# What did you like / dislike about where you grew up?



## Bretrick (Dec 23, 2021)

I loved being surrounded by bush, and mountains to climb. 
I loved being so close to magnificent rivers. 
I loved going fishing every weekend.
I disliked living in a small town where everyone knew your business. 
Where all the adults told the youth what to do as if they were their parents. 
Adults going tut-tut, all the time, saying, "I told you so"


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## win231 (Dec 23, 2021)

LOL - My family was rather poor when I was 3 or 4.  We lived in a run-down apartment somewhere in downtown L.A.  I loved it because it came with its own pets - rats.
I'd sit on the floor in the dining room & share my lunch with 4 rats that sat in my lap & let me pet them.  They showed up every day at the same time.
In fact, I told my mom "Let's never move from here; I love this place."
She'd say, "What do you mean; this is a dump."
When I told her about my "pets," her eyes got huge & she said "You're CRAZY!"


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## Geezerette (Dec 23, 2021)

My home town: From the perspective of 2021, education, intelligence and science were respected.
I only realized when I got much older how comparatively diverse it was., ethnically, due to a number of WW 2 refugees , other races, diverse religions, living mostly in harmony.an urban capital city but with agriculture, lake and mountain resorts, and some industry.
Respect for others, but willing to state one’s position.
I just took for granted that life was like that, and in many places it turned out not to be. But, 
For a woman in my generation, that background made me usually feel well equipped to handle whatever came along.


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## Verisure (Dec 23, 2021)

Bretrick said:


> What did you dislike about where you grew up?​


Everything.


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## officerripley (Dec 23, 2021)

Liked: temperate weather, big city area so lots to do/services, etc.
Disliked: very expensive to live there (so no money some years for back-to-school clothing/supplies); and since it was an area of both "old money" and "new money", people could be pretty snobby.


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## Fyrefox (Dec 24, 2021)

I liked the fact that I could visit world-class, big-city museums and other cultural attractions while still living in the suburbs.  I disliked the conspicuous consumption, peer-group clannishness, and the mentality that you were only as good as what you and your family possessed…


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## Geezer Garage (Dec 24, 2021)

I grew up in southern Wisconsin. Enjoyed it for the most part. Great people, and loved living in the country as a kid. When I got back back from overseas, John Denver got me interested in Colorado. Went and took a look, and never looked back. Had to go back to WI to handle two family estates a few years ago, and it was a far cry from what I remembered as a kid. Everything was built up to the point it was unrecognizable. Hard drug use was rampant (spent six months getting my last surviving nephew off of heroin), and what had been a fairly liberal environment, seems to have morphed into something from Animal Farm. That, and the weather. Hot and humid in the summer, mosquito's, and cold and grey in the winter. Still some great folks there, and parts of the state are beautiful, but couldn't wait to get back home. Mike


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## Lewkat (Dec 24, 2021)

Even though I lived in the city, I had to walk almost a half mile to school and home each day.  Going was ok as it was all down hill but coming home laden with books uphill was torture.  Those city blocks are very long ones, believe me.


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## katlupe (Dec 24, 2021)

For the most part, I liked the places I lived when I was growing up. But I really missed my grandmother and aunts, uncles and cousins when my parents moved us to FL from NY. FL was wonderful and so much to do. But so was NY and that is where my heart stayed even though I was almost 10 when we moved to FL.


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## Capt Lightning (Dec 24, 2021)

Bretrick said:


> I loved being surrounded by bush, and mountains to climb.
> I loved being so close to magnificent rivers.
> I loved going fishing every weekend.
> I disliked living in a small town where everyone knew your business.
> ...


Very much the same.  Not exactly Bush, mountains and rivers,  but sea and countryside.
For the dislikes, I would especially add the influence / interference of the (largely Presbyterian) church.


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## Sassycakes (Dec 24, 2021)

I loved where I grew up. I lived in the city and had over a dozen friends on my street.I always had someone to hang out with. All the parents watched out for everyone's kids.
They really were the good old days.


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## Pinky (Dec 24, 2021)

I liked the smell of the ocean, and looking out the upper windows of our house to see the mountains.


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## Feelslikefar (Dec 24, 2021)

Places I lived growing up.

