were 1963 & 1964 and it was the same for them. Drinking from the hose told to go outside ect. Made us not be complainers or claim to be a victim. We sucked it up even if we were.

[@MyRandomRecipes]

I’m a boomer, but had my kids early. I have a daughter who is a Gen Xer and a son who is a Millennial.

[@StrayDogCrew]

Born in 70, youre right about later boomers, my friends had older siblings that endured the same things we did.

[@howardgrover8908]

Early gen-x is just a continuation of us Boomers. You ever have to chase copperheads or rattlesnakes out of the outhouse to take care of business because your Aunt's farm where you got to enjoy a month or so of summer vacation had no indoor plumbing till the mid 70s. Got the pleasure of feeding, milking etc. then hauling hay for 10 or more hours, if you wanted to eat. Worked hard, played hard. Then worked about 70 hours a week to buy a house and raise a family. Now have one artificial hip, about to get the other.

[@Kalirdg13]

And in those "sitting rooms" all of the furniture was covered in plastic until the "worthy" company came over, so oven if u did want to sit down, they made it impossible.

[@mutteringcrone1210]

My parents were the Silent Generation. No plastic. However, my grandparents were the Greatest Generation. They had plastic runners in high traffic zones, plastic slips on the couch and chairs in the living room. Weird.

[@debbiep4647]

I remember the plastic cover on living room furniture and still only got to go in living room sometimes on a holiday. 🤣

[@NhamshahSpah-ky-id6jo]

@@mutteringcrone1210 He must have had young parents. I am Gen x, born in late 60s. Most Boomers were still in high school then.

[@deshunallen8486]

Very true

[@manuelshaul9244]

Right lol the plastic

[@willyt3186]

You’re so spot on, I moved out three days after my 18th birthday. But me and my sister were pretty much took care of ourselves before that.

[@NhamshahSpah-ky-id6jo]

Yeah, we had the stepfamily invasion. Went from 3 kids to 6 kids (all but one, teenagers) overnight. Enlisted in the Navy in the delayed entry program at the beginning of my senior year in high school. I remember counting down the days. Boot camp s*cked; but at least it was like that for a reason: getting us in shape to defend the nation & all that. Home life was a never ending drama because my parents listened to the “experts” at the the time: “Kids will adjust”. Oh we adjusted all right. Just not the way they thought. I determined to stay married no matter how bad it gets. I will NOT have my children endure a step-anything. I’ll take one for the team; which was a sentiment in short supply in the 70s & 80s, when the divorce industry was ramping up.

[@manuelshaul9244]

We moved with a purpose and walk with a purpose. Our parents gave us tough love. That's why we were so easy on our children because we had it rough.

[@cathyann2934]

I feel extremely blessed. I always felt welcome in our home.

[@miriamhavard7621]

💗🌺

[@pdxmusl1510]

Not all gen x had a terrible family life. I'm glad you didn't.

[@Love-Is-Kind]

💯🎯 Left home in 1992. Never looked back. That was 32 years ago. Best decision ever.

[@LoganGraceHope]

I left in 93. My HS graduation present was new tires and a suit case. The message was clear. The day after I left my mom turned my room into a sewing room. Now all these years later she wants a relationship with me and wants to know MY kids. No F way!!!😂😂😂

[@BM-hb2mr]

Amen. I couldn't had said it any better. It was in the fire service for over 25 years.And I can promise you , the best firemen on this planet.We're gen x and boomers

[@wendyladybug355laurie4]

ThaNK YOU FOR YOUR SERVICE ❤❤MY HUSBAND IS ALSO GEN X FIREFIGHTER

[@samanthalacroix2687]

And they wonder why their kids don't call and they never see the grand kids. I grew up with so many people who left home and never looked back. Looks like the Boomer's chickens have come home to roost inany an empty house.

[@ChristineSpringerElaine]

This right here! Had no idea it was the same for so many other people. Cut my whole family off because of their abuse.

[@tiffanygrever8092]

I'm almost 49 and my mom still fights for aces to my everyday life, she is a good woman but possessive and sometimes a short memory.

[@jkp62]

Sadly, media makes it look like every GenX’er had a horrible upbringing. Yes, each generation had a percentage of bad parents and homes, but not the majority. If you want to blame anyone for the two income families or the single parent families, actually go back to the “war on poverty” the Pres. Johnson proclaimed would bring people out of poverty and women did t need a man to support them and their children and the sexual revolution and the very left form of feminism who said you could have it all with out marriage- career, child(ren) later in life, and Nannie’s for even middle income earners who put career ahead of kids. Really stop and think how politics has formed social norms and blame how easy it was to undermine the nuclear family unit and how we can see it happening right now. So it comes down to each individuals and married couples critical thinking and values on whether they will allow a MINORITY to change the majority of how kids are raised, whether to have kids or not, the influence of being affluent without the job or income to be affluent, being so easily influenced by “influencers” and what the media wants you to believe. I have more concern about Millenials and GenZ having no critical thinking skills and lack of ambition to better themselves instead of waiting for the government to better them than I do whether GenX’ers or Boomers were horrible people and their poor kids suffered. Last note: you may not have been able to control things that happened to you as a minor, but as an adult- anything negative is on you, your choices, your living in your victimization, your poor is me attitude- change you in the here and now and for the future because you CANT change the past and by lingering in the past, you are not much better off now than you were then and that also is a negative influence on YOUR children. So, as a boomer, get over yourselves and get on with having a wonderful and positive life!

