WE ARE NOT THE LOST GENERATION

by unknown author

I am a child of the 70's and 80's. That is what I prefer to be called. The 90's can do without me. Grunge 
isn't here to stay, fashion is fickle and "Generation X" is a myth created by some over-40 writer trying to 
figure out why people wear flannel in the summer.

When I got home from school, I played Atari 2600. I spent hours playing Pitfall or Combat or Breakout or 
Dodge'em Cars or Frogger. I never did beat Asteroids. Then I watched "Scooby Doo." Daphne was a Goddess, and 
I thought Shaggy was smoking something synthetic in the back of the mystery machine. I HATED SCRAPPY. I would 
sleep over at friends' houses on the weekends. We played army with G.I. Joe figures, and I set up galactic 
wars between Autobots and Decepticons. We stayed up half the night throwing marshmellows and Velveeta mornings
at one another. We never beat Rubik's cube, unless you count taking off the stickers. I got up on Saturday 
mornings at 6 a.m. to watch bad Hanna-Barbera cartoons like "The Snorks," "Jabberjaw," "Captain Caveman," and 
"SpaceGhost." In between I would watch "School House Rock."  ("Conjunction junction, what's your function?!")

On Friday Night Daisy Duke was my future wife. I was going to own the General Lee and shoot dynamite arrows 
out the back. Why did they weld the doors shut? Did your dad turn from mild-mannered Bill Bixby into "The 
Incredible Hulk" when he got upset? At the movies the Nerds got revenge on the AlphaBetas by teaming up with
the Omega Mu's. I watched Indiana Jones save theArk of the Covenant, and wondered what Yoda meant when he 
said, "No, there is another." Ronald Reagan was cool. Gorbachev was the guy who built a McDonalds in Moscow. 
My family took summer vacations to South Florida and collected "Muppet Movie" glasses along the way.  
(We had the whole set.) My siblings and I fought in the back seat.  At the hotel we found creative uses for 
Connect Four pieces like throwing them in that big air conditioning unit.

I listened to John Cougar Mellencamp sing about Little Pink Houses for Jack and Diane. I was bewildered by 
Boy George and the colors of his dreams, red, gold and green. I was a "Wild Boy," Duran Duran. MTV played 
MUSIC videos. Nickeloden played "You can't Do That On Television" and "Dangermouse". Does anyone remember the
"Banana Splits?" HBO showed Mike Tyson pummel everybody except Robin Givens, the bad actress from "Head of 
the Class," who took all Mike's cashflow.

I drank Dr. Pepper. "I'm a Pepper, you're a Pepper, wouldn't you like to be a Pepper too?" Shasta was for 
losers. TAB was a labratory accident. Capri Sun was a social statement. Orange Juice wasn't just for breakfast
anymore, and bacon had to move over for something leaner. My mom put a thousand Little Debbie Snack Cakes in
my Charlie Brown lunchbox and filled my Snoopy Thermos with Grape Kool-Aid. I got two thousand cheese and 
cracker snack packs.

I went to school and had recess. I went to the same classes everyday. Some wierd guy from the 8th grade always
won the science fair with the working hydro-electric plant that leaked on my project about music and plants. 
MY plants loved Beethoven.  Field day was bigger than Christmas, but it always seemed to rain just enough to 
make everybody miserable.

"Deck the Halls with Gasoline, fa la la la la, la la la  la," was JUST a song. Rubber band fights were cool. A 
substitute teacher was a marked woman. Nobody deserved that. I went to Cub Scouts. I got my arrow-of-light, 
but never managed to win the Pinewood Derby. I got almost every skill award but don't remember ever doing 
anything. The world stopped when the Challanger exploded. Half of your friend's parents got divorced. People 
did not just say "no" to drugs. AIDS started, but you knew mor people who had a grandparent die from cancer. 
Somebody in your school died before they graduated.

We are the ones who played with Lego Building Blocks when they were just building blocks and gave Malibu 
Barbie crewcuts with safety scissors that never really cut. Big wheels and bicycles with streamers were the 
way to go, and sidewalk chalk was all you needed to build a city. Imagination was the key. It made the Ewok 
Treehouse big enough for you to be Luke. And the kitchen table and that old sheet, dark enough to be a tent 
in the forest. Your world was the backyard and it was all you needed.

With your pink portable tape player, Debbie Gibson sang back up to you and everyone wanted a skirt like the 
Material Girl and a glove like Michael Jackson's. Today, we are the ones who sing along with Bruce Springsteen
and The Bangles perfectly and have no idea why. We recite lines with Ghostbusters and still look to the 
Goonies for a great adventure. We flip through T.V. stations and stop at the A-Team and Knight Rider and 
Fame, and laugh with The Cosby Show and Family Ties and Punky Brewster and "What you talkin' bout Willis?"

