Getting Old

One of my friend shared this long time back. Slightly longish but good read. Enjoy

According to today's regulators and bureaucrats, those of us who were
Kids in the 60's, 70's and early 80's probably shouldn't have survived,
Because our baby cots were covered with brightly coloured lead-based paint,
which was promptly chewed and licked. We had no childproof lids on medicine
bottles, or latches on doors or cabinets and it was fine to play with
pans.

When we rode our bikes, we wore no helmets, just flip flops and
Fluorescent 'spokey dokeys' on our wheels. As children, we would ride in
cars with No seat belts or airbags - riding in the passenger seat was a treat.
We drank water from the garden hose and not from a bottle and it
tasted the same. We ate chips, bread and butter pudding and drank fizzy pop
with sugar in it, but we were never overweight because we were always outside
playing. We shared one drink with four friends, from one bottle or can and no
one actually died from this.

We would spend hours building go-carts out of scraps and then went top
speed down the hill, only to find out we forgot the brakes. After running
into stinging nettles a few times, we learned to solve the problem.
We would leave home in the morning and could play all day, as long as
we were back before it got dark. No one was able to reach us and no one minded.

We did not have Play stations or X-Boxes, no video games at all. No 99
channels on TV, no videotape movies, no surround sound, no mobile
phones, no personal computers, and no Internet chat rooms. We had friends
and we went outside and found them.

We played elastics and street rounders, and sometimes that ball really
hurt. We fell out of trees, got cut and broke bones but there were no
lawsuits. We had full on fistfights but no prosecution followed from
other parents. We played knock-and-run and were actually afraid of the
owners catching us.

We walked to friend's homes. We also, believe it or not, WALKED to
school; we didn't rely on mummy or daddy to drive us to school, which was
just round the corner.

We made up games with sticks and tennis balls. We rode bikes in packs
of 7 and wore our coats by only the hood. The idea of a parent bailing us
out if we broke a law was unheard of. They actually sided with the law.
This generation has produced some of the best risk-takers and problem
solvers and inventors, ever. The past 50 years have been an explosion
of innovation and new ideas. We had freedom, failure, success and
responsibility, and we learned how to deal with it all.

And you're one of them. Congratulations!

Pass this on to others who have had the luck to grow as real kids,
Before lawyers and government regulated our lives, for our own good.
For those of you who aren't old enough thought you might like to read
about us.

This my friends, is surprisingly frightening ...and it might put a smile on your face:

The majority of students in universities today were born in 1983...they are called youth.

They have never heard of We are the World, We are the children, and
The Uptown Girl they know is by Westlife not Billy Joel.

They have never heard of Rick Astley, Bananarama, Nena or Belinda Carlisle.
For them, there has always been only one Germany and one Vietnam.

AIDS has existed since they were born. CD's have existed since they
were born. Michael Jackson has always been white.

To them John Travolta has always been round in shape and they can't
Imagine how this fat guy could be a god of dance.

They believe that Charlie's Angels and Mission Impossible are Films From last year.
They can never imagine life before computers.
They'll never have pretended to be the A Team, RedHand Gang or the Famous Five.
They can't believe a black and white television ever existed and don't
Even know how to switch on a TV without a remote control.
And they will never understand how we could leave the house without a mobile phone.

Now let's check if we're getting old...

1. You understand what was written above and you smile.
2. You need to sleep more, usually until the afternoon, after a night out.
3. Your friends are getting married/already married.
4. You are always surprised to see small children playing comfortably with computers.
5. When you see teenagers with mobile phones, you shake your head.
6. You meet your friends from time to time, talking about the good old
days, repeating again all the fun you have experienced together.
7. Having read this mail, you are thinking of forwarding it to some
other friends because you think they will like it too...

Yes, you're getting older and still rocking away to the 80's music!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!