What's your favorite thing about the 70s, 80s and 90s? Henry
Her:
Best thing about the 70’s, 80’s and 90’s…Good question Henry! I'll tell you about my favorite memory from each decade.
The 70’s. My best 70’s memory is a very simple one. Aunt Geri and I, laying in the back of our station wagon, driving to McPherson, Kansas for Christmas. “I love the Rainy Nights” by Eddie Rabbitt was on the radio. (Google it, you won’t be disappointed.) It was pure happiness. it’s hard to imagine, but back then we were allowed to lay in the WAY back of our wagon, especially for long road trips. My parents always set us up with blankets, pillows and sleeping bags. Aunt Geri and I would bring paper, markers, books, and of course …flashlights. My Grandma’s house was my favorite destination because it was, no exaggeration, perfect. Floor to floor brown shag carpet, clean-lined modern furniture, and Native American art. (Not to mention homemade candy every night.) My Uncle would blow smoke rings from his pipe right into our faces, and we would try to catch them on our wrist for a brief moment of “smoke jewelry.” Just knowing I was headed there for an entire week was fulfilling in itself, and I truly loved every minute. My Grandma made Christmas perfect every year, and the family road trip getting there was indeed half the fun.
The 80’s. My best memory from the 80’s was the day my 4th grade best friend (Amy O’Connor) had a birthday slumber party. 1984. 6 or 7 of us started the night at Wheels of Fun, the local roller skating rink. 80’s music was amazing, and only being 9, literally EVERY song was my favorite song. Fashion was a complete disaster back then, but I do remember fully participating with an off the shoulder torn sweatshirt and a side ponytail - both of which I was so proud to rock that night. Amy got a Swatch Watch, black and white with red hands, and I’d never been so jealous of anything in my life. We headed back to her house for a night full of MTV, snacks, and fun. At that stage of my life, I thought I had peaked.
The 90’s. My best memory of the 90’s was my wedding day. Now as cliche as it may sound, it was a true turning point in my life. For me, and I feel like, for a lot of America, the 90’s were a bit aimless, almost hard to describe or sum up. After the strong personalities of the 70’s and 80’s, it was almost like everything took a break. Technology was on the brink of serious breakthroughs and culture was a little bit blah. I, similarly, had moved around aimlessly a lot after I graduated from high school, but then suddenly was lucky enough to find my anchor…your dad. Our wedding day was great. Doing the Macarena with Big Ed, Dancing with dad and Grandpa, leaving late that night for our Caribbean cruise, all of those memories are priceless to me. But the best thing about the 90’s was that day because I knew I had finally gotten to start MY family, and in the not too distant future, would get to meet you.
Him:
The 90s -
Ugh. Generally, the 90s were pretty rough. I remember being angsty was popular and hygiene, not so much. Fashion was tough; early streetwear and grunge we almost equally unflattering on most people (or me at least). MTV gave us The Real World, which sucked. Lots of celebrities tried late night shows. Hyper-polarized politics was emerging. The Back Street Boys. Enough said. The music was dope though; except for the boy bands.
High School was a pretty typical experience. Think Breakfast Club / Ferris Bueller meets Mid 90s, in a less cool city. But we had a lot of fun. College was great. I started at KU, finished at Mizzou. I transferred for a girl. That didn’t last (shocker), but I ended up loving the school. The girl and I remained friends and she attended my wedding.
Which brings me to my favorite thing about the 90s; Sega NHL 94! Just kidding. Your mom is my best friend and has been since our first date. Meeting her is not only the best thing about the 90s, but one of the best things about my life. This one was easy.
The 80s -
Dude, the 80s were huge for me and I loved them. I loved weekend trips to Target or Venture with my parents that usually ended with the acquisition of a SuperPowers or GI Joe action figure. Later He-Man and the Transformers also rocked. Parachute pants and break dancing, come on. I loved Dungeons and Dragons, and comic books (marvel were edgier, but I was a DC kid). I loved making ramps at the bottom of a hill and “jumping” them with my bike... Gaming consoles were coming out like crazy - the Odyssey 2, the Ataris, Nintendo were the shit. I loved my skateboards. I wasn’t very good, but it didn’t matter because it was really about freedom. I loved Zork and Summer Games. I LOVED baseball. And, I loved middle school; the dances, sports, the roller rink, the girls, just chill’n at someone's house.
The best thing about the 80s was being a kid, and I was a kid for every minute of it. I sent it in the 80s.
The 70s -
I only lived through four years of the seventies and don’t really remember the first couple. Starting pre-school was actually fairly traumatic and I did not dig it. I still remember the anxiety-inducing, “red rover, red rover send Ryan right over!” Who or what in the hell is a red rover? I also went to a camp where a police officer fired a gun, and that scared the shit out of me. And for some reason, even though I lived in the middle of Kansas, I was sure I was going to be killed by a bear. So, for most of the 70s, I was convinced I wouldn’t make it to the 80s.
As my life is mostly great, being born was big. I saw Star Wars at the drive-in when I was four and that was foundational for me. But, my favorite thing about the 70s was going to Woolworths (maybe it was Rexall, I’m not sure) with my grandma; we’d sit at the counter, on red topped spinning stools, and she would order me an oatmeal cream pie and a Dr. Pepper. A surprisingly perfect combination.
