Generation X

Abigail and Dolley readers - I have been thinking a lot about my generation. Dubbed with the incongruous and not very flattering moniker of Generation X. If you do a Google search on us there are only about 10 hits. The articles are short but many are relatively insightful. Obviously, you can not peg 41 million people, but here are some personal observations.

We are a generation of broken homes. I don't remember anyone's parents still being together by the time we graduated from High School, unless their parents were WWII generation and not the Boomers that raised most of us.

Conversely, we are not a divorced Generation. We married later and had kids in our 30's.

The Women's Liberation Movement ruined it for us - I have ALWAYS had to work. My mother and step mother are housewives.

Phil Donahue wrecked our parents and his wife told us that it was okay for little girls to be little boys.

By the time I was old enough to enjoy Free Love - we had AIDS.

Ronald Reagan was the greatest President of the 20th century and my hero.

Our parents expected that we would sleep around and do drugs - so we did.

Our generation would be about the same size as the Boomers if they had not passed Roe v Wade.

We remember when a microwave was a "Radar Range" and they were huge.

Everyone at one point changed the channel with the needle nose pliers.

I bathed in "Love's Baby Soft".

I can still Boogy Skate.

I know what a Beta Max is.

I have watched a slide show with a projector.

We had films in class - with a projector and everything.

We thought the Flock of Seagulls was weird - even then.

We played outside and hung at the swimming pool all day.

When we joined the work force, suits and ties and business dress was very common. You can thank us for "Casual Friday" that has turned into "Business Casual".

There was one PC in the office and it belonged to the boss.

Thermal paper faxes were cutting edge.

We saw the fall of the Berlin Wall and loved it.

Boys did not show up at our parents house to pick us up for dates. We hooked up at parties. That really sucks.

We wore satin shorts with piping and tube socks to match. Leg warmers and parachute pants, Flash Dance sweat shirts, and jeans that were so tight we had to lay on the bed to zip them up.

We had perms and were the first generation to use mousse. We called a mullet a "Bi-level" and it was painful to grow out.

We smoked at school and in our parents homes.

We do not like to be micromanaged.

We are more patriotic than the Boomers or the Millennials. We agree with the War on Terror. We remember the Iran Hostage Crisis, TWA, the Achileal Laurel, Beirut, and 9/11.

We remember when tolerance was putting up with someone's crazy beliefs but not having to accept them.

Radio in the 80's was truly horrible - top 40 or Boomer drivel played over and over again.

We were a latch key generation and got into a bunch of trouble between 3:30 and 6:00.