#21

On New Year's eve 1999, parts of the world held their collective breath. The masses waited for planes to fall from the sky, computers to stop working, bank vaults to burst open, and the world to end. Billions were spent preparing for the worst. The Y2K bug was about to bite as the clock struck 12. Or so some thought...
As Forbes reported, "computers around the world weren’t equipped to deal with the fact of the year 2000. Their software thought of years as two digits. When the year 99 gave way to the year 00, data would behave as if it were about the year 1900, a century before, and system upon system in an almost infinite chain of dominoes would fail. Billions were spent trying to prepare for what seemed almost inevitable."
#22

Pre-internet, all of these things were mysteries and you had to hope you had smart friends or a very well-stocked library nearby.
Editing to add that applying for jobs was the worst. You'd have to submit your resume in paper, then go home and wait for a call that might never come, meanwhile you could be out looking for other jobs.
#23
#24
Li_3303:
And Librarians! (I’m a retired librarian).
In a bizarre "twist of fate", on 1 January 2000, we entered the 21st century. A whole new millenium. Much ado about nothing. Babies were born. Life went on. Not a single plane fell from the sky. The masses breathed a collective sigh of relief and continued partying like it was 1999.
Just as we find some things super strange about the past, it’s quite likely that the kids of the future will look back on the 2020s and wonder what the hell we were thinking. Afterall, with every new era comes a new normal. What do you think seems normal now but will seem oddly peculiar in a couple of years? Let us know in the comments.
#25

#26
#27

Not knowing 1 single person's phone number - except my vet's office of of 30 years. For some reason it is the only number I still remember. Not including Jenny's number of course.
#28
#29

alwayssoupy:
Yes, and my parents would leave us 4 kids in the car while they stopped for groceries. It seemed like they were gone for a while, but I'm not sure now. At least long enough for everyone to be dared to honk the horn, run the windshield wipers, and if we were really brave, get out and run in a circle around the car.
#30

Free roaming pets, especially dogs which is far more rare now except in rural areas. It was common to have one or two neighborhood dogs that everybody knew by name, just wandering around.
#31
#32
Toys. You got one or two. Not a full room. By time your 10 it’s full but took time to build up a collection. I had a pink car. Brother 1 helicopter and brother 2 train so one toy each till we were like 4 and 5. We could play with toilet roll tubes. Coat hangers. Make up our own toys. We got hand me down toys aswell. But it was never just buy a toy. It was earned. Birthday present or Christmas or earned by doing good work or a job
#33

#34
Scottybt50:
My wife recalls as a kid being sent over to visit a friend who had chicken pox.
#35
#36
#37

These days I don’t even think I’d answer the door for my sister if she dropped in unexpectedly.



