Skip to content
Search AI Powered

Latest Stories

People Explain Which Things Are Normal Today That Weren't 50 Years Ago

People Explain Which Things Are Normal Today That Weren't 50 Years Ago
person typing on silver MacBook
Photo by Burst on Unsplash
Make us preferred on Google

The world is an ever changing place.

In addition to continuing advancements in technology, human behavior also continues to evolve.

As a result, what might have seemed "normal" 50 years ago might seem far-fetched today, while things which we today consider "normal" might never have even crossed the mind of anyone back then.

Making everything we consider "normal" among the many things in this world that continues to evolve at a rapid pace.

Redditor Primary_Berry_3560 was curious to hear what "normal" everyday things were anything but normal fifty years ago, leading them to ask:

"What is normal now but wasn’t normal 50 years ago (1972)?"


We could just leave whenever we wanted to!

"Knowing where your kids are 100% of the time."- bradland

We're all wired up today!

"No one had a computer in their house in 1972."- tcharp01

Buckle up!

"Car seats for children."

"And most of the time we sat in the back seat with no seat belts available."- Rosemoorstreet

"Wearing seatbelts."

"There were no sensors- seatbelt were just shoved out of the way."

"Carding for cigarettes."

"Machines were everywhere for anyone to use."- factchecker8515

buckle up crash test dummies GIF by ADWEEKGiphy

In the old days, we had one chance!

"Watching an entire TV series at a time that's convenient for you."

"VCR's weren't even a thing 50 years ago, so if your favorite show was on Wednesday at 8PM, you were either at home to watch it or you missed out on it forever."- DeathSpiral321

Music on demand!

"Listening to the song you want to where you want to, rather than whatever is playing wherever you are."- jfincher42

Giphy

Being beholden to a landline!

"I am amazed to think about how disconnected we were."

"I could wake up on a Saturday morning and start calling friends."

"It was possible that not a single one picked up the phone and that was that."

"I would be on my own unless I waited a few hours and tried again."

"Also, in my area, the adults in the house almost always answered the phone so you had to get through them to your friends."

“'Hello, is Johnny home?'”

"'Hi this is his mother, what do you want?'”

“'I was wooooondering if he could come out to play'.”

“'Well he’s doing homework right now but I’ll tell him you called'.”

"As a kid, our times were divided between when we were 100% under adult control, which was when we were physically in their presence, and when we were free which was all other time."- Mrmidhoratio

"Asking 'Where are you?' when someone answers their phone."- brontosproximo

Shocked Phone Call GIFGiphy

No wonder they were all so tan...

"Regularly wearing sunscreen."- dixius99

It's amazing to see how much the world has changed in such a relatively short amount of time.

Leaving us to wonder what things will be "normal" 50 years from now, which today the very thought of would make us burst out laughing.

More from Trending/best-of-reddit

Cookie Monster and Elmo; Spanish World Cup team
Hector Vivas - FIFA/FIFA via Getty Images; Diego Radames/Anadolu via Getty Images

Cookie Monster's Tweet About Eating Cookies For The World Cup Final Sparks Hilarious Jokes

Okay at this point I think it's time we get a memo to the Sesame Street characters to stay out of sports commentary!

Because just weeks after Elmo became public internet enemy #1 for refusing to back the Knicks in the NBA playoffs, now Cookie Monster has egg on his face. Or cookie crumbs, as it were.

Keep ReadingShow less
Larry David; Robert F. Kennedy Jr.
Araya Doheny/Getty Images for HBO; Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images

Larry David Just Brutally Ripped RFK Jr. On His New HBO Show—And It's Everything

In the latest installment of Barack and Michelle Obama's Higher Ground Productions executive-produced HBO sketch comedy series Life, Larry and the Pursuit of Unhappiness, star Larry David took aim at his former costar Cheryl Hines' husband, conspiracy theorist and antivaxxer Robert F. Kennedy Jr., in a series that has reunited many of her Curb Your Enthusiasm cast mates.

When asked why Hines wasn't asked to make a cameo, co-creator and director Jeff Schaffer told Variety:

Keep ReadingShow less
Hunter Biden; JD Vance
Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images; Nathan Howard / POOL / AFP via Getty Images

Hunter Biden Just Epically Trolled JD Vance On National Ice Cream Day—And He's Far Too Good At This

Hunter Biden celebrated National Ice Cream Day by mocking Vice President JD Vance following Vance's complaint that former President Joe Biden eats ice cream in a "suggestive" manner.

Vance raised eyebrows several days ago after he claimed during an interview with conservative podcaster Joe Rogan that Biden's staff had him eat ice cream "in the most suggestive way possible."

Keep ReadingShow less
Kash Patel
Nathan Posner/Anadolu via Getty Images

Kash Patel Roasted After Sharing Cringey Video Patting Himself On The Back Following 'Flawless' World Cup

FBI Director Kash Patel was widely mocked after sharing a gloating video touting "zero major security incidents" after Spain claimed the World Cup title on Sunday with a 1–0 victory over defending champions Argentina.

Patel said the statistic is remarkable given that the United States "hosted the equivalent of 78 super bowls in 38 days, along with 40 base camps, endless fan zones, and celebrations in nearly every state."

Keep ReadingShow less
Tom Cruise
Tom Weller/picture alliance/Getty Images

Tom Cruise Looks Virtually Unrecognizable In Trailer For New Film About Eccentric Billionaire

We've seen some incredible examples of immersive acting and method acting that took projects to a whole new place, like Heath Ledger's Joker in The Dark Knight and Leonardo DiCaprio in The Revenant.

The latest example, which is reminding some of an elderly Biff Tannen from Back to the Future, is Tom Cruise's portrayal of the fictional character Digger Rockwell, a wealthy oil tycoon who must help undo the harm that he's created for the planet and its people.

Keep ReadingShow less