Overprotective dads are as old as time itself, and they certainly are still alive and well today, but like with everything, it was a little more extreme in the ’60s. Grumpy fathers would notoriously chase their daughters’ dates off their front lawns, sometimes with an old hunting rifle in hand.
Of course, when it came to sons, they were only encouraged. It took quite a few years to ease up on our girls, and we’re still working on it.
Sending Your Little Kid to the Store with a Note
Then, a way to teach your kid some responsibility, now, a way to put your kid in a potentially dangerous situation. The world is not as safe as it was and sending kids to do shopping is not is definitely less popular.
Who knows, maybe things will change one day!
Sunbathing Without Sunscreen
Before sunscreen, kids would use baby oil with iodine to prevent burns. But, also there weren't all those fears about holes in the ozone layer, so the sun seemed like everybody's friend. Which after many sunburns and peeling shoulders later, we understood that it can be pretty dangerous.
At least they tried to protect their kids with what they had. Moms and dads, on the other hand, would freely lather up with suntan oil and roast in the sun. While many people still do that today, it is at least regarded as something pretty unwise.
Chasing Trucks with Toxic Fumes
Poisonous pesticides were the last thing on anybody's minds back then. To the point that kids in the neighborhood would run after them as if it was a game. Little did they know that these were the very trucks spraying poisons and other chemicals to kill pests and mosquitos.
This seems a little too crazy and we hope that parents caught onto this very quickly.
Kids Using the Oven and Stove
Being alone in the house for long hours while their folks were away at work, these kids had to cook their own dinners. If you didn't stock up on simple microwavable dinners, little children had no choice but to light up those stoves and ovens themselves.
Sometimes it worked out, sometimes it didn't. We are sure that local fire departments were alert and ready for action.