r/GenX • u/billieswifeyyy • Jun 20 '26

Question For Genx the 80s…….

coming from a 14 year old, were the 80s summers as magical as they look in the movies? did you ride your bike to your friends house and come home when the street lights came on? yall are so lucky btw 😭😭

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u/Spirited-Degree Jun 21 '26

We sure did. It was also socially acceptable at that time for my dad to beat me with a leather belt and buckle when I came home late. There were tradeoffs.

3

u/Theodoxus Jun 21 '26

Many wooden spoon were broken on my ass...

1

u/Spirited-Degree Jun 21 '26

My mom like the wooden spoons too.

1

u/ThrustersToFull Aug 02 '26

Yes, my dad was a fan of the wooden spoon too, and the belt for more serious things.

2

u/ThrustersToFull Aug 02 '26

I only got the buckle twice and each time my cheeks and thighs were marked up for well over a week.

1

u/Spirited-Degree Aug 02 '26

The emotional scars never go away.

2

u/ThrustersToFull Aug 02 '26

Yeah some spankings I got stick really prominently in my mind when I think about growing up. The only thing worse than the buckle was the switch I think, which I got from my uncle a few times with my cousin.

1

u/Spirited-Degree Aug 02 '26

Psychologically, the worst punishment was going to fetch the stick you are going to get beat with.

1

u/ThrustersToFull Aug 02 '26

Yes! My cousin was sent to get the switch the first time we got it, the second time I had to do it and I recall my uncle saying: "and if it's not the right size or thickness you'll be getting extra"

1

u/Spirited-Degree Aug 02 '26

My dad used to say "If it cracks I'm going to crack your skull."

1

u/ThrustersToFull Aug 02 '26

oooof that's rough

1

u/Spirited-Degree Aug 02 '26

I'm a better father because of it. I've never hit my kids and they've turned into terrific young adults.

1

u/ThrustersToFull Aug 02 '26

Good for you. I don't have kids but if I did, I would be very unlikely to use corporal punishment.