Nostalgia Column: Kids Playing Outside

Do you remember when kids used to play outside? Oh I know children of all ages still go outside and hang with their friends sometimes, even today. But those of us from a generation or two from the past, remember when the “Great Outdoors” was almost the only place that we would hook up with our friends and acquaintances before video games, and multiple cartoon channels on the tube, any kid from five to fifteen would be out riding their bikes, or foot racing on the sidewalk. Boys and girls were content to get down in the dirt and do such mundane things as, shoot marbles with their thumbs, and push their Tonka truck from bush to bush. Tonka trucks may still exist today, but the modern models simply pale in strength compared to the models from way back when. These big yellow toy trucks, about a foot and a half long, were very, very, heavy duty. A real truck could have run over a Tonka, and I’ll bet it would have survived.

Boys today, do still play sports outdoors, but as a voluntary action. Back when this writer grew up, sports were almost a required regimen of the neighborhood. The girls would mostly watch back then, but as a positive step towards the progression of society, girls now participate on a regular basis.

The kids of the fifties, sixties, and even the seventies, would probably have killed for the chance to play with something as technologically advanced as today’s video games, or today’s endless choice of cable T.V. shows. But I think most of my friends, and myself, were happy to walk to the park and play “Caroms”, or sit on the porch trading Baseball Cards with each other. For those too young to remember, Caroms were little one and a half inch wooden disks. These were shot around a four foot square wooden board that usually would contain a maze of sorts. The Caroms were shot by a pool cue, just like as in billiards.

By the way, this writer happened to see a Carom board set at the local park recently. I don’t know if it was new, or a holdover from the old days, but a couple of twelve year olds were having an intense showdown playing the game.

Going back to Baseball Cards. It seems to me that Baseball Cards, and any sports cards were vastly more popular back in the day. Most of today’s youth dabbles into collecting these trading cards, while the children of the mid twentieth century were serious about their “cards”. Fist fights were common when kids would argue about whether the card of Carl Yastrzemski was worth more than a Brooks Robinson card, or if the Topps brand of cards was better than the other brands for example.

Back in those days, a pink stick of gum, came in every pack of cards. This gum was unique, in that it was slightly coated with a kind of white powder or maybe sugar. All I know, is that the pleasantly sweet pungent aroma from the gum, not only filled the nostrils with joy, but also attatched its presence to the cards in the pack. This made the cards smell good for at least a few days. Tonka brand trucks, Caroms, and Baseball Cards, are just a few of the items that would draw the youth out from their houses in the past. Most of today’s youth would probably  be bored for the most part, if they had to participate in the above activities instead of their modern endeavours, but after trying a couple of these “old fashioned” things, they just might have a positive view of the youthful outdoor activities of yesteryear.