[@deep153]

SELFFISH 'B'' Plzzzzzz DO. you know what YOUR MOM DAD WENT THROUGH

[@todayslist37737]

​@@deep153No because they never talked to us like we were people!

[@gaia1577]

As an elder millennial 87 I do relate to this. The only time in was allowed in was to use the bathroom and even then it was a huge choice because I knew that if I came home I might not be able to go back out. I stayed outside most of the day and night as a kid. I traveled miles upon miles on my bike into different cities. I had no one watching me. My gen x cousins had it worse. They were always being yelled at and kicked out over some BS. Still to this day they have issues with their parents or have no relationship at all. In was a very lonely child with no siblings and no adult teaching me how to deal with being outside. I had to learn the hard way and I'm not saying that proudly. Kids need consistent love, care and affection. We may not be crazy but we're definitely not healthy. Trauma was extremely high for those two generations, millennials and gen x.

[@countcoupblessings979]

Kids belong outdoors is also a regional & ethnicity thing , from centuries back. My extended family was from country / farm stock . They put their shoes away after school , church or going to town . And outside was were all kids belonged. Kinda like the old thing of kids ate in the kitchen till they could behave with reasonable couth at the table. Also idle hands indoors was tempting siblings to fight or get up to mischief. Outdoors was taught as the healthier option , for mind , body & soul👍

[@Aurora3242]

Not all boomers were mean, my parents wrre just busy working and putting a roof over my head! But we were too be seen, not heard - sometimes not even seen, lol. -We were sent outside too play, so we weren't underfoot, AND because our parents knew that keeping us cooped up inside was going too be THEIR misery. -There was no ADHD, there was "if you don't go outside and play, I'm going to find something 'USEFUL' for you too do". We were 3ncouraged to go use all that energy. -They made sure WE knew how too 'Figure it out' - in other words they fostered our use of common sense, ensuring we could survive. -There were no participation trophies, there was "I guess you need to practice more and try harder" - We learned not too give up! -There was no 'feelings' involved with our self esteem because we already knew that 'feelings' we NOT going to pay the bills, our parents knew hard work, morals, and being responsible paid the bills, so they made sure we knew it too!

[@qwq203]

EXACTLY!!

[@johnchandler1687]

We Boomers were raised by the generation that grew up during the Depression and fought WW2. They were, if anything, tougher than we were on our kids.

[@user-yz9yg4yx1k]

Thank you. We tried to do our best. As a boomer, my parents were silent generation, much older ,we were raised much stricter than X ers. But God, we tried.

[@redeemedandblessed]

Right on!! That was my childhood in a nutshell. Loving parents who both worked to take care of 5 ungrateful children. I appreciate it all now!! Bless their hearts!!

[@PissedOffPatriot]

I can appreciate the sentiment - however, it seems that nobody taught you the difference between 'to' and 'too'... 😉

[@belindahearn2662]

Yep and I was out after graduation it was what most of us wanted out we looked forward to moving out.

[@elderblackdragon]

Luckily I'm a bookworm and loved music. I had a bookshelf and boombox radio. Grounding me to my room was not the penalty it was for my other peers.

[@mbagirl9567]

Grounding to our rooms meant no boombox playing and not allowed to turn on the lights, so you could only read until dusk. Then we pretty much sat at the door and passed notes under it to our siblings since we weren’t allowed to speak to the grounded one. Sounds crazy but totally true. Grounding was like a prison sentence in our house.

[@ForestGreen88]

I hid books in my room for the inevitable "you're grounded until I forget I grounded you" routine. It would usually only last 3 weeks or so and it was often because my little brother had done something and blamed it on me. They were always working when I got home from school so I had time to go to the library and hide the books before they got home. Getting grounded was a nice reprieve from being yelled at constantly.

[@neekyboo77]

Exactly. When I wasn't outside I was holed up in my room w books and my Walkman. Pls ground me.

[@ltldxy71]

That is the truth without any of the joking or bragging or reminiscing about our childhoods. Particularly loved the part about the stepdads. I think the statistic is something like 80% of us came from divorced parents. Me included.

[@maryelizabethmunoz2527]

This is the split - Gen X raised by Boomers vs Gen X raised by The Silent Generation. The ones raised by Boomers were the ones who were at the houses of the Gen X’ers who had Silent Generation parents. Those kids flocked to us because they knew our parents would feed them and watch over them. It was quite sad actually. But, we all had a good time. I’ve also noticed the Gen X’ers raised by Boomers are the ones that ended up going to the military or prison. At least the ones I grew up with. Both of my parents were Silent Generation and they were so gracious to all of my and my brother’s friends. My Greatest Generation grandparents also lived with us and they taught all of us kids how to garden, hunt, fish, clean, save money, write a check and so on… although their forms of punishment was pretty much the same…”crack, boom, bam!”

[@sirisampurankaur3133]

Was raised by boomers. Smoked in our faces from birth, didn't want to hear or see us, unless we had to move somewhere, then you d better be there or that was the end of your day. However grandparents were silent and greatest generations. They were tough on our parents but awesome with us. I miss them.

[@drivethrupoet]

There should be another generational title between boomers and gen X. They spread it too thin to really be of much meaning. Born in 76 and yeah I was sent to play outside and get what this guy is describing, but cable TV and game consoles were the norm when I was only 10 or so, and the time spent outside was more about going from one house to the next instead of staying out until dinnertime. By the time I got to middle school, it was no longer allowed for a teacher to spank a kid at school. I have more in common with someone born in 86 than 66.