We hold strong affections for The Muppets and The Gummy Bears and why did they take the Smurfs off of the air? 
After school specials were about cigarettes and step-families. The Polka Dot Door was nothing like Barney, and
aren't the Power Rangers just Voltron reincarnated? We are the ones who read Nancy Drew, The Hardy Boys, The 
Bobbsey Twins,  Beverly Cleary, and Judy Blume. Friendship bracelets were ties you couldn't break and 
friendship pins went on shoes - preferably hightop velcro Reebok. And pegged jeans were in, as were unit belts
and layered socks and jean jackets and JAMS and charm necklaces and side pony tails and just tails. Rave was a
girl's best friend; braces with colored rubberbands made you rad. The backdoor was always open and Mom served 
only red kool-aid to the neighborhood kids.  YOU NEVER drank the New Coke.  Entertainment was cheap and lasted
for hours. All you needed to be a princess was highheels and an apron; the Sit'n'Spin always made you dizzy 
but never made you stop; Pogoballs were dangerous weapons and Chinese Jump Ropes never failed to trip someone.

In your underoos you were Wonder Woman, Spider Man or Robin and in our treehouse you were king. In the 80's, 
nothing was wrong. Did you even know the president was shot? Star Wars was not only a ovie. Did you ever play 
in a bomb shelter? We forgot Vietnam and watched Tiananmen's Square on CNN. We didn't start the fire Billy Joel.

In the 80's we redefined the American Dream, and those years defined us. We are the generation in between 
strife and facing strife and not turning our backs. The eighties may have made us idealistic, but it's that 
idealism that will push us and be passed to our children-the first children of the 21st century. We had 
neighborhoods where in the day we could play kick-the-can, "guns" and all of the things that made us Grow up. 
There was always that one field" that could be used for either baseball, football, homerun derby, or just a 
place to hang out. That was my field of dreams Mr. Costner.

At night we would play flashlight tag. Just like we could trick-or-treat at night without the fear of being 
shot and killed. Just like our guns had caps or "lasers". If we didn't have the Jessie James guns we could 
just get a rock and smash the caps on the ground! We loved those orange race tracks...that was until our 
mother realized she could smack us with them. We were the kids that not only collected Cabbage Patch kids, 
but their ugly offspring - Garbage Pail Kids. We too collected football and baseball cards but it was because 
we wanted to be the first in the neighborhood to have the "complete" set.

Sports were important, but not near as important as Friday/Saturday Night's Main Event with of our favorite 
WWF wrestlers. We loved to imitate their moves... until someone got hurt. In our neighborhoods we played with 
He-man and Skelator. Going to get a Happy Meal on Saturday with dad or mom was worth waiting the other six 
days of the week. No, we are the furthest thing from a lost generation.

Does -- going to arcades on saturday, getting carpooled to football with your best friend, eating fruit 
roll-ups, having birthday parties at McDonalds or Godfather's pizza or Noble Romans where you could make your 
own pizza -- express you are lost? How many people melted their army figures that were given to them by their 
parents. Was Green Latern the Coolest Super Hero or Aquaman? "Wonder twin powers activate!" How's about coming
home at night and separating your candy into: The cool stuff, the homemade stuff, and the pennies... how's 
about the candy that came in that awful orange and black wax paper? Did you ever try it? Do you remember the one 
house that had a sign in the candy bowl that said, "Take One." How many did you take if you liked it? Were you 
desperate one year and as a teenager you trick-or-treated?

Our generation had character and heart. We played with real baseballs and "Putt putt for the fun-of-it."  
"Hey, my mom will take if your mom picks up!" Could you ever really beat Indiana Jones and the Temple of 
Doom...? Did you have sliced oranges or grapes for your half-time treat? How about the hot dog and coke after
each football and baseball games? Star Crunches? Whippy Dip? Twinkies? Ho-ho's? This is what WE are all about!

When you put all this stuff together, you have my childhood. If this stuff sounds familiar, then I bet you are 
one, too. We are the children of the "80's". That is what I prefer they call us.  We are not the first "lost 
generation" nor today's lost generation. In fact, we think we know just where we stand,
or are discovering it as we speak.

So if you are reading this and it ALL hit's home then you do indeed have a heritage or a generation.
This is what makes us the most unique generation of all.

Please pass this on to all who can relate!