[Sara Arell]

HEY,WASN'T THIS US ?

A little house with three bedrooms,
One bathroom and one car on the street.
A mower that you had to push
To make the grass look neat.


In the kitchen on the wall
We only had one phone,
And no need for recording things,
Someone was always home.


We only had a living room
Where we would congregate,
Unless it was at mealtime
In the kitchen where we ate.


We had no need for family rooms
Or extra rooms to dine.
When meeting as a family
Those two rooms would work out fine.


We only had one TV set
And channels maybe two,
But always there was one of them
With something worth the view.

For snacks we had potato chips
That tasted like a chip.
And if you wanted flavor
There was Lipton's onion dip.


Store-bought snacks were rare because
My mother liked to cook
And nothing can compare to snacks
In Betty Crocker's book.


Weekends were for family trips
Or staying home to play.
We all did things together --
Even go to church to pray.


When we did our weekend trips
Depending on the weather,
No one stayed at home because
We liked to be together.


Sometimes we would separate
To do things on our own,
But we knew where the others were
Without our own cell phone.

Then there were the movies
With your favorite movie star,
And nothing can compare
To watching movies in your car.


Then there were the picnics
At the peak of summer season,
Pack a lunch and find some trees
And never need a reason.


Get a baseball game together
With all the friends you know,
Have real action playing ball --
And no game video.


Remember when the doctor
Used to be the family friend,
And didn't need insurance
Or a lawyer to defend?


The way that he took care of you
Or what he had to do,
Because he took an oath and strived
To do the best for you.

Remember going to the store
And shopping casually,
And when you went to pay for it
You used your own money?


Nothing that you had to swipe
Or punch in some amount,
And remember when the cashier person
Had to really count?


The milkman used to go
From door to door,
And it was just a few cents more
Than going to the store.


There was a time when mailed letters
Came right to your door,
Without a lot of junk mail ads
Sent out by every store.

The mailman knew each house by name
And knew where it was sent;
There were not loads of mail addressed
To "present occupant."


There was a time when just one glance
Was all that it would take,
And you would know the kind of car,
The model and the make.


They didn't look like turtles
trying to squeeze out every mile;
they were streamlined, white walls, fins
and really had some style.



One time the music that you played
Whenever you would jive,
was from a vinyl, big-holed record
called a forty-five.


The record player had a post
to keep them all in line
and then the records would drop down
and play one at a time.


Oh sure, we had our problems then,
just like we do today
And always we were striving,
trying for a better way.

Oh, the simple life we lived
still seems like so much fun,
how can you explain a game,
just kick the can and run?


And why would boys put baseball cards
Between bicycle spokes
and for a nickel, red machines
had little bottled Cokes?



This life seemed so much easier
and slower in some ways.
I love the new technology
but I sure do miss those days.

So time moves on and so do we
and nothing stays the same,
but I sure love to reminisce
and walk down memory lane.
With all today's technology we grant that it's a plus!But it's fun to look way back and say,
Hey Look,guys, THAT WAS US!

[Becster]

So true!!! Thanks for the trip down memory lane, Sara!

[lorac]

Loved the trip down memory lane, Sara. I remember those 'good ole days' fondly and wish for the simpler days gone by.

I remember going out for a Sunday drive and we never went above 20 mph. There was no one behind you honking for you to move faster. There were no fast lanes. Only one lane. There were no 'highways', no 'freeways', just side streets and 'byways' that went on for miles. Where you could actually pull off the side of the road and just look at nature surrounding you.

I loved this song then and I still love it.


Once upon a time there was a tavern
Where we used to raise a glass or two
Remember how we laughed away the hours
And think of all the great things we would do

Chorus:

Those were the days, my friend
We thought they'd never end
We'd sing and dance forever and a day
We'd live the life we choose
We'd fight and never lose
For we were young and sure to have our way
La la la la la la
La la la la la la

Then the busy years went rushing by us
We lost our starry notions on the way
If by chance I'd see you in the tavern
We'd smile at one another and we'd say

Those were the days, my friend
We thought they'd never end
We'd sing and dance forever and a day
We'd live the life we choose
We'd fight and never lose
Those were the days
Oh, yes, those were the days
La la la la la la
La la la la la la

Just tonight I stood before the tavern
Nothing seemed the way it used to be
In the glass I saw a strange reflection
Was that lonely woman really me?