[@marieo5417]

The sitting room thing! I didn't know this was a norm! Mother was so proud of that room. We were banned. The biggest room in the house was always empty, awaiting guests and if, per chance, a cushion was out of place, we had to puff it up back. It was like a museum. We used the small TV room in the kitchen extension. It was fine.

[@ckgarlisch]

Now I have my own sitting room. It's where the guinea pigs live❤

[@morganzweifel2488]

Yes, as a member of Gen X I vividly remember my mom placing some sort of lemonade in a pitcher & plastic cups on a TV tray outside the back door. And, your only way of getting in the house was to have to use the bathroom- if someone else didn’t have a bathroom in the garage! I am not complaining, but families were changing & we did have unfair situations placed on our young generation. (No one believe what be happening within your home.) This was still a time when no one spoke about our feelings- fight or flight was our way of dealing with situations which were beyond our control. Staying outside, being creative & being fearful was our way of escaping whatever was troubling you. Personally, my mom raised me by herself in the 70s by choice… Honestly, I fondly remember the weekends and I feel as a generation we are better for the independence forced upon us!

[@ursirius4878]

We didn't have a choice, we had to be tough. We had to solve our own problems. Imoved out of my parents house at 16ys old. Hard work was our way out.

[@MrDan7171]

I fit this category, i grew up with an abusive stepfather and left home at 16 to live with my best friends parents. When i turned 18 i joined the Military and didnt go home for almost 15 years, mother begged me to come home and i finally did. My stepfather passed away in 2011 but i still dont have a close relationship with my family, i did move back to Texas in 2015 but i live 7 hours from my family. I was the youngest and the one my stepfather beat the most and its made me have no feelings for my family. But i served my country in war and did 30 years with the Department of Defense and now retired. And unlike Gen Z, I will still give my for this country and not run.

[@1grtbglv]

OMG! I remember that room!! All the furniture had a thick clear plastic cover to protect the upholstery!! "Children are to be seen, not heard!" "Do as I say, not as I do!" "Don't make me come over there!" "Do not call me at work unless you're missing an arm, or a leg, and bleeding to death!" Or "I better see blood gushing out!" The parents that were relaxed and allowed kids to run around and do "whatever ", were hardcore hippies in the sixties and smoked a lot of mary-jane!

[@Skorion69]

I still remember that period in the mid to late 80s where the kids they found too unruly would be sent to mental hospitals.

[@Lorelei_Thoughts]

Thank you for saying that! I was one of those kids although I wouldn’t say I was unruly, although I was told I was. 7 years old & according to my parents I was suicidal, although I don’t remember feeling that way. What I do remember is my parents divorce & them fighting. Spent almost a year (11 months) in one, only to be shipped off to my grandparents for another 3 months. Then when I was 10, my sister kept taking my stuff so I started fighting with her (we wasn’t allowed to do that, no noise!). My mom called the cops & I was sent away for 2 years, then “boarding” school, residentials, one being boystown. I ran away at almost 17 & never looked back! I got married, had a baby, went to college, & got a psychology (surprise surprise) & teaching degrees. Today I have a loving husband & 2 kids (21 years apart 😂) & have never had a drug/alcohol problem, problems with the law, etc. I guess us gen xers don’t talk about being sent to these hospitals because I have felt very alone in that part of my childhood!

[@johnq.public2621]

Yep, Spring Shadows Glen in Houston, Texas. Knew some people both before and after they went in/came out. They were never the same, in a bad way. Had LOTS of horror stories....

[@Skorion69]

@@Lorelei_ThoughtsI'm of the mind that turnabout is fair play, have 'em declared mentally incompetent and stick in the crooked home that Homer Simpson saw on 60 minutes, then move.

[@LoganGraceHope]

I got sent for reporting my dad for abusing my mom and assaulting her nightly. My parents denied everything and told everyone that I was a lying and trying to get attention. God forbid anyone knew what went on behind our closed doors! 30 days in the children's psych ward was like a vacation. I tried to stay longer but unfortunately got sent back home / prison.

[@derricktrottier6763]

i was sent to one for 6 weeks my junior yr.. because my step monster wanted me out of the way so she could have her sugar daddy w/o my interference...may she rot in hell for it.

[@Seekingwisdom2322]

I am a Gen X and can relate to some of what was said. Although, we could come into the house for a glass of water or soda but we usually just drank from a hose outside because we would get killed if we tracked dirt or mud into the house.

[@johnbarton41]

As a Gen X what you said about step dad's hit to close. When he's talking you can hear the pain in his voice. I hear you my brother

[@miastone4012]

That's why we're self-sufficient

[@gregoryv1373]

I'm Gen X, as is my twin(obviously). Older siblings are all Boomers. My parents were the Silent Generation. Good mix, good mix. 👍

[@LoriB-vc4el]

Hey, me too.I'm a gennex twin and I have boomer brothers😊 My parents were the silent generation.

[@CrInqs52000]

My parents weren’t mean or abusive by the standards of the time but they were never home because they were both working 2 full time jobs. It left me with the responsibility as the eldest though of caring for my younger siblings from the age of 9 when my mom went back to work after her maternity leave ended from my brother. I had no time to play with the chores that I was held responsible for getting done.

