Another Buzzfeed Listicle that "Boomers" are Anyone Over 40
Earlier this week I read yet-another Buzzfeed listicle/quiz for amusement, "There Is No Way Anyone Has Done More Than 25 Of These Things Unless They're Over 65". It's in the same vein as a similar Buzzfeed listicle I read (and wrote about) a few months ago. I suggested Buzzfeed retitle that article as It's Official, Gen Z Thinks Anyone Over 40 Is A Boomer.
Remember that the Boomer generation, aka Baby Boomers, are those born from 1946-1964. The youngest Boomers are turning 60 this year. Yet most people over 40- meaning not just Gen Xers like me, but also older Millennials- have probably done many of the things on the list. I'm years younger than the youngest Boomers and I've done 36 out of the 50, including all 20 of the top 20. Here's my hot take on several of them:
1. Adjusted rabbit ears on a television
I did that into the mid 1990s. My parents and adult relatives pretty much all had cable, but as a college student and grad student, my apartment mates and I didn't want to spend for cable TV. Boomers would remember when cable was $10/mo. We younger generations saw it spiral upwards of $100/mo and had to make decisions.
2. Played Pong in an arcade or at home
Okay, this is more of a late 70s/early 80s thing vs. "common into the 1990s". But I'm pretty sure a large number of Gen Xers get this one. I remember seeing a Pong game in my local Pizza Hut as a kid. But I never played because $0.25 was too spendy for my Boomer/Silent Generation parents.
3. Played pinball in an arcade
Mid 1990s, again. All Gen Xers and older Millennials have probably played pinball. Also, arcades didn't really become a thing until Gen X were adolescents.
4. Video stores with walled-off Adult sections
Video stores were at their peak all the way to 2004. I'm sure literally every Gen Xer and most Millennials remember cruising the aisles at video stores, looking for what to rent. As for the specific trope, though, of a walled-off Adult section.... The last one of those I saw personally was in 1996, but that's because that's the last time I had a membership at a locally owned video rental store instead of a national chain. The national chains deemed X-rated material off-brand and didn't offer it.
5. Kept phone numbers in an address book
Late 1990s. That's when cell phones became common for the average adult to own. Once again, all Gen X and older Millennials.
7. Used/seen a working cigarette vending machine
I recall these being commonplace until the early 1980s, present in every supermarket and drug store, so likely most Gen Xers have seen them. Even after that they were still around, though they disappeared from places like supermarkets and would be found in restaurants and bars into the 21st century.
8. Shopped at a five-and-dime
Dude, inflation. Yesterday's five-and-dime morphed into Dollar stores. ...Where, today, almost everything is more than $1.
13. Done a duck-and-cover drill at school in case of nuclear attack
This is one I actually never did. Dunno if that's because "Hide under your desk because bombs don't affect desks" was phased out by the time I began school, or if it's just that the schools/districts I attended had opted out. OTOH, as a Gen Xer, I was fortunately done with school by the time lockdowns and active shooter drills became a thing.
21. Have you ever balanced a checkbook?
I still do. Does your mom buy your food and clothes?
Remember that the Boomer generation, aka Baby Boomers, are those born from 1946-1964. The youngest Boomers are turning 60 this year. Yet most people over 40- meaning not just Gen Xers like me, but also older Millennials- have probably done many of the things on the list. I'm years younger than the youngest Boomers and I've done 36 out of the 50, including all 20 of the top 20. Here's my hot take on several of them:
1. Adjusted rabbit ears on a television
I did that into the mid 1990s. My parents and adult relatives pretty much all had cable, but as a college student and grad student, my apartment mates and I didn't want to spend for cable TV. Boomers would remember when cable was $10/mo. We younger generations saw it spiral upwards of $100/mo and had to make decisions.
2. Played Pong in an arcade or at home
Okay, this is more of a late 70s/early 80s thing vs. "common into the 1990s". But I'm pretty sure a large number of Gen Xers get this one. I remember seeing a Pong game in my local Pizza Hut as a kid. But I never played because $0.25 was too spendy for my Boomer/Silent Generation parents.
3. Played pinball in an arcade
Mid 1990s, again. All Gen Xers and older Millennials have probably played pinball. Also, arcades didn't really become a thing until Gen X were adolescents.
4. Video stores with walled-off Adult sections
Video stores were at their peak all the way to 2004. I'm sure literally every Gen Xer and most Millennials remember cruising the aisles at video stores, looking for what to rent. As for the specific trope, though, of a walled-off Adult section.... The last one of those I saw personally was in 1996, but that's because that's the last time I had a membership at a locally owned video rental store instead of a national chain. The national chains deemed X-rated material off-brand and didn't offer it.
5. Kept phone numbers in an address book
Late 1990s. That's when cell phones became common for the average adult to own. Once again, all Gen X and older Millennials.
7. Used/seen a working cigarette vending machine
I recall these being commonplace until the early 1980s, present in every supermarket and drug store, so likely most Gen Xers have seen them. Even after that they were still around, though they disappeared from places like supermarkets and would be found in restaurants and bars into the 21st century.
8. Shopped at a five-and-dime
Dude, inflation. Yesterday's five-and-dime morphed into Dollar stores. ...Where, today, almost everything is more than $1.
13. Done a duck-and-cover drill at school in case of nuclear attack
This is one I actually never did. Dunno if that's because "Hide under your desk because bombs don't affect desks" was phased out by the time I began school, or if it's just that the schools/districts I attended had opted out. OTOH, as a Gen Xer, I was fortunately done with school by the time lockdowns and active shooter drills became a thing.
21. Have you ever balanced a checkbook?
I still do. Does your mom buy your food and clothes?