On becoming antiquated
April 13, 2008 by Sarah Ludwig Rausch
Certain conversations with the kids can make me feel as young as a triceratops, even though I’m only 32. It’s funny, but in a depressing sort of way.
Today, Cody asked me to sing the “Cruella DeVille” song from the just-released animated 101 Dalmations. I obliged, then told him that the only reason I remember it is because I used to listen to it on a record when I was a kid.
“What’s a record?” Cody asked innocently.
I explained that it was sort of like a CD.
“You didn’t have CDs when you were a kid?”
“Nope. We listened to tapes or records.”
“No CDs?” Cody asked, amazed.
“What are tapes?” chimed in Logan.
As I said, humorous, but depressing.
Conversations that entail Cody asking me what GameBoy games I played or if I liked Nick Jr. when I was a kid usually have me explaining some electronic or novelty that today is pretty much obsolete. Remember Atari? Remember the days when hardly anyone even had cable TV? Remember dancing around to records and getting frustrated when the needle skipped? My kids have never even seen a record player, or a record, for that matter, much less used one.
My most classic example of becoming antiquated is this one from a year-and-a-half ago. The kids and I were watching a Sesame Street movie from the 80’s. I mentioned that the kids on the movie were about the same age that I was at the time the movie was made.
Andie, then 8, said with complete seriousness, “Wow, they must all be dead now!”
I can’t imagine how antique I will feel as a grandparent someday.
Hahahahahaha!
The only good news is that my kids aren’t old enough to ask me about this! (I’m 31, so by the time they *are* old enough, I shudder to think what they’ll take for granted!)
A guy I know (24 y/o) had no clue what a record was when he first saw one (I think he was in his late teens). He thought it was a really big CD, and it was blowing his mind to think about how much music could fit on it! :-)
Yes, I remember Atari. We didn’t have cable the whole time I lived at home. My mom still has our record player and all the records, but she doesn’t have a needle, and we haven’t listened to records in probably 20 years. But I still remember!
Thanks for the walk down memory lane. And I’m sighing because I’m reminiscing, which must mean I’m old!
Kathy
[...] sort of correlates to my post on becoming antiquated. It’s another one of those now-commonplace parts of our lives that makes me feel a little on [...]