[@KevinBerus]

Most of the people I knew myself included had silent generation parents and our older siblings were boomers and jones

[@r.o.b.480]

I wanted out of my parents house so bad that I signed up for the "Delayed Entry" program for the Navy when I was a sophomore in high school.

[@tonette9532]

Our front room had white furniture, and we were allowed to watch TV there if the family was watching HeeHaw, The Wonderful World of Disney, Lawrence Welk, or Mutual of Omaha's Wild Kingdom. The children would sit on the floor, naturally. (He hit the nail on the head with the step-dad thing, too.)

[@joyhouse2334]

I moved out at 16 I had a two mo old. Everyone talks about how good it was back then. It may have been for some but not all.

[@dixieland1641]

1971 here. We were raised old school. Respect, work, do the right thing. No lying no stealing no cheating. You went to school u did chores. You stood up to bullies and protected those who couldn't. All this ridiculous bs that these candy ass kids doing today lol u wouldn't. Wtf were these kids parents babies having babies but if they had u took care of them. They would not last a hour at my house and even less if dad was there

[@piapadmore430]

Intuitively we knew that we were not welcome, and we knew to stay away. We were safer outside. Today kids are safer inside. We shouldn’t judge them for that.

[@miriamhavard7621]

Why not?

[@SoulSoundMuisc]

According to crime statistics until about 2016 - 2020, they're still safer outside than we ever were. Meaning that, despite all the doom and gloom on the TV, violent crime against children was at an all time low right across the board. Per DOJ, FBI, CDC

[@sirisampurankaur3133]

​@SoulSoundMuisc Yes I can believe that. The number of wild pervs that came for me in the street when I was a teen is still shocking thinking of it. My child never experienced that and she lives in the city. And don't let me start telling about people known by the family. No matter what happened, telling parents would have been useless anyway. Just kept quiet and moved on.

[@paddleduck5328]

@@sirisampurankaur3133ugh. Yea.

[@GredelsRage]

I graduated, hung out all summer with a friend and went to college a state away. Got a job in college and dropped out of college to move farther away to a different college (of my choice) and only came home when my dad got sick. My mom still has no idea i lived in england and ireland for 2 years. Dad did but he knew why i couldnt stay here

[@ArtByFameli]

I was born in 83 and my childhood was EXACTLY like this! Older millennials had the same treatment as gen x and a lot of us were raised by the same generation, or our grandparents. I don’t even take my kids around most of my family because they try to treat MY kids that way and I won’t allow it. I don’t exactly do soft parenting, but I don’t want my kids treated the way I was growing up… a mangy dog! In my case I could not leave home as soon as I could. My mother was an addict and I had younger siblings that I couldn’t throw to the wolves. I ended up having to take over the raising of them and I held down multiple jobs to pay my mom‘s bills and make sure my siblings were OK. I worked hard since I was a child changing diapers since I was five getting treated like absolute shit by my family. Now I’m 40 and my body is broken from overworking taking care of everyone around me that was neglected by those that should’ve done their job raising kids. I had aunts, my older sister, and a cousin even dump their kids on me because I was the “family care taker”. No bitch, I was making up for where you fell short so YOUR kids didn’t end up on the streets to fall victim to drugs or homelessness to cope with the abuse you handed to them! And people look at me like I’m a loser because I can’t push myself the way I used to. I’m 40 but I feel 80. I fell like a bitter old woman now. Thanks a lot boomers!

[@patrickcarleton3924]

Us Boomers went through the same thing and passed it on to Gen-X. You've taken the torch, so to speak and you've Carried it with pride. Well done Gen-X, well done.

[@kenl5290]

That man spoke the truth. Gen X may die, but generations will continue to remember us, good or bad.

[@CallitWhatitis-bn2qd]

'66 model GenXer here. And I can honestly say my daddy loved me, but he loved all 4 of his kids. It was mama that didn't like me or my 2 sisters. She liked my brother, but not my sisters...her own daughters. I can't speak for my sisters, but I know she loved me...I just never could please her. No matter what I did that my Daddy was complimenting me for...she, on the other hand would follow up with a polite acknowledgement of that, then there was always a but...followed by her critique of whatever she disliked. In hindsight, I believe she was jealous or resentful of Daddy's attention and compliments being focused on some female other than herself. (As twisted as that sounds.) But, yes we had a 'formal living room' just to the left of our front door when someone walked into our house. And no I was not allowed in there until I was old enough to go change the record playing on the stereo to the next one Daddy wanted to hear as he was having a cocktail each evening after work while mama was finishing up cooking supper. (My parents were Silent Gen. so I didn't HAVE to cook, but could by the time I was 8-9. And by the time I was 14 I could change the oil in the car, change a flat, change the plugs and points, and do other light simple mechanic type tasks (along with whatever housework I was told to do). So, I guess what I'm getting at is even though I wasn't a latch key, coming home to cook supper for everyone... I still was taught or figured it out and if they were gone to the bar or whatever, cooked for myself. So the creator hit the nail on the head...no we weren't, I hesitate to say wanted,...we were more ignored or once deemed old enough to take care of ourselves... Left alone to do just that.

[@ajax1137]

My parents are still married. Everything else is correct. Joined the Navy at 17. If you played this video for my father, he'd be bewildered. He had no recollection of any of this.