South Carolina, California, Florida and Hawaii (3 times).
Can't find too much to complain about those places.
No matter where we lived, Mom always made it a 'Home'.
Schools and friends constantly changing, but a Movie Theater and the Library were always the same.

My safe places.


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## hollydolly (Dec 24, 2021)

win231 said:


> LOL - My family was rather poor when I was 3 or 4.  We lived in a run-down apartment somewhere in downtown L.A.  I loved it because it came with its own pets - rats.
> I'd sit on the floor in the dining room & share my lunch with 4 rats that sat in my lap & let me pet them.  They showed up every day at the same time.
> In fact, I told my mom "Let's never move from here; I love this place."
> She'd say, "What do you mean; this is a dump."
> *When I told her about my "pets," her eyes got huge & she said "You're CRAZY!"*


...and she was right.....


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## JaniceM (Dec 24, 2021)

My original hometown was, in my opinion, ideal.

When we moved to a different area, everything was different, and I never really fit in.

While they were both good places, good people, mostly safe, I learned something in my second environment:  although there are some things that are wrong, in most cases differences are nothing more than differences, and something/someone being/doing different doesn't necessarily make it/them wrong, bad, weird, etc.  
And looking back, with only one exception everyone around had that same viewpoint.  

Since then, I've been all over the U.S., and it wasn't til the last couple of decades or so that I began encountering quantities of individuals who do not see it that way.


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## hollydolly (Dec 24, 2021)

I grew up in the city.. I loved the city , lots of friends, loads of places to play or go to as I got older and in my teens, dancing, roller disco...  and even huge city parks and boating lakes on summer  afternoons.  I still love the city, I love the vibrancy ... but now after living over 40 years in the countryside I love this more... just sad there's nothing to do , and if you cough everyone knows how many times

What I hated about where I grew up was living in the best part of the city... in the nicest house, and not being able to bring friends home because our family was dirt poor, and pretending they weren't.......living beyond their means, paying for a home they couldn't afford with so many kids .. so we had no carpets on the floors.. some rooms had lino some only bare wood.. we had no sheets on our beds  and our blankets were old army coats...and we very rarely got toys.. just a token cheap thing at Christmas which would break within minutes of play .. so we had to always go and play at our friend's homes instead..

ETA I also forgot to mention that we moved house many times albeit in the same -ish area..


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## Pinky (Dec 24, 2021)

hollydolly said:


> I grew up in the city.. I loved the city , lots of friends, loads of places to play or go to as I got older and in my teens, dancing, roller disco...  and even huge city parks and boating lakes on summer  afternoons.  I still love the city, I love the vibrancy ... but now after living over 40 years in the countryside I love this more... just sad there's nothing to do , and if you cough everyone knows how many times
> 
> What I hated about where I grew up was living in the best part of the city... in the nicest house, and not being able to bring friends home because our family was dirt poor, and pretending they weren't.......living beyond their means, paying for a home they couldn't afford with so many kids .. so we had no carpets on the floors.. some rooms had lino some only bare wood.. we had no sheets on our beds  and our blankets were old army coats...and we very rarely got toys.. just a token cheap thing at Christmas which would break within minutes of play .. so we had to always go and play at our friend's homes instead..
> 
> ETA I also forgot to mention that we moved house many times albeit in the same -ish area..


@hollydolly   -  We also didn't have blankets when I was very small. My 2 older sisters and I, slept on a pull-out chesterfield bed .. with all the winter coats piled on us. We also never got toys, maybe a piece of clothing. However, we always had a Xmas tree. That was plenty enough for me.


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## hollydolly (Dec 24, 2021)

Pinky said:


> @hollydolly   -  We also didn't have blankets when I was very small. My 2 older sisters and I, slept on a pull-out chesterfield bed .. with all the winter coats piled on us. We also never got toys, maybe a piece of clothing. However, we always had a Xmas tree. That was plenty enough for me.


we didn't have a Xmas tree.....I'm sorry you had a very poor upbringing too Pinks.. but you had a happy one, which is what's important.. sadly as you know I didn't...


