If you were to ask any Gen Z-er, they’d say the 1980’s was as weird as a chicken wearing shoes or a sheep with lipstick! I grew up in the 80’s and what a time to be alive! I mean, we had the coolest stuff! The 80’s saw great inventions in technology and fashion! In my mind, you were the coolest if you had these things!
1. The Sony Walkman! I mean, we were the first to experience personal, portable music! I remember seeing the commercial and losing my mind! I wanted one! I thought, “ohhhhh, this would be amazing for away basketball games and track meets!” I ended up getting one when I was in 10th grade, but I don’t think it was Sony brand!
2. My brother’s had a Members Only jacket. Of course, nothing said cool like a Members Only jacket! I would love to have an original today, but I’m not willing to pay a huge retro price! Reminds me of that scene in the movie Shallow Hal, where Rosemary asks Mauricio (wearing a Members Only jacket), Are you like, the last member?’
In case you forget what they look like, here’s a commercial from the 80’s.
3. Who could forget the birth of Air Jordan’s? Oh wow, how beautiful where these shoes? Honestly, I wouldn’t know what it feels like to own a pair much less play basketball in a pair…I couldn’t afford them! I had a part time job as a small ice cream and food place AND had a job picking strawberries, shucking corn and bailing hay for a local farm and still couldn’t afford Air Jordan’s with both jobs! A girl could dream right?
4. You talk about hours of fun and entertainment! Merlin was a hand held game that looked like a giant red cellphone. It had 6 activities on it! Merlin was designed by a NASA scientist.
5. Remember the gum that came in this? It lost it’s flavor in about 3 chews! We would always find the names of our friends and slip them in their lockers. Good times, good times! PS….some of these were pretty graphic and gross!
6. Hours of frustration! Me? Yes, I gave up and to this day can only solve 2 sides of a Rubik’s Cube. I’ve NEVER solved this! That’s frustrating!
If you look up frustration in the dictionary, you’ll see a pic of a Rubik’s Cube!
7. I ALWAYS picked the blue one! By the end of the school year, the Velcro latch was usually peeling off, the binder on the edge was usually so worn out from stuffing so many papers and junk that it was over flowing because you never actually put the papers in the folders!
8. My cousins always had the Atari, I was never cool enough to get the Atari…I did have the Odyssey…I think you got it from Sears. If you were lucky enough to have your very own Atari 2600, you were the most popular person in his neighborhood!
9. Oh the days spent on the ball field chewing this stuff! Getting it from the concession stand with a “suicide” soda…the combo of ALL soda’s from the dispenser. You’d stick this stuff in your back ball pants pocket (the only pocket), by the end of the game it was all squished and almost gone because it lost flavor fast too!
10. I STILL have my Swatch! I bet if I put a new battery in it, it would work! I worked all summer to save up for a Swatch for the new school year, but they were super affordable, even with a $3 a week allowance! This colorful watch was essential for any ’80s kid who wanted to stand out and look cool!!