[@djpaeg1]

I’m definitely Gen X, but not all of us were raised in this sad fashion. Some of us were raised by Silent Generation parents, who did their best to instill very traditional values. Yes, we still spent the majority of our summer days out riding bikes to the neighbors’ yards, jumping on pogo sticks, riding scooters and skateboards, and swimming outdoors. Lots of fun, but also scraped knees and other injuries. We were survivors of bike accidents without helmets or protective gear. We rode in the backs of station wagons without seatbelts and dared one another to jump off of high playground equipment. We climbed trees daily and learned to do yard work and housework before we were 10 years old. We did our own laundry and made meals for the whole household after school. We adulted before we were teenagers because many of us had parents who forced the chores on us while they were busy working or when they were sick. I had NOTHING handed to me. I had to pay my own way through college without help from my folks, and had to work TWO full-time jobs (80 hours per week) in the summers, without owning a car, although I did drive stick shift in my parents’ car, to pay my tuition, room, and board. We weren’t allowed to mooch off our parents, and had to pay them rent to live with them after we graduated. So we are tough. We don’t get upset at little things and hard work, like the younger generation. We had more fun because we had a sense of humor in every situation. We speak sarcasm as a second language (or maybe as a first language), because it makes life bearable. 💕

[@dongleason9878]

I don't know where you grew up but I am Gen X and I was not in when the lights came on, we could stay out much longer as long as we were in "the neighborhood". And I was not kicked out of the house and forced to drink from the hose. We chose to drink from the hose because it was just more convenient. And I was never sent to my room and locked in. If they were mad at me they told me to go outside and do yard work.

[@Zoleankico4267]

I hope you realize how lucky you are!

[@ariq911]

You're in the minority. Lucky you

[@lilycollegemythbusters5532]

I was gonna say that too. We did not have a curfew. We did not have an allowance. We were fully feral. I remember going the entire weekend with no shoes on my feet and out of the house all hours. My feet would have a layer of BLACK DIRT and then it would take a while to wash. I lived in Southern California and stayed out all weekend in the summer! No cell phones, no communication, and my dad never once asked me where I went! LOL!

[@Luvacanuck]

Um…wow. Apparently myself and everyone I know have lived VERY different lives. We only had one friend with divorced parents and nobody was “beaten”. We did stay out all day because 1) avoided chores if they couldn’t find you and 2) it was fun and that secret fort wasn’t going to build itself. The only time I was afraid of my (or anyone else’s) parents was if you broke something, got caught cursing or mouthed off. Cheers😊

[@deshunallen8486]

Good 4 u.

[@ColeTurner-sr8mc]

Boomer: I was tough on my boys, made them work for me during the summers (I owned a commercial drywall company) & they turned out fine, well adjusted and financially comfortable.

[@ronniejohnson317]

I actually had great parents , compared to most. But still, my dad didn’t try to have a relationship with me until I was out of high school. At that point, I had my life to live.

[@SeaSkorpion]

Okay I felt this video 😢 My bedroom door had the lock on the outside so I could be locked in. Also, my mother came into my room 2 weeks before I turned 18 and informed me I was to get a job, and pay rent, or I was to move out when I turned 18. I moved out, got a job on the other end of the state, and never looked back. My step dad beat me relentlessly, my uncles, my step grandfather, but my mother was my worst abuser. When I tried to get help in 5th grade, the school principal said I was just getting disciplined for the things I'd done wrong at home. Today my mother lements to her friends and my family that I'm a horrible person, because I never let her get to know my kids. She and her second abusive husband (the boomer she married when I was in my 20's after cheating on the one I grew up with) never made any attempt to contact them at my ex-wife's house. She always got mad at me because I never invited her to my house to see them either. Well she never called them, never tried to go see them, and rarely showed interest in their wellbeing. When my kids finally met her, it pissed her off when she tried ordering them around, and disciplining them, they simply ignored her cause they were teens and I didn't support her position. My sons, all 3 are in their 20's are decent guys, they still can't call her grandma, in their minds she is Dad's mother. No wonder, with how she treats people.

[@tooniemama6959]

Same. I was working full-time after I graduated High School and I moved out at 18. I felt bad doing that to my Mom. I just wanted to be independent. Went to college later in life, but I turned out okay. My Mom was a good Mom. ❤

[@Sweetiepie68]

I moved out at 17 joined, the Navy at 19.He’s so right!I did anything I could to get out!’!!!

[@blackitikatt533]

Yes Lord! I left home at 17 years old with .67 cents in my pocket and the clothes on my back! 😰

[@drivethrupoet]

Damn 67 cents lol that might as well be lint in your pocket today

[@blackitikatt533]

@@drivethrupoet : Yup! 😒

[@EnigmaParadox-pk4ce]

After reading a lot of the comments I'm horrified by what so many Gen Xers went through growing up!!! I think it might have had something to do with the Boomers' parents coming up during the Great Depression and then the continued deprivation of WWII. I'm not condoning their behavior by any means. It might explain their behavior though. Boomers were severely abused by *their* parents and they mostly continued that cycle of abuse. Hopefully the next generations will break that cycle. Now that we're better educated and have more understanding of psychology we're more aware of the damaging effects of abuse. We also have better and more effective resources. Well hang on to your hats kids because we're in for a bumpy ride! WWII was followed by a time of plenty. Looks like the pendulum is starting to swing the other way.

[@phatmonkey11]

Boomers were born post WWII. After the war the GI's came back and made lots of babies, hence the Baby Boom. And think of all that PTSD they had!