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## JaniceM (Dec 24, 2021)

@hollydolly and @Pinky 
That sucks.. you guys are nice, and deserved nice Christmases


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## officerripley (Dec 24, 2021)

hollydolly said:


> I grew up in the city.. I loved the city , lots of friends, loads of places to play or go to as I got older and in my teens, dancing, roller disco...  and even huge city parks and boating lakes on summer  afternoons.  I still love the city, I love the vibrancy ... but now after living over 40 years in the countryside I love this more... just sad there's nothing to do , and if you cough everyone knows how many times
> 
> What I hated about where I grew up was living in the best part of the city... in the nicest house, and not being able to bring friends home because our family was dirt poor, and pretending they weren't.......living beyond their means, paying for a home they couldn't afford with so many kids .. so we had no carpets on the floors.. some rooms had lino some only bare wood.. we had no sheets on our beds  and our blankets were old army coats...and we very rarely got toys.. just a token cheap thing at Christmas which would break within minutes of play .. so we had to always go and play at our friend's homes instead..
> 
> ETA I also forgot to mention that we moved house many times albeit in the same -ish area..


Same here mostly. I could never figure out why my dad worked at the same kind of job--defense contracting/cold war industry--that the other kids dads did and they lived in nice houses, their moms didn't have to work outside the home, there was money for new school clothes/supplies every year, but in my family, none of that, cars being repossessed, etc. Finally one day, my sister said to me, "You really can't figure it out?! It's because Dad keeps giving money to all his girlfriends on the side!"


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## hollydolly (Dec 24, 2021)

JaniceM said:


> @hollydolly and @Pinky
> That sucks.. you guys are nice, and deserved nice Christmases


Bless you, sadly we don't get a Do-over... but I expect Pinky is the same as me in that I overdid Christmas for my daughter when she was growing up.. she got so much stuff really, but I wanted her to never suffer as I did...


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## Pinky (Dec 24, 2021)

hollydolly said:


> we didn't have a Xmas tree.....I'm sorry you had a very poor upbringing too Pinks.. but you had a happy one, which is what's important.. sadly as you know I didn't...


@hollydolly .. Unfortunately, it wasn't a happy childhood, Hols .. but, there are rare good moments I try to remember. It makes life better that way. Mom, who we adored, helped.

It seems you have become a strong person, despite all the adversity you've been through. I admire you for that.

Yes, I made sure our daughter was acknowledged in every way, without spoiling .. she did get a lot of presents


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## Pinky (Dec 24, 2021)

JaniceM said:


> @hollydolly and @Pinky
> That sucks.. you guys are nice, and deserved nice Christmases


@JaniceM  .. thank you for the kind words. When one is a child, they usually don't have a lot of expectations. Christmas was still magical, despite the lack of presents.


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## hollydolly (Dec 24, 2021)

Pinky said:


> @JaniceM  .. thank you for the kind words. When one is a child, they usually don't have a lot of expectations. Christmas was still magical, despite the lack of presents.


it's funny now thinking back... I wonder why we were encouraged to write letters to Santa, asking for gifts when my parents knew we were never going to get them.. we were always so excited to wake on Chritmasmorning, and at the bottom of our beds we'd have an orange, some sweets, and a small toy... I remember one year my brother got a bike.. a whole brand new bike, none of the rest of us ever did.. and I have no idea why he got one... but yet another weird thing that happened in my childhood..


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## Gaer (Dec 24, 2021)

Where I grew up was Miles City, Montana.  The authentic cow town of the West!
The Yellowstone River (MY River) was what I loved the most!  I spent every day I possibly could at the river or climbing the hills. Loved the Cottonwood trees, the thunderstorms,( which would come up in  a moment) the colors in the skies.
the rodeos, parades, the lights downtown at Christmas, the smells of homemade soups at the restaurants, the wheat fields and cow manure, 
and when I turned 15, the cutest BOYS!

Your question took me back to childhood momentarily on a nostalgic ride.  I really loved being alive, waking up every morning wondering what wonderful things were going to happen that day!


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## oldiebutgoody (Dec 24, 2021)

Grew up in the East New York section of Brooklyn, NY which is acknowledged as the worse ghetto in USA history.  Hated all the violence, drugs, police corruption, arson fires, gangsters, and other social maladies.  

What did I like?  The sports. ENY has produced more world boxing champions than any other locality in the world. Grew up playing sports with some really excellent athletes and am glad to say that I was a good athlete, myself.  However, am rather small. Wish I had grown up to be big and strong as I would definitely tried out for the pro ranks in sports such as baseball, softball, and volleyball.


