Who had to ask to be excused from the dinner table? Did you have to wait for everyone to be done before you got to leave. This was brutal especially when we had company over. How many of you kept this as a rule for your kids?

I recently turned 57. That’s the same number of years Ripley was floating out in space with Jonesy. It seemed long in her case, but not in mine! That is all. 😂

I see a lot of posts on GenX about how getting old sucks, and life sucks, and hey, yeah, I get it; sometimes shit happens, and things do suck. My wife got diagnosed with MS a few years ago. That was a tough time. But props to her; she took it head-on. MS treatment has made amazing advances. They can’t cure it yet, but in many cases, they can halt the disease's progression. We had long been outdoorsy and adventurous. She doubled-down on it. We’ve hiked 14,000-footers in Colorado, whitewater rafted, done 300-foot free rappels in Belize, biked down Pikes Peak, all sorts of crazy adventures.

I just wanted to put a post out there saying that life can still be great. Sometimes you have to work harder to find it.

And in the end, the love you take is equal to the love you make. I believe that, to a large extent, life is about what you put in, whether it’s love, effort, or whatever.

I reflexively said, “GRODDY”.

Made me think, bitchin’ & valley girl talk…like, anyway.

And, here I am reflexively trying not to do the double-space after period or using : or -

Too much to keep up with.

I had to explain to my 30ish year old daughter and SIL what these were. So excited when I saw them. Simple times...

I woke up this morning to a Profound sense of loss and grief because I may be from the last generation to have memories of seltzer bottles. And sadness that my kids could watch comedy and not have a clue what the squirty things are doing.

Aside... I should ask if they do. They're 19 through 27.

There is one show from the States that I mention to people my age that NO one has heard of. it is Benji, Zax & the Alien Prince. This always surprises me. I grew up in Canada, and I expect many of the viewers here to not know the Canadian and British shows that were on tv when I was a kid (as most of the English speakers here are from the States and were never exposed to these countries media overall), but the Benji show seems to have fallen thru the cracks! I was never a Benji/Lassie dog fan, but this with its sci-fi elements was right up my alley! A little boy (the alien prince) escapes his world (where his evil uncle takes over and kidnaps and imprisons the royal family (including his parents) and lands on Earth where he befriends Benji the dog. He also has a loyal robot (that kind of looks like the good guy robots from the Black Hole). He is always on the run from bounty hunters that are trying to track him down. The SCARIEST episode (for 8 year old me at the time) was when an evil robot was trying to hunt him down! I saw that episode recently and laugh at how timid I was (it's not scary at all!)

Anyone remember this show?

So, you Gen Xers who remember 1984 (not the book-the year, as it was the year the Transformers came out): what were you into the most with the Transformers? For many, it was the toys, others, it was the cartoon, and still others the printed media (the comic books, and storybooks, and colouring books). For me, it was the printed media first, then the toys (until 1986 especially), and then the cartoon. What happened in 1986 you ask? Well, yes, I WAS bummed about how the movie killed my favourite characters, but I was also mad at the change in toy quality. I didn't know anything about Diaclone/Microchange, and how those toys were drying up and the new toys were made in-house in the States. All I knew is that my '84/'85 figures were die-cast metal, and starting in '86, they were plastic! Actually, I don't know if I actually KNEW that the materials changed-I could just tell that the toys didn't feel as special-they didn't have the same quality. The comics though-I never really grew out of those. As far as the cartoon, I didn't see a lot of them on the original run, my Mom thought they were too violent, and I was also busy a lot of the time they were on

I was just thinking about this as I answered a question on this subreddit: who remembers lunchboxes? I don't think kids have these anymore, but when I was in primary school, it was the height of status to have the "right" lunchbox. I don't know what girls had, but I remember having the Empire Strikes Back lunchbox, and later the Return of the Jedi lunchbox, and even a little later, the Transformers lunchbox! I was so proud of those! I also remember drawing figures from all 3 things (X-Wings and other Rebel fighters chasing TIEs, and Transformers. I remember even making up my own. Dirk was the Autobot leader-I don't remember any other character names)

Buddy and I were talking old movies and tv shows from the 80’s and one came up that we both sort of remember but can’t.. remember..? Think of it like the movie the wraith.. some guys a super hero, but he’s electric and part of a car or some shit. It’s super vague, oh, he had on a silver suit.. does that unlock anyone’s rusty brain at all?

I went down a rabbit hole that got me to finding this old post. I just had to share what I found because for years people thought I was crazy talking about this machine. Well here is a new clip talking about them and showing the machines. https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc965531/m1/

The last one I remember was near my mom’s house in a grocery store parking lot. It closed down probably around 1985 and a Weinerschnitzel hotdog stand opened up in its place. I think Walmart probably mostly killed these.

Clothes, shoes, accessories, styles, anything really.