[@torstenscott7571]

I had terrible boomer parents, but it was my grandparents who took me in when my shitty parents threw me out at 16 (they argued that they made it on their own and so should I). My grandparents took me in, ensured I finished school, and encouraged me when I joined the military. I think that if anything, the WWII generation understood suffering and hardship, but unintentionally spoiled the boomers who became self absorbed.

[@GMarieWrites]

I think it’s more that a ,out of GenX kids might have a dad who was in The Korean or Vietnam wars, and came home to a country that hated them with a bad case of undiagnosed, untreated PTSD.

[@nosheenjones9785]

Never a truer word spoken!! As I've said many a time, I absolutely point blank refuse to be called anything other than gen X for the sake of 13 days!!

[@deborahrichardson3731]

He's right. We all talked about how asap we'd get a car and a job. We're moving out on our own, maybe with roommates, maybe not. And we did.

[@johnhorton9637]

When i was in the 5th grade during p.e. i messed up my knee. My mother didnt take me to doctor for like a week and half. Her and my step-dad told they couldn't afford the doctor bill. When my dad showed up to pick me and my brother up. He asked what happened. I told him. He said your ok. Finally i went to the doctor. The doctor said kid you badly bruised the knee bones . What happened. I told him . He got onto my parents about it. They both said hes fine. The doctor said yeah while hes limping around like a gimp. Sure. Hes fine. They got mad at me for that

[@phatmonkey11]

I had a similar experience. I broke my arm and got a concussion at cheerleading practice. My arm was so bad it looked like an "L"! I got no pain relief until my "stay at home" southern baptist mother showed up 3 hours later because she was "busy". I could hear the nurses complaining about her. I would get locked out of the house regularly because my mom was shopping or doing God knows what, this after walking home from school in the raging Tennessee heat, having no idea when someone would show up - but I damn well better be there when they did! I spent weekends taking care of my 3 much younger brothers so my parents could sleep. They always slept. I moved out not long after my 17th birthday. I put myself through college. I live 2000 miles away. And no surprise, they're deadbeat grandparents, not that I want them to have anything to do with my kids. BTW my mom made me try out for cheerleader and never once came to see a game, because she was supposedly too busy...and I constantly had to beg for rides from other parents to games or any events.

[@j.l.kautzman3914]

That's why we had so many runaways

[@elizabethclairewolfrosenda3391]

Yup, because in most US States child abuse laws that younger generations take somewhat for granted today didn't exist yet to protect us. I even ended up writing my senior term paper on the rising rate of teen homelessness among the Gen X youth trying to escape domestic violence. I remember conducting hours of research interviews with staff & even teens at youth shelters like Covenant House. Even as a teen who'd come very close at 12-13 becoming one of those kids myself, being shown the statistics was staggering.

[@rosshargett8019]

I'm Gen X 1974, and I wasn't raised that harshly. I could watch t.v. with my Mom, maybe because she was a single Mom most of my childhood. I could hang out in the living room with my friends. But yea, mostly we went outside until it was dark anyway. I knew and had some friends that were raised that way, so I do know what this guy is talking about. Also, when Mom had "boyfriends" over, I wasn't allowed in much. She eventually met a nice guy, and they're still married. I did move out at 17 and never went back home except to visit. He'll I still drink from a garden hose from time to time. Anyway, love my Gen. X folks only generation that tells it like it is.

[@doncunningham3124]

I'm a Gen Xer and can totally relate to this. My 18th birthday present was an unexpected eviction. No notice at all. I had nowhere to go so I enlisted in the Marine Corps. Within two weeks I found myself standing on the yellow footprints at MCRD San Diego. One of the best decisions I ever made at that age. It was so much easier than living with my dad.

[@451whitworth4]

I remember the DI yelling at me @MCRD San Diego in '88. In my mind I was thinking "do your worst, you've got NOTHING on my Dad!"

[@doreenbierens]

I was always happy if they sent me to my room. It was better than staying downstairs because my parents were always fighting over everything accept their kids. I could make myself invisible at a very young age.

[@Dierr0r]

👏👏👏 my life I swear still not allowed in that front room. I may not of used back door. Mostly window or garage lol the choir is speaking for sure

[@John-or9ccUndauntedRaceCars]

I remember the abuse & neglect well. We were scared to be home because of the beatings from a sadistic father who was also a deviant of the worst sort and a helpless mother too scared to say anything from years of beatings and other torments. When we were forced to be home, it was basically as slave labor. The abuse that every adult who knew us ignored ( teachers ,neighbors, town police, grandparents , everyone ) it was going on. Left home permanently @ 16, enlisted @ 17. Never looked back. I miss some things about the 80s a lot , but my home-family life and that town who pretended everything was fine ... nothing but hate & discontent.

[@KristelViljoen]

There was this popular saying that children should be seen not heard. My parents never ever helped me with my schoolwork. Once I came back from school with a letter from my teacher explaining that I struggled to read. That day my dad took me into his home office and beat me until I could read. They enrolled me in grade one when I was four while everyone else was six. ( I completed high school at the age of sixteen.) I remember that because I was so small everyone that passed me by would pat me on the top of my head. At the end of the day my head throbbed from the continuously patting. Those years they believed you fix a problem child with a good beating. My ligaments in my legs got torn from beatings with a wooden spoon. I went to school with black and blue bruises over my legs bearly able to walk, which was completely ignored by the teachers. When children got beaten up by teachers the parents would in return beat you again just because your behavior embarrassed them.