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## Chet (Dec 24, 2021)

I was a kid so it didn’t matter. It’s all I knew and thought that was all there was. What I didn’t like though, was being regimented by parochial school and parents sometimes, which is why I think I am somewhat of a free spirit in rebellion.


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## win231 (Dec 24, 2021)

hollydolly said:


> ...and she was right.....


She went on & on about all these horrible diseases I would get from rats. Or they would bite me & I would die.
Well, no diseases & they never bit me. 
Funny how the only thing that ever caused me the most pain was HER.


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## Bretrick (Dec 24, 2021)

Gaer said:


> Where I grew up was Miles City, Montana.  The authentic cow town of the West!
> The Yellowstone River (MY River) was what I loved the most!  I spent every day I possibly could at the river or climbing the hills. Loved the Cottonwood trees, the thunderstorms,( which would come up in  a moment) the colors in the skies.
> the rodeos, parades, the lights downtown at Christmas, the smells of homemade soups at the restaurants, the wheat fields and cow manure,
> and when I turned 15, the cutest BOYS!
> ...


Sounds wonderous.
What I like about forums is that they allow members to remember things that may have been forgotten.
Unprompted, those great memories fade away and by Bretrick asking such a wide range of questions it allows so many members to reminisce back decades.


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## Nathan (Dec 24, 2021)

Well I wasn't crazy about rattlesnakes, but learned to deal with them.


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## Irwin (Dec 24, 2021)

I was poor where I grew up, so I didn't like that very much. That only lasted about a year, though, and then I moved down to Houston. It seems like a longer period of time, but I was 19-20... maybe a year and a half. Poverty sucks.


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## Geezer Garage (Dec 24, 2021)

We were so poor when I was a kid, that on Christmas my Mother would cut holes in our pants pockets just so we would have something to play with. Sorry sometimes I just can't help myself, and on Christmas too. Sheesh. Mike


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## RobinWren (Dec 24, 2021)

My parents did not have a lot of money but I never went without. I had friends, I could walk to the library. Museums and art galleries were always a great day out. I disliked having to take two buses to go to high school when my best friend went to the school up the street. I disliked having to go to school in the fog, still do not like fog.


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## Alligatorob (Dec 24, 2021)

Bretrick said:


> What did you like... about where you grew up?​


Pretty much everything, I grew up mostly in semi-rural central Florida,  with trips and times to Louisiana.  I loved my friends and family, the place the weather, the outdoors, exploring, fishing,  the list  goes on.


Bretrick said:


> dislike​


 The times in the place, the racism and bible belt mentality.  Did not see it at the time, but it was not a good thing.  I carry some of the   residual prejudices still...


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## Bretrick (Dec 24, 2021)

Thank you for the Christmas chuckle


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## Irwin (Dec 24, 2021)

There are a few YouTube videos of drives down Main St. of the town where I grew up. Not much has changed as far as new architecture, but the old brick buildings have been converted into trendy businesses. My high school was converted into an artist co-op and all the classrooms are now art studios. The factory where I used to work was converted into condos and restaurants. No longer is it dumping waste into the creek that runs next to it.

I haven't been back in almost 40 years. Going back there is on my bucket list of things to do before it's too late.


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## Repondering (Dec 24, 2021)

I grew up in the British colony of Hong Kong, an American boy in an international city of people from many, many countries.  I and my peer group at school thought of ourselves as Hong Kongers, regardless of whatever our passports said.  I loved it there and felt totally comfortable fitting in.  I was 14 when we left to live in the USA.....after 20 years of my family living abroad....and America was a foreign seeming place to me.
I witnessed a lot more ethnic and racial friction in America than I ever did in that British colony on the coast of China, where we had a dozen or more nationalities in every school classroom.....multiple races too, multiple religions as well.
But I was a white, bourgeois male so I came to know what privilege meant.
Being born and growing up in the far east, an ex-pat, American gweilo, a TCK.....third culture kid (OK, not third world....that's different).....it was the best gift my family ever gave me.
And it's gone now......it's a lost homeland, changed forever, it's another city in the People's Republic, which it was probably always destined to be.


