How did You Pass the Time Growing Up.

Kris148

Kris148

Member
Location
Sydney, Australia
I was from a middle class family but was never showered with a lot of toys. Toys in those days were nothing like today. You did not have to mash you brain sitting in your bedroom for hours on end eyes glues to some computer game. We actually played outdoors. Most of my childhood was spent in a strict boarding school where few toys were permitted so we had to make our own to amuse ourselves. I recall using milk bottle tops for various games and chicken bones for such games as Jacks. When on holidays I made up for the deprivation at school to indulge in plenty of playtime. One of my favorite pastimes was also rather dangerous.. billy cart racing (see below). Boy did I procue a few grazed arms and legs from spills from these wild machines. Wonder I did not break my neck. The average billy cart was made from a disused wooden fruit crate, pram wheels and rope for steering.
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I played outside whenever possible. Bike riding was was a favorite pastime. When I was very young I payed house but instead of using my dolls I used my Beagle to push around in my doll carriage. I'd dress him up in dresses and bonnets. He was so patient.

My first friend was a boy who lived next door. We made sand castles and played with his toy trucks and cars. I especially loved his peddle fire engine. Once in awhile he would let me drive but mostly I had to sit in the back.

When I was school age I had several girl friends and we spent endless hours playing games,coloring, and going back and forth to each others houses on the weekend and summer vacation. I would come home for lunch and supper. We were out all day and never ever were bored. The days were endless back then. We had such fun.
 

The days were endless back then. We had such fun.

How true. Knowing I had to return to my boarding school prison made my holidays all the more exciting and adventurous. Another thing I used to do was catch cicadas and keep them as pets. Not a word of a lie. My friends and I had a contest to see who could catch the most. There were countless varieties in Sydney. Here are two

Blue Moon
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Yellow Monday


 

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We lived in a country neighborhood

Nobody had nuthin’

Rolled old tires with sticks in place of bikes

Chewed melted tar from the road for gum

Used willow leaves for money when playing cops and robbers

Climbed thru the forbidden pile of stumps for adventure

Threw fir cones at each other until someone cried
Then we threw harder

Played baseball with broom sticks and tied up rags, cow patties for bases

Used small round pebbles for BBs whenever a BB gun appeared

Made hay bale tunnels in Miller’s barn
Crawled thru them for hours


Made fun of each other’s looks


Explored each other’s things

Spitting contests
Peeing contests
And that was just the gurls

We were wild

Our imaginations were wilder

Gawd, I miss those days




I have to write
 
I lived in a lively neighbourhood and had lots of friends when I was a kid.
We played a LOT. We played :

hide ‘n seek
red rover, red rover
red light, green light
Nikki, Nikki nine doors
roller skates
jumpsy ropes
bicycling
tobogganing
cards
barbies
hot rods
jumping jacks
old rubber tires
big inner tubes for putting in the lake
swings
hop scotch


Much of the time I enjoyed spending by myself so I walked the dogs often
I was extremely active and interested in nature. Collecting bugs to study was always fun and exciting.
Making stuff was next to magical. There were games to help you draw cool stuff, I had a rock tumbler , had materials to make colourful paper flowers, make clothes for my dolls, coloured in books, painted, made ceramics, ate lots of candy.

Singing and dancing became fun things to do. Getting into trouble was a fun thing to do but I sometimes got other kids into trouble too but not often until I got my own place at 16. Then I was a complete wild child. Lol
My favourite past time was walking & exploring.
 
We played outdoors a lot, hand ball, stoop ball, hit the stick, Ace, King, Queen, jump rope (double Dutch, Chinese), bike riding, skating. Also went swimming, fishing, clamming, crabbing, played tennis, badminton, played with toy guns, trucks, cars, bow and arrow with my older brother. Indoors was crayons, board games and other simple things for amusement.
 
I grew up in the city and there were many children my age that lived on the same block as I did. We played outside all day and into the night. Riding bikes,playing loads of games and getting wet under the fireplug. Most of the times mom's and Dad's also were outside having a good time with the neighbors. They were wonderful days.
 
Ruth n Jersey said:
I played outside whenever possible. Bike riding was was a favorite pastime. When I was very young I payed house but instead of using my dolls I used my Beagle to push around in my doll carriage. I'd dress him up in dresses and bonnets. He was so patient.

My first friend was a boy who lived next door. We made sand castles and played with his toy trucks and cars. I especially loved his peddle fire engine. Once in awhile he would let me drive but mostly I had to sit in the back.

