Despite the fact that our parents love to talk about just how hard they used to have it when we stop and think, it becomes depressingly clear that a lot of commonplace things have fallen into the luxury category without almost anyone noticing.
So one internet user wanted to hear others' thoughts, so people from all over the net shared the items and experiences that used to be downright regular and are now seen as extravagant. We also got in touch with zombiem00se, who made the original post. So read through and prepare a tissue after you weep for better times, and be sure to upvote your favorites. And don’t forget to comment your own thoughts and examples below.
#41
Groceries to last you the week, like nothing fancy or bougie, just enough food to just permit grocery shopping once a week
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101points
#42
Working hard to put yourself through college, buy a house, and a truck.
Surviving on entry level wages
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95points
#43
Being able to go out every Friday after work and being able to afford it
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93points
#44
I remember as a kid, where I live they would allow people to just visit an area of the airport from where they could see the runway and flights take off - they didn’t have to pay anything for it - people would spend hours just looking at flights take off and land ❤️
EDIT: To everyone saying this is still doable in many parts of the world - that’s great, I haven’t been to those parts of the world yet and where I come from one would still need to pay a certain amount to get in and watch from a glass cabin or so. Back in the day, there would just be a gate on the airport ground, a small barricade where you could just stand for hours and nobody would bother.
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92points
#45
Pork Belly. Used to be a bad cut of meat that was disposed of or given to the poor for dirt cheap prices. Then rich people realized that the poor made it delicious, which then caused prices to skyrocket.
91points
#47
Apartments. I could get a one bedroom apartment in the state if Wisconsin back in 1997 for under $500. Now that same apartment $1800.
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88points
#48
PC games coming with physical media, manuals, and "swag" as standard.
The maps, trinkets, toys, and sometimes even novels came with games. It made the game an event. Now people just download games and they sit unplayed in a digital library until the urge to try them comes along.
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88points
#49
Photographs on actual photographic paper. I know its still possible but oh so rare.
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81points
#50
Ooh I love this game!
* Having a hot tub
* Having a boat
* Also: having one boat for lake fishing and another for sea fishing
* Having one working parent and one parent staying home with the kids
* A four bedroom house on a lake in the countryside
* Having a ‘game room’ or ‘play room’ in your house
* Having a bar with a pool table in your basement
* A home cooked meal every night
* Also, getting most of your veggies from the garden because one of your parents has enough free time to spend most of the day gardening
* Situations where the parents take random classes in geology or calligraphy or whatever, just to get out of the house because they’re bored and have too much time
* Every adult in the family has their own car, and sometimes one adult has a ‘project car’
* Having “shopping” or “home improvement” as a hobby. Just buying a bunch of new stuff because you can’t think of anything else to do
* Having a boat
* Also: having one boat for lake fishing and another for sea fishing
* Having one working parent and one parent staying home with the kids
* A four bedroom house on a lake in the countryside
* Having a ‘game room’ or ‘play room’ in your house
* Having a bar with a pool table in your basement
* A home cooked meal every night
* Also, getting most of your veggies from the garden because one of your parents has enough free time to spend most of the day gardening
* Situations where the parents take random classes in geology or calligraphy or whatever, just to get out of the house because they’re bored and have too much time
* Every adult in the family has their own car, and sometimes one adult has a ‘project car’
* Having “shopping” or “home improvement” as a hobby. Just buying a bunch of new stuff because you can’t think of anything else to do
I grew up lower-middle class in the 90s, and we had all of these things. My dad made $28-32k depending on the year, and my mom stayed home.
The biggest difference was the sheer amount of free time everyone had.
Edit: The biggest thing I personally miss from that era was the culture of taking classes or going to school just because you want to learn something cool. One time my mom took a six month course on how to make those glass signs with neon gas, for no reason other than “because they’re cool”. Another time she learned how to weld, and there was a solid two year period where she and a bunch of her friends from the PTA took finance/economics courses at a community college just for fun. My aunt got a Masters from RISD when she was in her 60s just because she wanted to.
About a year ago I signed up for a course in auto mechanics just because I think cars are cool and wanted to know more about how they work, and the guy teaching the class was *really* weirded out and didn’t let me join because I didn’t want a career as a mechanic. This whole “education is for a job only” thing is really weird to me.
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74points
