What a great topic! I agree with everything you wrote..It is sad...I think I miss the "trust" mostly...We didn't have to keep the doors locked, even when we weren't home..I still have a hard time with that...I also miss the visiting...In growing up we always had company, Sunday dinners and just plain visits..Now everyone is too busy...Your grandmother, like so many of our's, sounds like a very wise lady, too bad we don't have that today.....

I too miss what I can remember as much simpler times.

I also miss manners, as I don't recall folks not having them back when I was growing up. Please, thank you, and you're welcome were the norm and most children were taught them at a very early age. Remember Moms saying to their child when the child was given something, "What do you say now?"

I miss Sunday closings of businesses, and families being more like families, and more Moms being stay at home Moms rearing their children and running the household. I know that is this day and age though that Sunday closings would place a lot of hardship on a lot of those who are employed...yet somehow it worked fine years and years ago.

It seems like so many folks live life in the fast lane anymore, just as I did for so many of my working years. It has sure been nice, slowing down, and being retired. Taking early retirement (at 48 years old) was one of the best decisions I ever made.

Sue

Manners and respect for your fellow human being.

amen, angelaid...2 of my kids are very good about teaching the grands please and thank you...one isn't and you can see the difference..

- There appears to be so much more anger & hatred in the world today.

- Children of all ages DO NOT respect their elders and seem to be spoiled more than ever.

- Face to face communication has died - almost

- Life was just more simple

Customer service

Good neighbors

Slower pace of life

allowing parents to discipline their children and control/respect within the family. Neighbors you could trust Volunteer workers who just do their share/job
people having hobbies and teaching each other
respect and acceptance for other religions and races and cultures

I still have good neighbors and feel I can trust people. I miss being young and being able to do things like ride my pony or horse and fish in the river and have great summers being a kid.

Sue

Yes, I agree to all that has been said/ especially face to face conversation.... Texting is so anoying, my daughters... and oldest grandson are constantly texting...they don't uderstand why I refuse to add texting.. I want to hear your voice at least.. would prefere face to face conversation if possible...

Family dinners! Where everyone sits, talks on and on, and no one in a hurry to go here or there. Just good ole familiy time!

It seems to me that we are so much more fearful than we were when I was young. If I even see a little kid riding a bicycle, he is geared up like he was going to play football with a pro team who would treat him as one of them.

That is if I see a kid riding a bicycle - kids don't seem to play outside anymore, period.

We are fearful in some areas, though, for good reasons. I never even heard of a Home Invasion as a kid - if the burgler thought you were home, he went elsewhere. If somebody was going to break in in the first place, I never knew anyone who had their house broken into. There have been a whole string of home invasions in my really decent neighborhood - that scares the very daylights out of me, though not as much as it would have if I still had a young child living in the house.

In general, the fear factor of simply living and breathing and eating is way, way up from where it was when I was growing up or a very young adult in the '70's.

It also seems to me that behaving with dignity is no longer a thing to strive for in our everyday lives. I think this is society's loss.

I miss going to my Mom's on Sunday for lunch. My family, my 2 sisters, my 2 brothers and their families used to spend most of the afternoon at Mom & Dad's on Sunday.

I miss a lot of that also.

When I was growing up, parents sent their kids outside to play. The kids could go anywhere on their bikes and they mightnot be seen again until dinner time. Now I can't even let my kids play in the front yard.

People thinking they are "entitled" to things. Not that they have to "earn" them...be it respect or material goods.

Thinking you need to make people (especially children) "feel good" about themseves. That's another thing that is "earned" in my opinion.

Another one...Sunday Potroast with family.

Manners....seems like very few people say please and thank you.

Like Redcurls said.."entitled". Seems like kids today feel like we owe them everything. They want it all, they want it today and for the cheapest price.

I miss when you could sit outside with your neighbors and chat.

Remember when kids would play outside? Today they (and lots of adults) sit in front of their tv's with their X Box games.

People didn't come home and head right to their "office" and play on their computers.

Writing letters...too much texting these days. Email is great but I still like to write letters when I can.

Cards....people just seem to send ecards and don't take the time to write out a card.

SamKaren
your resident DJ

It was a "kinder and gentler world" when I was young and growing up.

