This great story was read by Saul Rowen at the 2005 Reunion
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For All Those Born Before 1940!
WE ARE SURVIVORS!!!
Consider the changes we have witnessed:
We were born before television, before penicillin, before polio shots, frozen foods, Xerox, plastic, contact lenses, Frisbees and The Pill.
We were born before radar, credit cards, split atoms, laser beams and ballpoint pens, before panty hose, dishwashers, clothes dryers, electric blankets, air conditioners, drip-dry clothes - and before man walked on the moon.
We got married first and then lived together. How quaint can you be?
In our time, closets were for clothes, not for “coming out of.” Bunnies were small rabbits and rabbits were not Volkswagens. Designer jeans were scheming girls named Jean or Jeanne, and having a meaningful relationship meant getting along well with our cousins.
We though fat food was what you ate during lent, and Outer Space was the balcony of the Egyptian Theater.
We were before househusbands, gay rights, computer dating, dual careers, and computer marriages. We were before day-care centers, group therapy, and nursing homes. We never heard of FM radio, tape decks, electric typewriters, artificial hearts, word processors, yogurt, and guys wearing earrings. For us, time-sharing mean togetherness - not computers or condominiums; a “chip” meant a piece of wood; hardware meant hardware, and software wasn't even a word!
In 1940, “Made in Japan” meant junk and the term “Making out” referred to how you did on your exam. Pizzas, “MacDonald's” and instant coffee were unheard of.
We hit the scene when there were 5 and 10-cent stores, where you bought things for five or ten cents. Mile high Curry Cones were a nickel or a dime. For one nickel you could ride a streetcar, make a phone call, buy a Pepsi or enough stamps to mail one letter, and two postcards. You could buy a new Chevy Coupe for $600, but who could afford one? A pity too, because gas was 11 cents a gallon!
In our day, cigarette smoking was fashionable, GRASS was mowed, COKE was a cold drink and POT was something you cooked in. ROCK MUSIC was a Grandma's lullaby and AIDS were helpers in the Principal's office.
We were certainly not before the difference between the sexes was discovered but we were surely before the sex change; we made do with what we had. And we were the last generation that was so dumb as to think you needed a husband to have a baby.
No wonder we were so confused and there is such a generation gap today!!
BUT WE SURVIVED!!! WHAT BETTER REASON TO CELEBRATE?
If only they could see us now, our Principal, Mr. Watson, Girls Vice-Principal, Mrs. Arcienega and Boys Vice-Principal, Mr. Womble would be mighty proud of us!
Saul/bornbefore1940.05