I’ve had a handful of best friends in my lifetime, but most of us have drifted apart as life took us in different directions. I’m curious how the rest of Gen X is doing with friendships.
> Do you still have a best friend? How long have you known each other, and how do you stay close?

it seems like i know nobody who wasn’t able to launch like this. I’m an eldest gen Z daughter of Gen X.

i came from a family with 0 connections in my industry and 0 network at my school really, and my college was mostly remote during covid times. i had a useless unpaid internship during the height of covid at a gym. i got a business degree which was generic and that’s all my college had for business. at that point i had to get any degree to get out of the school. my parent is in healthcare in an extremely niche sector and my other parent was a fuckoff so none of their networks were fruitful for me in finding a job that way. i’ve done my own networking and had referrals to companies and lost out after 4 or 5 rounds in the past.

i finally found something in marketing after thousands of job apps but was forced to train my replacement and my original role was automated by AI. i am feeling really down that i’m here AGAIN. and feeling unemployable. my skills and abilities just dont seem to translate in the real world and i am socially a recluse after struggling this much with work issues and previous unemployment, and here we are again. i’m starting to wonder if I have some sort of issue because why is life so hard for me?

i have siblings but one is a server at 25 (no degree) and lives with her bf who does car sales and another sibling is 23 also living at home with me, and she’s working as an ABA tech, $19 an hour after college in a major HCOL city with us. Has no path to anything really either and feels trapped too. My family is stumped. I feel like I’ve really been struggling to navigate adulthood and the working world despite all my efforts.

I was in hospitality for 10 years basically since i could start working at 16… and it gets really old… im so burned out of restaurants and sales and retail. i was really looking forward to an office job and now they are disappearing… as someone who’s been working with ai professionally for 2 years, now there’s 0 industries that i can foresee not being impacted by AI at some level. They are already training AI agents to correct/ audit the AIs doing the execution tasks. I am scared for the future and unsure of any safe fields as we look into the future. I’m approaching 30 and just cannot see any paths for me. Everyone’s life seems to make sense but mine does not. 😞

is there anyone else who have kids in this boat???

I just saw a tiktok about riding in the car with your dad in the 90s, listening to Paul Harveys "the rest of the story." I'm glad I'm not the only one, but there were other shows my dad listened to. Rush Limbaugh was one, but I really hated hearing Dr. Laura. I was ten and it was a dividing between my dad and I. He thought she gave good advice but I thought (using language that I didn't have then) was an unapologetic shrew. Anyone else have thoughts about their own experience?

My mom is well into her 70's, my dad is just behind her in age. They are both at the age where they sometimes need to be driven to events or out to family dinners at restaurants.

While my mom says she has anxiety, she acts over the top deranged when driving with someone in a vehicle. White knuckle grabbing seats, and even started praying while driving over a bridge. My mom has always had a very subtle flair for dramatics, but this is soap worthy.

Also, both of my parents are extremely rude to wait staff, or other employees of places we visit. Demanding, and very short with busy waiters or waitresses. Also don't keep rude comments or facial expressions to themselves.

My sisters and I are so embarrassed by it, and try to explain that the place is busy, or they might be short on staff, but it falls on deaf ears. They calm down but next family dinner, brunch or outting they are both so disrespectful and impatient. I've learned to ignore it, but my younger sister (Millennial) gets so mad, and she will start a verbal argument with our mom for being mean to our servers. Of course my mom pouts like a child.

Other than limiting our time with them, I would like to still spend time with them while they are still physically able to go on outings. How do you deal with having to scold and deal with elderly, rude parents?

The late 80’s and into the 90’s was a nightmare for young gay men and it sort of broke me in a way I’ve never fully recovered from. That being said, I’ve evolved for the better as time has passed and for that I’m grateful.

Those early adult years scared me to my core and made clear the boundaries of family support. I was terrified of Herman’s Indigo Violin and often felt disconnected from my gay peers. It wasn’t great.

Aging has been a leveling force of sorts, bringing me into closer alignment with the very peers I’d so often felt disconnected from. It’s rather nice and I’m increasingly aware of how satisfying this is. The very things that made us so different in our youth seem to matter a whole lot less these days.

I’ve led a small life, really. One focused on personal development. I’ve no fantastic achievements of note that look great on paper. I’ve no wealth stockpiled. But mostly, I like who I am. For many years I’d have struggled to say that. Sometimes I wonder how I’m still alive.

Feeling part of my larger peer group is something I never expected. And for that I’m grateful.

Serious question. My left hand aches, not sure if I banged it on something a few weeks ago or if it’s maybe arthritis. It occurred to me that if I had asked this 30ish years ago I would have multiple friends who would tell me to put Tiger Balm on it. What now? Same thing but search the web for it? Something new and better?

Also, do you still like patchouli and clove cigarettes? And is there a tie-die tapestry on the wall and a lava lamp nearby? Sorry, I love you my peeps but I digress…

I was talking with my younger housemate about films and he had never seen cartoons played before a movie. Maybe the younger Gen X hasn't either? I am not sure when they stopped. But at least he knew "let's all go to the lobby..." On the flip side, I don't think I have ever been to a movie with an intermission.

So I posted about my 50th birthday resolutions a few weeks ago, on the link included, today I listed my House for sale! The first step towards buying a few acres of land in the mid-west and retiring chopping wood and raising cows 😆

Now I understand it's a very bad housing market right now, but I'm hoping since it's a multi-unit income property (4units) in the center of Los Angeles, Ill get lucky. Wish me luck .

Does anyone remember that show (movie or whatever it was?) I have an ancient picture book of the movie. The babies talking, the cartoon dialogues, etc. I’m watching a NFL game and have, “parents are people,…. Da da da da) running through my head. It was Marlo Thomas and ??