Reading the above comments, Family togetherness seems to be the missing ingredient. I'm the last surviving member of my immediate large family. Those times are sorely missed, and I work hard at keeping my little family together by getting together for birthdays and holidays. So far it is working very well.

I think we each need to look at ourselves and see what we might do to make that "kinder and gentler world possible." Give up being angry at the other driver that cuts you off, or the clerk that makes a mistake; stop using foul language, listening to raunchy music, watching certain TV shows. Speak quietly, especially to your children. I learned my kids listened better when I spoke almost in a whisper.

Above all, maintain your dignity.

"If there's to be peace on earth, let it begin with me."

Sue

Everything! Vique

I could eat what ever I wanted to and no one would lecture me about how bad it was for me.

I miss Chicken Fried Steak with Gravy Mashed Taters and Fried Okra. LOL! Homemade Bread with Homemade Butter.

Fried Eggs, Gravy and Biscuits with 3 slabs of Bacon and Grits on the side.

I still have both about once a year. I'm not dead yet.

Being ignorant of all that goes on in the world.

Happy, You can still eat anything you want unless you are watching your weight. We were raised on that kind of food and my mom is 97 years old and still goes out and picks up the twigs off the yard. They will find out one day that there are unknown things in those types of food that we needed.

Things have really changed from when I was growing up all those many years ago. What I miss is being able to speak to children or give them a hug without having someone think that you are a pervert and are going to harm them. When I first started teaching, I would give the kids a hug when they needed it but now it is looked upon as some sort of assault.

In reading what everyone else has posted, I think that the "good old days" were just that. We may not have had every toy and new clothes every week or so, but we were happy and things were good.

When I was growing up, all the neighbors would sit out on their porches after dinner or wander over to other neighbor's porches to visit. Everybody knew everyone and stayed in touch. We didn't have "Neighborhood Watch" because we didn't need it. We all knew everyone else's business and schedules. LOL

I also miss the official Sunday dinners of either pot roast, chicken, or ham. Nowadays, we tend to eat out for our "big meal" after church, and we snack at dinnertime. I sure do miss those times around the dinner table.

.......when no one said the "f" word. It just makes me ill to hear it used all the time. I also miss the days of TV sitcoms when there was more of a plot than sex. Bah,humbug,say I, and so does the old woman who lives here.

"When I was growing up, parents sent their kids outside to play. The kids could go anywhere on their bikes and they mightnot be seen again until dinner time. Now I can't even let my kids play in the front yard."

Yes, parents let their kids out for the day when we were young, but it was never safe to do that. I know that first hand, and others here have said the same thing. We just did not talk about sensitive subjects then, so people were often not aware of the dangers that were out there.

Yeah....decent TV...I miss being able to watch shows like we did as a family...."nowadays" I can't even think of watching something on network TV with the grandkids and I don't much care for the teenage shows they watch on DisneyChannel.

The skinny body and tight skin

I miss so much.

I miss family dinners and visiting family. No one in my family visits anyone anymore. My great niece and nephews don't even know who I am. I am the only person in my family that initiates contact. We were all so close at one time. No fighting or disagreements between us - everyone is just wrapped up in their own lives or that of their inlaws.

I miss variety shows on television. I am not a prude but I just think there is too much sex on tv. Bring back shows like Carol Burnett and Red Skelton, Ed Sullivan, etc. I wish children didn't grow up so fast and still played with dolls and dinky toys and didn't go on the computer so much. My friends and I played with our Barbie's for the last time when we were 15 years old and even then we didn't want to stop playing with them. LOL

Anne

decent TV clean language at home and in public and on
TV/radio. My Mom, I wish she were still here to give me a hug and tell me everything is going to be ok. I sure would hug her more if she were here.

Stargazzer please give your sweet mom a gentle hug from me!!

Miss a lot of things, but in reading the paper today, I have to agree with the Supreme Court justice Scalia who finds fault with the foul mouthed "glitterati" on radio and tv. Cursing and the use of foul language happens everywhere these days. In the old days, people did not cuss in public or mixed company. They did not use the word "crap" either. My dad used to quote Bennet Cerf, the publisher and tv personality, who said that those who resort to cursing are demonstrating their lack of a sufficient vocabulary.

Playing outside until the street lights came on.

No cell phones attached to everyones ear.

Falling off your bike and getting a bandaid on your knees from a neighbor without worrying that they were a pervert for touching you.

