When we were young . . .

Remember when we were kids without a care in the world? All we had to worry about was what game we'd play next, could we make it into the house before we peed our pants or worse, whether or not to play kick the can or hide and seek and other inconsequential things. But now that I'm all grown up, it's just not the same. I don't think anyone here wants to play kick the can anymore unless they kick it to the recycling bin.

Now I don't even have to leave the house before I'm all embroiled in problems that need taking care of by phone or computer. When you try to get something done by phone, you have to go through many automated people who can't talk to you. Their tin-can voices tell you to punch 1. if you want this 2. if you want that 3. if you want to set yourself on fire 4. if you want them to set themselves on fire. Finally, they give up on you and say to wait for someone who will speak to you. This was

Social Security to whom I was speaking, and you know I didn't have one chance in hell to ever make contact with a live person. But I had the newspaper in front of me so decided to just wait it out and see if anyone ever came on. I could see their office, full of little mannequins seated at desks where the little automated voices originated. As I was picturing what all the mannequins looked like and how they were dressed or possibly naked, a voice came through the phone and I nearly fell off my chair! I told her how excited I was to talk to someone alive, but she wasn't interested as I imagine she had many others waiting for her. So she ripped right through the questions about my mother's maiden name, where I was born, etc. I guess I passed because she said it was now all taken care of!

Next on my agenda was meeting the bug man who was coming to put out a trap that would catch and kill the rat that had been practically living on my deck and eating the birdseed that dropped from the bird feeder. When he arrived, he showed me the trap and I could see that it would kill the rat big time! I told him I hadn't seen the rat since I took down the feeder, and he said maybe he ate the food under my deck he had put out that was poison and it appeared to be all gone. I told him my birds were going apeshit over not having food and were flying at my windows and giving me the evil eye. I decided I didn't want the awful trap and would put the feeder up after a while and see what happened.

So that was my exciting morning. Not as much fun as when I was a little kid. The above picture shows left to right a neighbor girl, Teri and Cindy having fun playing dress-up when they were young. Do kids still do that anymore or do they all have games they play on TV with their iPhones?