Those were the days, my friend
We thought they'd never end
We'd sing and dance forever and a day
We'd live the life we choose
We'd fight and never lose
Those were the days
Oh, yes, those were the days
La la la la la la
La la la la la la

Through the door there came familiar laughter
I saw your face and heard you call my name
Oh, my friend, we're older but no wiser
For in our hearts the dreams are still the same...

Those were the days, my friend
We thought they'd never end
We'd sing and dance forever and a day
We'd live the life we choose
We'd fight and never lose
Those were the days
Oh, yes, those were the days
La la la la la la
La la la la la la

[KayMitch]

Love both posts Sara and Carol. Ah takes you back. Kay

[ValerieT]

I remember much the same, from when I was a kid. Somedays I wish things were far simpler again.

[Belle]

I was 10 when my Granny got her first telephone. Now ever the grands all have their own cellphones. I did love the 'good old days' and wish we could have them back but just with cellphones, IPads, and PC's.

[Sara Arell]

lorac, on 24 June 2012 - 08:57 PM, said:

Loved the trip down memory lane, Sara. I remember those 'good ole days' fondly and wish for the simpler days gone by.

I remember going out for a Sunday drive and we never went above 20 mph. There was no one behind you honking for you to move faster. There were no fast lanes. Only one lane. There were no 'highways', no 'freeways', just side streets and 'byways' that went on for miles. Where you could actually pull off the side of the road and just look at nature surrounding you.

I loved this song then and I still love it.


Once upon a time there was a tavern
Where we used to raise a glass or two
Remember how we laughed away the hours
And think of all the great things we would do

Chorus:

Those were the days, my friend
We thought they'd never end
We'd sing and dance forever and a day
We'd live the life we choose
We'd fight and never lose
For we were young and sure to have our way
La la la la la la
La la la la la la

Then the busy years went rushing by us
We lost our starry notions on the way
If by chance I'd see you in the tavern
We'd smile at one another and we'd say

Those were the days, my friend
We thought they'd never end
We'd sing and dance forever and a day
We'd live the life we choose
We'd fight and never lose
Those were the days
Oh, yes, those were the days
La la la la la la
La la la la la la

Just tonight I stood before the tavern
Nothing seemed the way it used to be
In the glass I saw a strange reflection
Was that lonely woman really me?

Those were the days, my friend
We thought they'd never end
We'd sing and dance forever and a day
We'd live the life we choose
We'd fight and never lose
Those were the days
Oh, yes, those were the days
La la la la la la
La la la la la la

Through the door there came familiar laughter
I saw your face and heard you call my name
Oh, my friend, we're older but no wiser
For in our hearts the dreams are still the same...

Those were the days, my friend
We thought they'd never end
We'd sing and dance forever and a day
We'd live the life we choose
We'd fight and never lose
Those were the days
Oh, yes, those were the days
La la la la la la
La la la la la la

Oh, I love that song too, Carol - now I'm going to be singing it all day!

[A-M]

Thanks Sara and Carol

We never had a TV until I was 5 years old. My parents never had a phone until I was in my late teens.

[princessrunningfingers]

I loved this, Sara, and that song will be in my head all day too, Carol. And I have to add that I was in high school when my parents got their first TV. And did this mention party lines? If so I missed it somehow. I remember those.

[Sara Arell]

princessrunningfingers, on 25 June 2012 - 06:40 AM, said:

I loved this, Sara, and that song will be in my head all day too, Carol. And I have to add that I was in high school when my parents got their first TV. And did this mention party lines? If so I missed it somehow. I remember those.

I don't think that the poem said anything about party lines, but I do remember them too - vaguely but I do remember picking up our phone at home and someone would be already on there having a two way conversation with someone. I was little then so my sister and I would always sit and listen to their conversation with our hand over the phone so they couldn't hear us - silly kids!

[LaLo1103]

Some I could relate to, and some not, but it was a cute reminder of the past. Thanks for sharing!