Shock, horror ... life can actually be lived well with less reliance on those technological gadgets.
As a child of the seventies and eighties, I was raised with two working parents, so that old chestnut of an excuse won't wash and, though times were certainly simpler, I'm not so sure they were easier or any less busy.
Back then kids came home from school and did things called chores, a foreign word for many.
It was my job to peel the potatoes for dinner, do the dusting and clean the bathroom.
There were no mod cons - my brother and I were the dishwashers of today. There were no clothes dryers, microwaves or robotic vacuums ... hell, even oven fries hadn't come into being.
Our lifestyles were so busy they were our gyms. We played indoors and out, swapping swaps, running under garden sprinklers and playing cards, tag and board games.
Our parents battled the hardship of carless days to ensure we made it to extracurricular activities and always found the time to be present at every event to support us.
We recycled more by accident than design, putting out our empty glass milk bottles every night to have them replaced by fresh pints that cost just six cents each and kids looking for extra coin could always rely on the money offered for empty glass soda bottles.
That was before manufacturers presented us with the convenience of the disposable receptacles that now pollute the modern world, not to mention damage the environment. The ones we now demand. Waste be buggered! Progress ... yeah, nah.
Mum would come home from doing an actual eight-hour day, produce a home-cooked meal and, more often than not, she'd manage a pudding, too. She didn't have the luxury of saying: "I can't be stuffed, let's order pizza."
She'd do washing and ironing, help with homework if needed and bang out scrummy school lunches before sitting down to watch TV as a family, many of which were still black and white back then.
Ad breaks were appreciated as the perfect time to whip out to the kitchen and make a cuppa and grab a thicker, tastier Gingernut than we get today.
The shows back then were awesome - The Waltons and Little House On The Prairie were fond favourites. They were all about the importance of family, the acceptance of others and facing financial hardship.
Nothing like we view nowadays. The reality drivel and morally bankrupt soaps and dramas that portray their cash-strapped characters moaning about their poverty over a pricey alcoholic beverage and/or a takeaway. Oh, and their nails are always backfilled and their hair is coiffed to perfection cos those things are essential on any budget.
Before the iconic Goodnight Kiwi came along, there was a strange thing called a test pattern. It would mysteriously appear on screen, usually around 11pm.
For those of us privy to the secret language, we accepted its message - no more telly, it's time to go to bed. We didn't have the choice of unplugging from one device and moving on to another.
Insomniacs and daredevils may have read a book or had an actual face-to-face conversation. Yep ... we lived life on the edge back then.
Most of us, though, slept like logs because we were so knackered from actually being busy.
Aah, the lessons of the past. Simpler maybe and infinitely more productive and rewarding.
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