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## Bretrick (Dec 24, 2021)

Repondering said:


> I grew up in the British colony of Hong Kong, an American boy in an international city of people from many, many countries.  I and my peer group at school thought of ourselves as Hong Kongers, regardless of whatever our passports said.  I loved it there and felt totally comfortable fitting in.  I was 14 when we left to live in the USA.....after 20 years of my family living abroad....and America was a foreign seeming place to me.
> I witnessed a lot more ethnic and racial friction in America than I ever did in that British colony on the coast of China, where we had a dozen or more nationalities in every school classroom.....multiple races too, multiple religions as well.
> But I was a white, bourgeois male so I came to know what privilege meant.
> Being born and growing up in the far east, an ex-pat, American gweilo, a TCK.....third culture kid (OK, not third world....that's different).....it was the best gift my family ever gave me.
> And it's gone now......it's a lost homeland, changed forever, it's another city in the People's Republic, which it was probably always destined to be.


It is so sad what is happening in Hong Kong.
Good that you have great memories of were you were raised


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## Gary O' (Dec 24, 2021)

What did you like / dislike about where you grew up?​No dislikes
Woods to hike
Streams to fish
Gramma and Grampa just up the hill (they raised me)
Kids everwhere

Wrote about it a couple months after I joined here;

*Recollections*

this became rather lengthy....

Ever so often, I'd drive up to the ol' place for, well, old time's sake.
I always enjoyed the rush of memories, driving the old lane, and around the corner, up the hill onto the flat where most the kid population was, and where gramma's house, my 2nd home, crowned the hill.
Our place and gramma's place was one property, adjoined by five or so acres of strawberry patch, making the patch a short cut between houses.

Not long ago I hired a new engineer, he was a whip.
Ate up everything I could hand him.
Became our I.T.
Made tedious, complex projects his fun little game.
Interfaced quite well with our clients.
We became friends, even though he was in his late 20's, and I in my mid 50's.
Come to find out, his dad lived at and owned the property out there in the hills of Scappoose.
I had to make the trip one more time.

Our little house was ready for razing. The doors were off, the garage my dad and grandpa built (with a hand saw and hammer) were gone.
We stopped. I boosted myself thru the doorless, and stepless porch entry, the closed in porch was our laundry room.
Wringer washer, clothes line, wicker baskets, sweet smells of Fels-Naptha, my place to take off my day's clothes and grab the tub off the wall.
Rooms, once huge, were now so tiny.

The kitchen, remodeled with the rest of the house, still had the red fire alarm above the sink.
Dad would proudly demonstrate to friends how loud it was, putting a glass of hot water up near it.
The wood cook stove was gone, but the pipe coming outa the ceiling, with the ornate metal ring, bore testament of many a meal.
Meals I learned to prepare, taking a few times to learn how to not break an egg yolk, how to get pancakes to turn out like mom's and gramma's, snacks dad showed how he ate when young, tater slices scorched on the cook top, then lightly salted. Tasted horrible, but really good, cookin' with Dad, good.
The table was gone of course. The curvy steel legged one that replaced the solid wood one, well not so solid, as we lost a meal or two due to the one wobbly leg. But that steel one with the gray Formica (?) top was up town.
There I'd sit, waiting out the meal, spreadin' my peas around to make it look like I ate some.
'If you don't at least take a bite of your peas you won't get any cake!'
Eventually, I'd be sittin' at the table alone, studying the gray swirly pattern of the table top, malnourished head propped up on my arm.
Dad, Mom, and sis would be in the living room watchin' Howdy Doody on the Hoffman, or something just as wonderful.
Eventually, I ate cake...then did the dishes.

One Sunday morning I sat at an empty table, but for a glass of milk and the One-a-Day pill bottle. Dad and Mom were exasperated... 'Your throat is this big, the pill is this big'..minutes-hours passed, shadows on the table shortened...'OK, just drink your milk'
I drained the glass between pursed lips.
The little brown pill remained at the bottom.
Nice try, parents from satan.

We had a lot of beans, navy, pinto, brown.
Beans on bread was quite regular. Got to like'n it..not much choice really.
Had chocolate cake with white icing for dessert. No dessert plates. Cake just plopped on the bean juice.
To this day, I still have a craving for cake soaked in bean juice.