Never staying inside all day to play XBOX or watch TV!

Free speech before the days of everything uttered having to be politically correct.

Shame...people used to be ashamed of themselves and it was OK to express disappointment and shame in someone. Now it's been replaced with "self-esteem" UGH.

Accountability.

Honor.

Patriotism.

It all pretty much would be covered under RESPECT.

Amen, wildchild.

Ron

Thanks everyone for your replies. Some of you mentioned things that I hadn't even thought about for years, and I fondly remember those too. Memories of dinners, picnics, aunts and uncles, kisses and hugs of yesteryear.

Simplicity

Whwn the neighbors would get together and have a party to welcome new neighbor. To see kids in the neighborhhod playing Kick the Can or riding their bicycles. It's a different world.

I mostly miss the people that aren't in my life anymore, some passed before their time. :(

I miss good old fashioned fun, the kind you could have without batteries or a computer connection.

I miss the aroma of my grandma's kitchen.

I miss eating food without having someone standing over you telling you it's either high in carbs, high in sodium, high in calories, too much this, too little that. We never knew what a carbohydrate was back in the 60's and 70's.

The enjoyment of watching a show in the moment. I remember when the Wizard of Oz would come on once a year. It was a neighborhood event, deciding where it would be watched and with whom. By the time I had kids it was on tape and their attention span was so short and with the knowledge that they could shove it in the VCR anytime it didn't seem so special anymore. The magic is gone, sadly. :(

I miss that girl who could do a hard days work and not wake up tired the NEXT day.
I have it better now than in the good old days - at least for today!

My mother used to have card parties on week day afternoons. The ladies used to dress up and have nice finger foods. I liked that.

Someone told me once that you can't miss what you didn't have, but I find that not to be true in my case. I miss my mother and I never knew her. She died of stomach cancer just as I was turning 2. I've been told by her friends and my aunt what a wonderful thoughtful person she was. I feel I missed out on so much.
Sorry this is not the place for this. I'm just having a bad day today.

THESE are the good ol' days! :~)
BJ

BJ, there are a lot of things I like about these days. I like the fact if a girl gets pregnant, the baby is not a labeled as a "B*****d. I like the fact that a person can live the lifestyle they want to live with out hiding it and that we can live with someone we love without marriage. Years ago people criticized others if they were different, but today, they have to be careful before about labeling people.

being young without aches abd pains.

Ditto, Stargazzer. Have you seen Milk? Such a good movie about those good ol' days of the '70's and how they cemented the foundation for today's human rights.

I recently overheard my 15 year old DD reminising with her friend about the good old days. To them, that was the late '90's! LOL

What I miss about the good ol days...? They make clothes a lot smaller now than back then. ;-)

I miss my Mom....she died 40 years ago today.
I also miss the price of gasoline but guess it wasn't really cheap since minimum wage was $1.25.
I miss the warm summer nights playing outside and walking on homemade stilts.....playing baseball in the street during the day. It was nice we made up our own rules and settled our own conflicts.

I miss EVERYTHING! Especially "live" people on the telephone. I just hate those automated calls, you can't get anyone to help you just a recording!!!

I miss everything. It was a kinder gentler time and kids were free to run all over town. It was the best of times and I would go back in a heartbeat and forsake all the great inventions we have now.

No I haven't seen Milk, but I did watch The Sandlot last week it had some wonderful cars, signs on stores, fashion and hair styles from the 40' and 50's. fun to watch.

I had a wonderful childhood in the 1950s and 60s. I had a great "best friend" I still keep in touch with, my parents took such good care of us I never worried about anything, my Dad made $100 a week but we always had everything we needed. My Mom was a great "banker" . She worked on the envelope system and there was always a little extra.

tv shows that weren't full of violence and sex.

having a paper boy/girl deliver your newspaper. Now you are lucky if the adult driving the mini van can throw your paper even close to your driveway.

Joann...I am in TOTAL agreement. I HATE not being able to speak to a live person when calling a company. Even worse then the "Press 1 for English" is the system that is voice activated. You tell them what you want and you hear "I'm sorry I did not understand you"....Isn't that why I pressed English in the first place!!!!

Nessie..you are so right! Now days it seems everything is bad for. Carbs, calories, MSG, sodium, etc....no one even gave them a second thought.