No cable television, no video games and no CD players.
But we did have transistor radios and AM radio!
Medicine did not have child proof lids.
There were no, or little used, seat belts in cars.
Parents smoked right in front of us...and
even while *expecting* us!
Our sodas were loaded with sugar,
we ate white bread slathered in real butter and drank
full fat milk.
We rode our bikes
with no helmets...yet we survived. How did we do it?
We had fun. Uh huh. We did.
And there was nothing unsafe about any of these toys right?
Right?
Here are some of the things that I enjoyed in the 1960s.
Do any of them look familiar to you?
Toys in those days didn’t come with warnings
about small parts or sharp edges or fumes.
Between toxic fumes,
fire hazards,
the potential for losing a
limb (or an eye) and even poisoning
I am surprised we survived!
Who would have thought that just by
the sheer fact that you
are reading this you are
(hopefully) a survivior...
Okay, so a few kids impaled themselves
with these things...
does that mean that none of us can play
with them? Come on now...
Let's experiment with atomic energy
and "blow things up real good"!
It came with three "very low-level"
radioactive sources,
four samples of Uranium-bearing ores,
and an Electroscope
to measure radioactivity.
The neighbor kids must have been
positively glowing with envy.
Nothing unsafe about a hot metal unit that
could reach 3,000 degrees to heat up the Plasti-Goop
or the toxic fumes it produced.
Nope.
Imagine the hours of fun that
could have been had if you
had this toy and the atom lab...wow. Good Times.
Loved the sound they made...but never mind
cousin Bobby's front teeth.
Or that kid up the
street who has to wear
the eye patch for a month...
Yeah...and you can always chew on the stuff too...
I am sure there was nothing dangerous about it!
We made our OWN zip lines back then...
ever try it from the house's roof top?
My friend Andy did. I sure miss that boy.
Learning tool and gun all in one!
Flies a whole 4 feet or more!
The better to put the eye out of the nasty kid
up the block!
Just don't burn your retinas too...
Maybe not dangerous but wrong on so many levels...
Came with the coolest cutting tool...
...my next door neighbor,
3 Fingered Sally,
LOVED this toy!
And when we tired of these toys there were always
M-80s, BB Guns, Swiss Army Pocket Knives
and Cherry Bombs to play with...
I mean, you HAD to have the Cherry Bombs
and M-80s to blow up
your GI Joe didn't you?
Uh huh...life was simpler back then.
Cheaper too obviously!
Stay safe now...
Hugs,
Susie Q
