In middle age or edging towards seniority, we often slip on a pair of rose-colored glasses as we reflect back on a youthful time - an episode of life we collectively call “the good old days”. The neighborhood parks were always filled with bicycles from every nearby home and the game being played was determined or influenced by the season and the weather. In the summer, forts needed to be built, fish needed to be caught and bicycle spokes needed sturdy playing cards and an embezzled clothes pin from mother’s clothesline.
In winter, whether played in a diminutive outdoor rink, a large indoor arena, or just on the road, hockey was absolutely king. There were outings with skis, snowshoes, and toboggans, but hockey always took precedence. One could buy a decent hockey stick at a local Shell gasoline station for 50¢. We didn’t know the bighearted owner was constantly contributing an undisclosed subsidy.
Swimming, by far. gave the greatest exercise. A long swim in the lake, at a flooded sandpit, or in a spring deep in the forest while diving, floating, and dog paddling could last for several hours. After a long day, the hunger pangs were the most evident of any activity. I recall opening the refrigerator to find only a salted Northern Pike, a can of evaporated milk, and a jar of green olives. Until that day I loathed the latter, yet to my mother’s admonishing, famished, I ate the entire jar.
As we got a little older, the sports simply got more organized. They were interrupted only by school, homework, chores, or church confirmation. In the days of yore, there were no participation awards – everyone wanted to win. Everyone worked at it - everyone practiced.
To eat at a restaurant was an absolute treat. Fast food depended on the speed of a mother’s cooking and her adept skills in the kitchen. In ‘the day’ they all seemed to possess those required talents. Now McDonalds, Burger King, Wendy’s, and other establishments are a common convenience. Dominos, Papa John’s, Little Caesars, and Pizza Hut are often brought to the supper table to replace home-cooked meals.
In the later 1970s, digital video games came into prominence. The original video game, at least that I can remember was “pong”. Hooked up to a standard television set, the game, emulated table tennis without a net. It was a two-dimensional game with rectangular paddles and a square ball. Then in 1980, along came “Pac-man”. It was an addicting game, that, in my case, could only be played in a local saloon, thus if you wanted to play it a lot, your addictions to other things could potentially develop.
Suddenly home video games became big business. Companies like Atari, Nintendo, Sony, and Microsoft were all after a family’s digital dollar. With these games, one could play musical instruments, sing like a rock star, learn to fly an airplane, and shoot everything from mobsters to monkeys to monsters. Now games can be played on the cell phone and the number of applications or apps seems endless. One can compete against another player next door, or halfway around the world.
Children often spend hours playing video games. With inattentive parents, this may turn into a full day of ‘slouch and couch’. I live in a neighborhood alive with children, yet I rarely see them. I rarely see a bicycle being peddled down the streets, while swing sets, trampolines, and sports fields and parks remain empty.
Yet, despite the surge in youthful inactivity and constant unhealthy eating, there was a recent study that connected climate change and hotter temperatures to childhood obesity. These researchers undoubtedly doubled as inattentive parents looking for both easy funding and an excuse.
CBS Mornings thought this necessitated a worthy progressive endorsement. This story illustrates the difference between nonsensical and decidedly stupid - a representation of the latter portrayed quite accurately here.