Boomers have lived through a variety of major changes that no other generation can boast. The rise in technology has altered the way in which people live and has led to many trends being a thing of the past. Fortunately for the boomer generation, they’re able to cherish those memories of popular things that others likely didn’t experience.
Books were a primary source of research
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Books still play a crucial role in society today, but when it comes to people needing information quickly, the internet has become the primary resource. That’s not always been the case, though. Boomers will remember when books were the crucial source of information, whether it was a dictionary or references.
The daily milkman
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Milk has always been a staple of a home, but nowadays, the majority of people head to their local store to pick it up. That wasn’t the case in the past, though, as people would often have milkmen delivering milk on a daily basis, which was due to most homes not having refrigerators to keep it cool enough to store for long periods.
Life before 24/7 Television
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Nowadays, there is television to be watched every single hour of the day. All the main channels are guaranteed to be broadcasting something, even if it’s a repeat. But that’s not always been the case, as boomers are well aware. Many of them will recall how TV stations would sign off at midnight and then not return until a specific time in the morning.
Physical maps for navigation
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If people want to know how to reach a destination now, they typically type it into a phone or a device set inside a vehicle. The device provides a voice that kindly directs them to a place, making life very simple. But boomers will recall the days when physical maps were crucial for reaching somewhere they didn’t know, and they had to track roads with a keen eye.
Psychedelic art
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The hippie movement is something that boomers will remember fondly. With a rise in music, a brand new style began to take over, which saw psychedelic art follow it. Many boomers will have opted to own something with this style, whether on a poster or clothes.
Drive-In theaters
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Long before the days of ‘Netflix and chill,’ people opted to drive out of their homes for entertainment. This would often come in the form of drive-in theaters, where friends and families would pile into one car to watch a movie.
Keeping a phonebook
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Having someone’s contact information is useful, but now that information can be stored on a phone and accessed with a simple click. Boomers will relish this, considering that all of that information used to be in a phone book, which would require them to write it all down to avoid forgetting.
Owning a lava lamp
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Lava lamps aren’t a thing anymore, but boomers will eventually recall owning them. The lamp would have wax inside a liquid that would float around when turned on, providing unique shapes that would not only be fun to watch but also provide some light.
Space age fashion
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Fashion is everchanging and consistently evolving, and boomers have been able to experience many of them. One that they were at the heart of was space-age fashion. With lots of metallic designs and a focus on silver and gold, this was an interesting period for fashion.
Pop Art is popular
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Pop Art is a unique style that Andy Warhol pushed heavily, leading to many paintings and art pieces created in this manner. Often, elements of pop culture, such as Coca-Cola products and Marilyn Monroe, were taken and turned into bright designs with neon colors. These designs were unique and proved to be a hit then.
Hula Hoops were a hit
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Due to technology, toys have evolved greatly, with children now able to play with a wide variety of things. But boomers enjoyed many simpler items that were just as fun. One of those was a hula hoop, which provided endless joy to people.
Tie-dye clothes were everywhere
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In the 1960s, there was often a focus on using bright colors in many ways. That led to the rise of tie-dye clothes, a trend later generations have opted not to pick up. They could be created in a variety of ways, with the hippie movement playing a big part in this.
Beatlemania
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The Beatles remain iconic and popular to this day, and their music has spanned multiple generations. That’s going to continue due to the high-quality music that the English band produced. But it was the boomers who were able to experience true Beatlemania, which saw the world go completely wild for them, a unique moment in time.
Dialing A Rotary Phone
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Currently, people don’t need to type a phone number to make a call, but boomers will be well aware of when more work was needed. That was clear with the rotary phones, as this would require people to recall the numbers perfectly to make sure they were nailed at the first time of asking.
Jell-O Dishes
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Jell-O might not be something tons of people are running towards now, but it might still be a firm favorite of boomers. This was a trending dessert that people often sampled, but it faded over time.
Banana Seat bikes
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Banana-seat bikes might not be something that many people are aware of now, but boomers will likely have spent time riding around on them. They were designed to look like choppers and proved to be very popular at the time.
Smoke wherever, whenever
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Smoking has changed a lot over the years, mainly because people are now more informed about the potential dangers it can cause. But at one point, smoking was simply a trend that was commonly enjoyed. Unlike the rules and restrictions placed upon where you can do that today, boomers enjoyed doing it wherever and whenever they wanted for many years.
Mood rings were a big fad
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Jewelry has always been popular, and that’s unlikely ever to change. But when it comes to boomers, they got to experience the trend of mood rings, which were a massive hit at one point in time. When placed on someone’s finger, these rings would change colors, which your mood would supposedly determine.
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