The house was designed so's I could ride my trike around and around, kitchen, living, bed, bath, bed rooms.
They were my Daytona, straight away was the bed, bath and bed rooms.
We had large windows in the front corners of the house from the remodel, 'so we can look out, for godsake'.
Now we could watch log trucks barrelin' down Pisgah Home Rd, and my sis and I could have a bird's eye vantage from the kitchen when Dad backed the Bel Air outta the garage over three of the four kittens puss had had weeks earlier under the porch.
Took my sis quite awhile to get over that, as she'd just named 'em a few hours earlier. I was just enamored with the scene; romp-play-mew-look up-smat.
Dad didn't know until he got home.
Actually, it saved him an' I a trip, as when he thought we had too many cats around, we'd toss a bunch into a gunny sack and once down the road, hurl 'em out the window of our speeding chevy.
I haven't maintained the sack-o-cats legacy, but there have been times....

The living room still had the oil stove that warmed us...in the living room.
A flash of memory recalled the two end tables and lamps, aerodynamic, tables sharp, cutcha, lamps with flying saucer shapes, one had butterfly like images formed into its material, and when lit, enhanced their appearance.
A sectional couch, we were up town.
Before the sectional, we had one that kinda placed you in the middle, no matter where you started. It was my favorite, as sis and I spent many a day on it when sick.
Mom would lay out the sheets and blankets, administering doses of tea, crackers, and toast, peaches if we felt up to it.
Waste basket stationed at the tail end of that couch, since we were in such a weakened state we could never make it to the bathroom.
Mom loved it, our own personal Mother Teresa.
Yeah, we milked it for days...school work piling up.
Recovery would finally occur once bed sores emerged.
When we were actually sick, Doctor Day would visit. Fascinating, black bag, weird tools, gauzes, pill bottles, the smell of disinfectant and tobacco. Then the shot.
It was all almost worth it.

Asian flu was a bit serious, but chicken pox was horrific for me.
It was Christmas, fever, pox forming.
Presents! Guns! Six shooters!...only there was this pock right on my trigger finger. It was like free ham for a practicing orthodox Jew.


Dad, always the entrepreneur, would use the living room as the media center, inviting salesmen with projectors and actual reel to reel set ups, showing us how to become a thousandaire overnight.
Nutri-bio was one, to take the place of one-a-days I guess.
The Chinchilla movie was fascinating, and we even took a trip to a guy's garage to see how they were raised. Turns out they need an even controlled temp to get a good coat, and actually keep 'em alive.
The Geiger counter became something to show company, and become an antique.
Dad and Mom's bedroom held few memories for me except for the time Mom found a nest of baby mice in the bottom dresser drawer...and a hammer.
There was that other brief time, but seems we were all pretty shocked.
My bedroom was actually our bedroom, sis and me.
After the remodel, we got twin beds, new ones.
Recall my first migraine in my new bed, pressing my head into the pillow. Teddy no consolation, but then I didn't really give it an honest try to fix his dented plastic nose either.
Dad was the bedtime story teller, Goldie/bears, red/the wolf, pigs/wolf..pretty standard stuff....but did the job.
Had a framed picture of a collie baying over a lamb in a snow storm hanging over my bed. It hangs over my light stand table today, found in some of my mother's stuff.



The yard was not spectacular, but when sequestered from the woods, was plenty for me. I'd play in the dirt.



 Mom, in her no-remote-thought-of-divorce-happiest-I'll-ever-be-but-don't-know-it days, would be cleaning the house, wiping something on the windows that would become a swirly fog, then wiping that off. Cleaning the floor was sweep, mop, wax. Linoleum was the rage.
Lunch would be a great, but simple sandwich, with lettuce, and soup.

The icebox held short stemmed dessert glasses of homemade chocolate pudding, each centered with a half maraschino cherry. For the longest time I thought cherries came that way straight from the tree.
Cross over the Bridge, or Sunny Side of the Street played on the radio. Then it was a Paul Harvey segment.



Nobody close died, there were no wars I was aware of, and folks were generally at ease during that eight year era of fond memories, just fragrant recollections.


This aging cynic, years of crust giving way to a soft spot, down deep, had a hard moment of holding back visual emotion, as we drove away from the last tangible vision ever to be seen of the house of a sweet early life.


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## RobinWren (Dec 25, 2021)

Irwin said:


> There are a few YouTube videos of drives down Main St. of the town where I grew up. Not much has changed as far as new architecture, but the old brick buildings have been converted into trendy businesses. My high school was converted into an artist co-op and all the classrooms are now art studios. The factory where I used to work was converted into condos and restaurants. No longer is it dumping waste into the creek that runs next to it.
> 
> I haven't been back in almost 40 years. Going back there is on my bucket list of things to do before it's too late.


