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KIDS IN THE FIFTIES...

Were you a kid in the Fifties or earlier?

Comedians joke. Grandkids snicker.

Twenty-somethings shudder and say "Eeeew!" But was our childhood really all
that bad? Judge for yourself:

In 1953: The US population was less than 150 million ... Yet you knew more
people then, and knew them better... And that was good.

The average annual salary was under $3,000...Yet our parents could put some
of it away for a rainy day and still live a decent life...And that was good.

A loaf of bread cost about 15 cents...But it was safe for a five-year-old to
skate to the store and buy one... And that was good.

Prime-time meant I Love Lucy, Ozzie and Harriet, and Lassie ... So nobody'd
ever heard of ratings or filters...And that was good.

We didn't have air-conditioning...So the windows stayed up and half a dozen
mothers ran outside when you fell off your bike... And that was good.

Your teacher was either Miss Matthews or Mrs. Logan or Mr. Adkins...But not
Ms Becky or Mr. Dan ... And that was good.

The only hazardous material you knew about...Was a patch of grassburrs around
the light pole at the corner... And that was good.

Most families needed only one job...Meaning Mom was home when school let
out... And that was good.

You loved to climb into a fresh bed...Because sheets were dried on the
clothesline... And that was good.

People generally lived in the same hometown with their relatives... So "child
care" meant grandparents or aunts and uncles...And that was good.

TV was in black-and-white... But all outdoors was in glorious color... And
that was certainly good.

Your Dad knew how to adjust everybody's carburetor... And the Dad next door
knew how to adjust all the TV knobs... And that was very good.

Your grandma grew snap beans in the back yard...And chickens behind the
garage... And that was definitely good.

And just when you were about to do something really bad ...Chances were you'd
run into your high school coach...Or the nosy old lady from up the
street...Or your little sister's piano teacher...Or somebody from
church...ALL of whom knew your parents' phone number...And YOUR first name...
And even THAT was good!

Things have definitely changed. Have they changed for the better?????