[@ladye8686]

Absolutely. If you get beat in school, you get double when you get home. That's what I was told.

[@tracykimber729]

Wow, heart breaking. In the area I grew up I didn’t know divorced parents all my friends had a mom and dad. I can’t recall anyone even having a stepdad. I feel so blessed after hearing what is man’s life is like. I drank from the hose and I ran the neighborhoods all day long but I didn’t dare enter the polar but I had a mom at home who cooked fantastic meals every night and a father who Took me auto racing, hunt and fish. I’m a girl And then I guess people would have transgendered me those days. There Has to be others like me that had family. When I got hurt I was told to walk it off and we didn’t dare enter any adult conversation so it’s so much similar to your stories but I actually drove into town where the people weren’t divorced and there was families. Did anyone else have this?

[@bonnieinla]

"I’m a girl And then I guess people would have transgendered me those days." What in the world...

[@TraceyStark]

Of course! Most of my friends parents never got divorced. Not to say that the marriages were all happy, but we all had a mom and dad. My parents fought a lot, so I used to invite myself to my best friend’s house for dinner. They had plenty and were happy to have me. Good times.

[@NiobiumThyme]

Preach it sister. Tomboy is a cuss word now. "F around, and find out," was my moto. I could fix a flat, rotate my tires and change my oil by the time I was 15, because my step father took his vows seriously. I drank from the hose, because I might miss something if I ran home. My mom was home and often magicaly appeared with snacks and koolaid if we were near my house. Maybe that just makes me twice as angry now, but Im pissed.

[@tracykimber729]

I love it. You rock! I loved my childhood. Tom boys was the best part of generation. I cleaned up well for events a total girl like you who could do all the boy stuff without it being judged.@@NiobiumThyme

[@tracykimber729]

My parents did fight at times. My father could flip table but yet my mother could push buttons. I looked back and I kind of giggle at the fights they had was one night he ran the mailbox over and another time he threw the Christmas tree at the front door but always worked out in the end. In those days I guess they thought and stay together my father could be dramatic. Again though my mother she just could do the most aggravating things so I did it a little bit@@TraceyStark

[@johnjohn7551]

As soon as I turned 18 I moved out and never looked back. Had a friend for a roommate then about 1year he moved out , my gf moved in. she was 17. Been together ever since.. we beat this world together the last 40 years.

[@JBRich1]

I’m an end boomer. We stayed gone because we didn’t want to go home. We had a blast figuring shit out on our own. If we went home, we’d be put to labor. We weren’t shut in our rooms either. We just needed to not make a shit ton of noise. If we wanted to, we had to go outside. My kids and I were buds, but I still had reasonable expectations. We are still very close.

[@user-eg7yt6by4m]

Damn straight up true 😎 That's why we're tough ass people We're not about the drama we survived the trauma

[@tooniemama6959]

Well-said. We are the generation of IDGAF what you think. We get shit done, and have no time for people's drama. We are strong and self-sufficient, because we had to grow the hell up before we turned 18! 😆

[@user-eg7yt6by4m]

@@tooniemama6959 Amen clamity loss of sanity but we made it Well said to you also & thank you Kids nowadays need to toughin instead of acting like stuffin lol Take care ❤️

[@jameswells554]

Got my first job at 14 to pay rent to my Dad and buy my own school clothes after my stepfather and mom fractured my skull; enlisted at 17 and NEVER looked back. I still won't let my Parents see their Grandchildren.

[@rebeccahaynie1045]

When we would visit my Dad’s parents (all our relatives lived out of state) they would have plastic on their sofas when we came to visit. Later I found out they only did this when WE came over. We also had to sit there with our hands folded and always had to ask to go to the bathroom. Like everyone says We Were Seen But Not Heard. Which means we had to sit there and be quiet and behave ourselves or else. We were taught to be respectful of other people’s property. Now these SQUATTERS can take control of YOUR home. Not back then they couldn’t. So GLAD I grew up back then. These younger generations today are totally CLUELESS. It’s time to wake them up.

[@anamelendez-dejesus8337]

I'm really enjoying just reading all of these comments with their stories. Sherri thank you for this channel. Makes me feel all warm and fuzzy inside. 😊

[@willyt3186]

I broke my ankle when I was like 12 and my boomer parents said I was fine. Didn’t go to doctors and get a cast until like a week later

[@lorireed8046]

It's really weird to me y'all had boomer parents. The Boomers were my older siblings. I was the babysitter since I was 10 ... If I liked it or not . I had a step Mom that didn't take me in for a broken arm. It had to be rebroken to get set .

[@EnigmaParadox-pk4ce]

​@@lorireed8046OMG!!!😱That's terrible!!!

[@EnigmaParadox-pk4ce]

WOW!!! Some of you guys OMG!!! It's heartbreaking to hear what so many of you went through!💔

[@lorireed8046]

@@EnigmaParadox-pk4ce Really just life. This is why no one truly wants to mess with Gen Xers.... Feelings not being heard and the "I was yelled at" are not abusive.

[@giannablack5770]

Same! Except I was also beaten for crying, until my mom thought maybe something was wrong

[@MRSyelgnal]

Women stopped parenting when the "free sex" revolution took place. My Mother and her siblings were left home alone a lot to fend for themselves while Mom ( my grams) was out doing coke. I was than the product of gen X. Single Mother household. So typical latch key kid. *Boomers were too bothered to parent *Gen X was too stressed to parent * now Millennials are too lost to parent. I thank God for my church where i have been taught how to love my husband and children. God was my only Hope and He didn't let me down.