When I was school age I had several girl friends and we spent endless hours playing games,coloring, and going back and forth to each others houses on the weekend and summer vacation. I would come home for lunch and supper. We were out all day and never ever were bored. The days were endless back then. We had such fun.
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Ruth, I could have written this myself! You and I grew up so similarly except for a dog.

I did have toys too, as I'm sure you did. Cap guns and dolls were my favorites.
 
Kris148 said:
I was from a middle class family but was never showered with a lot of toys. Toys in those days were nothing like today. You did not have to mash you brain sitting in your bedroom for hours on end eyes glues to some computer game. We actually played outdoors. Most of my childhood was spent in a strict boarding school where few toys were permitted so we had to make our own to amuse ourselves. I recall using milk bottle tops for various games and chicken bones for such games as Jacks. When on holidays I made up for the deprivation at school to indulge in plenty of playtime. One of my favorite pastimes was also rather dangerous.. billy cart racing (see below). Boy did I procue a few grazed arms and legs from spills from these wild machines. Wonder I did not break my neck. The average billy cart was made from a disused wooden fruit crate, pram wheels and rope for steering.
9k=
images
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Kris, I remember those carts...we called them "buggies", don't know why. It seems only the boys had them!
 
Reading, watching a few shows on the three channels available, playing with dolls (younger), swimming the river, playing in the creek, water skiing, riding Go Carts and 3-wheelers, needlework. And as the oldest of three with two very hard working parents, at 13 yo I became a sort of third parent. Started making dinner from scratch and babysitting my younger siblings when we weren't in school.
 
I played outside a lot in summer time. Other times, I passed time reading (a lot) or listening to my records or the radio. I kept to myself often.
 
I lived only 20km from the city but it may have been 100kms. Our home was built in a street that was still unpaved and we were surrounded by forest. This was a great place to go exploring and hunting for native fauna. Just watch out for snakes was what Dad told us. Animals proliferate in Australian forests at the time were small native marsupials.. gliders, tiger quoll, quokka and wallaby. You had to be late in the day to catch the gliders and quokkas as they are mostly nocturnal. Introduced animals such as wild rabbits were usually our hunting target. These were considered pests and made good eating. I can recall dad skinning the rabbit before mum boiled it. My dad was the family executioner. We also kept chooks and many occasions I had to watch him lop off the head of that nite's dinner. I can still see the headless chook in its final death throes. That should have put me off eating chicken for life.
 
RadishRose said:
Kris, I remember those carts...we called them "buggies", don't know why. It seems only the boys had them!
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I recall a female friend of mine always wanted to have a ride. She was a bit of a tom boy I suppose. I allowed her to ride mine only on our dirt street as I told her it was far too dangerous to ride on pavement in a race. She insisted, got her wish and the next race she won. After which she asked her father to make her a billy cart like mine.
 
I guess you could say the boarding school I attended for a decade during my childhood defined me as a person. I learned that I would never send a child of mine to one of those institutions. I got the shock of all shocks last week while surfing YT I came across a short video of my old school. Seems it was a promo vid to entice spouses of a deceased mason to send their child to the school. Whats more my older brother and I are in the clip (44sec). My brother is the tall boy in the middle while I am the blonde haired squirt on his left. I have to say watching this video brought back forgettable memories. I will post a link if anyone is interested.
https://youtu.be/SWiQA0OvKX8
 
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Has anyone ever been deprived of seeing their parents on a day to day basis from the age of 6? I was when, after my father passed away, my mother was "forced" to ship my older brother and I off to a faraway boarding school. So from having two loving parents who doted on me I suddenly was without both a father and a mother.. replaced by strangers to raise me. Anyone who has been to a children's home such as the one I was sent to knows that having strangers replace your parents is a poor substitute. They do not lavish love on you.. rather a cane for the pettiest of misdemeanors. They do not lavish you with toys.. rather confiscate them. They do not feed you nutritious food.. rather weevil soup, soggy bread and milk, hard as putty porridge and one egg a week.
 
Us kids also played outside..hopscotch, jump rope, tag, and having races by foot up and down the street~At home I sat in the basement playing 45 rpm records on my little phonograph, I read fairy tales, too.
 
When young, my mother would throw me outside to play in any temperature when rain or heavy snow was not falling. Riding my bike to the public library that was several miles away would also pass the time. Prior to every child feeling entitled to a television set in their bedroom, I read for hours. If I was fortunate enough to have a friend over to visit, we'd play board games like "Monopoly."
 

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