Sounds like they have sensible town planners, keeping the original and converting. So many towns razed to the ground , no greenspace condos etc, etc. Maybe other city councils should be looking at your town.


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## oldpeculier (Dec 25, 2021)

I live very close to where I grew up. 

I like our weather with the four seasons, and, it's generally mild. It's rural here and crime is relatively low.

I like the wildlife that live here, the waterways and mountains. Some good trails. It's a paradise if you're a motorcycle rider. The night sky is not very contaminated with light so star gazing is decent.

Not a lot to dislike here.


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## Jules (Dec 25, 2021)

Chet said:


> I was a kid so it didn’t matter. It’s all I knew and thought that was all there was. What I didn’t like though, was being regimented by parochial school and parents sometimes, which is why I think I am somewhat of a free spirit in rebellion.


I can relate.


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## debodun (Dec 25, 2021)

I grew up 1/4 mile from a paper factory. This was years before environmental regulations. The smell of sulfur frequently hung in the air, especially on warm, humid days. I even remember the huge piles of coal and sulfur along the highway. Many employees that worked there died from cancer - my dad included. This is how it looked many years ago from an old postcard. It shut down in 1971 when they couldn't meet the new environmental regulations.


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## Larry67 (Dec 29, 2021)

I am thankful that I was born on a farm. We had chickens, horses, and cattle. I learned early to recognize feces from the different animals.  It has served me well as an adult. When I hear some chicken sh*t politician, who is full of horse sh*t , spreading bull sh*t, I know not to listen. Just kidding, I never listen to politicians.


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## Pepper (Dec 29, 2021)

I loved growing up in NYC.  All the museums, zoos, etc. were free.  When I was a teenager I began hanging out in the Village.  I appreciated the transit system to get me to these places.  I loved when, as an adult, I lived rural, and I loved living in suburbia but I'm so glad I grew up surrounded by so many advantages.

I did not want my child growing up rural.  I saw too many drunk driving & really bad drugs among teenagers because life in a rural community is boring for many kids.  I know this because I asked them.  Kids need stimulation.


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## fuzzybuddy (Jan 5, 2022)

I don't know  if you can like, or dislike where you were a  kid. You don't have a choice. And you don't know any better. I was thinking of my old hometown, Duh, it's where I lived.


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## Remy (Jan 8, 2022)

I liked the Pacific Ocean. I disliked just about everything else.


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## Rah-Rah (Jan 16, 2022)

I was a kid in the 70's and a teen and young adult in the 80's. Growing up in the 70's I loved playing hopscotch outside with my girlfriends. I also was kind of a tomboy so I loved being outside. There was no phones attached to our hands and all this Tik Tok and Snapchat stuff like it is today. Kids today don't get outside and play today much at all. In the 80's in high school, I loved the music U2, REM, The B-52's, Journey, Bon Jovi, The Go-Go's, and The Bangles. This was also the MTV time when MTV actually played cool music. I also remember hanging at the mall a lot with my friends thinking I was the coolest thing in the world and probably driving the adults who were trying to just shop crazy. 

In the 70's I hated Disco. In the 80's a lot of teens and young adults smoked and drugs were big. That was not my thing at all.


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## palides2021 (Jan 16, 2022)

Gary O' said:


> What did you like / dislike about where you grew up?​No dislikes
> Woods to hike
> Streams to fish
> Gramma and Grampa just up the hill (they raised me)
> ...


I love reading your stories, @Gary O' - keep them coming! I felt I was there. Thanks also, for sharing the photos.


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## palides2021 (Jan 16, 2022)

We moved around a lot when I was young, but it was all in the Cleveland area. I disliked the snow immensely. In the heart of winter, I had to wait outside for the school bus, the biting cold numbing my face and hands. I remember the wool scarf wrapped around my face would keep me somewhat warm but many times, it wasn't enough, and often it got icecicles, and my glasses would fog up. Many a time, I slipped on the icy sidewalk trying to get on the bus. That kept me humble!


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## Gary O' (Jan 16, 2022)

palides2021 said:


> I felt I was there


That's the intent, fine lady


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