[@mickieb946]

“Go to your room” was a punishment. After dinner dishes on school nights, it was in the room to do homework. Only allowed out to go to the bathroom across the hall. No TV (only one in the living room), no telephone (only one in the kitchen), no radio or stereo (finally inherited the parents’ AM clock radio when they went digital at age 13)… thank god for books! My adolescence was like being a caged tiger climbing the walls when I was “in the house” so I stayed out of it whenever I could.

[@angelmd43]

Yea but we are tougher because of it.💪

[@miriamhavard7621]

Doesn't excuse the meanness.

[@Chasing_Auroras]

​@@miriamhavard7621 I agree. Our Parents unfortunately lived vicariously through us. I keep hearing about generational karma contracts/cycles, and how we are responsible for breaking it. GenXers bridged the gap between the old world and the new.

[@GottesKrieger]

I’m Gen x born 75 I was never locked in my room. My room didn’t have a door because my parents got sick of me locking them out of my room. They took the door off so they’d always be able to see in there if I was doing shot I wasn’t sposed to.

[@Crystal_Abbott-jn6xs]

Born in 1960 but experienced everything Sherri talks about. Left the house in the morning and didn’t come home until after dark. I drank from the hose, I rode my bike 5+ miles to hang out at the mall, my mom really didn’t care about my feelings and I had freaking awesome music. While technically a boomer, I very much relate to everything Sherri says. 0:06

[@srbhrm06]

Okay, I'm a GenXer in my early '50s. Yes, my brother and I were gone during the summer from morning to dusk, because that's what we as kids did back then. Not because our parents didn't want us around. I know my parents enjoyed having us kids around, though they did not want us sitting around watching TV. And honestly, my stepdad sacrificed his time working a second job along with being in the military to pay for my ice skating as I was a competitive ice skater. That man would get me up at 4:00am in the morning, take me to go skate 2 hours, then bring me home so I could then go to school and he could go to work in the Army. He then would come home at 4:30 to have dinner and then he would leave at 5:00 to go work 5 hours to earn extra money to pay for my skating. That is not a stepdad or a parent that doesn't want a child around. Now my brother and I did have responsibilities around the house and every Saturday after we watched our cartoons, we were supposed to clean the house. That was one of our many chores and if we didn't do it well enough to my mom's satisfaction then we would have to do it again. One of the great things about GenXers is that we learn to be independent, resourceful, creative able to handle adversity and so many other good qualities that most kids these days do not have or ever learn. So yeah we did go stay out all day and didn't come home until the light came on but not because our parents didn't want us around because it was fun to go and spend the day with our friends. And that's what a lot of kids did prior to us.

[@MichelleH1791]

Sadly, he's right.

[@Whitetail7]

@Sherri, shit if you didn't have a job by age 8, you were just lazy! Moved out when I turned 16 (Emancipated Minor) Had my first home at 16! I got no time for nonsense today because we were taught, we were non-existent! We could write books 📚🙏❤️🕯️

[@Whitetail7]

Ohh yeah I almost forgot about that child that called us Ancient... talking about the walkman 😅😂

[@michellemifflin9296]

We were farm kids, so if we weren't outside, our parents found us extra chores. Since I was the only girl, mom made sure my chores were house chores and I hated (still do!) house chores. Even when we went to visit our grandparents and cousins in town 15 minutes away, we were still always outside. Usually climbing a grain bin or jumping off the train bridge into the canal. Honestly, we're lucky we all made it past puberty!

[@ShelleybutyoucancallmeShell]

Oh, Sherri, (yeah, I KNOW what I did there!) you hit the nail on the head in all of your videos, and so did this guy you featured here.❤

[@TC-cr2oy]

And if you made any noise before the parents woke up, you'd get your ass beat. My mom wasn't a boomer, she didn't care what we did so long as we were quite and gone.

[@Clairveux11]

All facts. Thank you :) and why would anyone be proud of drinking from a hose absorbing the lead from it. 😢 when I was in first grade I played in the railroad tracks putting pennies on it so they would flatten. Which was super fun but damn!

[@mannykps]

I moved out at 17 yo. My family was stationed in Turkey (USAF). I was sent back to the states with my 19 yo brother and told to “figure it out”. This video is 100% true.

[@BornFree0731]

I have looked at this about 10x!😂 This guy is hilarius! I love his voice and explanations. I am from the end of the Boomers (61) and lived through the overlap to the 70's. I laughed so hard bc we had it 5 notches up tougher than them. IF we were allowed to GET in the car to go shopping (clothes or food) you knew you better not touch or ask for anything or got lost cause if you messed up it would be a looong time bf you ever got in that car again!

[@debbiep4647]

OMG. My mom had living room were not allowed in! 🤣

[@jenniferclemente1516]

Left at 14!!

[@Zoleankico4267]

15 here, but was forced back. Then “mom” said, “the sooner you’re out, the happier I’ll be!” So I did it right the 2nd time, and had a place with a roommate at 17. Finally called her out on her hypocrisy in my late 40’s, and she told me I was mean, and she hasn’t spoke to me since. Going on 10 years. I was adopted, but after having 5 of my own children, I don’t understand how someone can disown their children. 🤯 My dad was horrible too, but they divorced, and thankfully my step mom tried to make the weekends fun. 💖