If you grew up in 70s/80s what things did you do which would be unimaginable these days.

[newlabelwriter]

Just thinking about this. When I was about 9 my friend and I used to go around knocking on our neighbours doors to see if we could pick dandelions (or something similar) for her pet rabbits. Seems such a random thing to do and obviously v v young to knocking on doors to go into their gardens!

When I was 5, I would go into an old lady's house all time, she always has ice cream cones for me. I could walk all around the area I lived in, a very long street. I would be out and about until supper time. Parents had no idea where I was, but I was always home before dark.
Didn't have to wear seat belts and mom smoked in the car. I walked to and from school every day by myself at a very young age.

My mum used to put my brother in the parcel shelf of the car in his Moses basket so I had more space on the back seat

My dp also left me outside of shops in my pushchair, but it was ok because they tied the dog to the pushchair

When I was maybe 4 or 5, sitting between my Dad's legs as he drove!
Being left in the (unlocked) car for hours in the pub car park while my Dad was in the pub, and yes, he would then drive home.
Playing on building sites after the builders had gone home, up and down scaffolding, in skips, under plastic tarpaulins, and no one stopping it.

Went out the back of our house into common land in London, at around 9am in the morning with boys and girls ranging from 15 to 6 or 7 (I was 9 maybe) and no adults and stay out there all day til sundown…. Lunch was left at our back gate. No one checked on us.

I was sent to the shops at the age of 3 with a list and some money. No main roads to cross, so it was considered safe. My mum tells the story with pride now. I shudder at what could have happened.
On the other hand I do think kids today are too sheltered. Being able to navigate the world on your own is an important life skill and very few of our generation actually came to harm. Kids are generally more sensible than we give them credit for and most people (obviously not all) are not monsters.

And my mum used to drive us from London across to Fishguard then get the ferry to Rosslare and then drive to her home in Co. Tipp. No seatbelts. Lying across back. Leaning into boot to get food from bags…. When we were babies we were in Moses baskets unsecured….

I was born late 80's so technically grew up in the 90's but I'll never forget going on long car journeys with mum and dad, me and my 2 sisters climbing over eachother in the back seat - no seat belts. My dad never wore a seat belt while he drove. Just can't imagine it now days. DH and I have sat with our 3 DC in the back, in a car park for 20 minutes before because DS2 would not put the belt on.
Also being in charge of my DS's at a young age. Like I was 12, DS1 was 5 and DS2 was 3. I would walk them to the beach with a pic nic. We'd be out all day and our mum would give me 20p for the phonebox incase I needed to call her. Then we'd all troop back around 4:30 and be home in time for dinner at 5.
My eldest DS is 12 now; his siblings are 7 and 2. I wouldn't trust him to look after them in his room while I was downstairs 🤣

I'm from the US. I spent a semester abroad in Cambridge ('in," not "at" - we did not attend Cambridge!) in '75. My roommate and I (female) hitchhiked all over England, Wales, and Scotland on weekends and holidays. Had a fantastic time! Best college experience ever.

But I still cannot believe we did that - most rides were fine and fun, but some were rather dicey... :-)

@CeratopsofthePharoahs

Liberal use of talcum powder. My mum was surprised that I didn't use it on either of my children.

Always shocks me when people still do this!

@ZittiEBuoni

Loads and loads of things.

Going to the off licence to get my dad's cigarettes.

Walking myself to school from the age of 5 (only one road crossing with a lollipop lady but still...)

Our primary school teacher in year 6 would invite groups of us - four at a time - to his home on Saturdays to take photographs and develop them in his home dark room!!! Nothing happened (to me or friends at least) and we had a fab time but noooo way that would happen now.

Oh my god! You are me!

Parents used to go to the pub (not often) and leave the three of us in the car with a bottle of Coke and a straw!

Playing knock down ginger, climbling through dozens of people's back gardens going 'exploring', playing brick wars by building walls of bricks at the local building site, hiding behind thenm and throwing bricks at the opposition gangs walls to knock them down (a few head scars from that), playing mummies with neighbours real baby, dressing them up, pushing them around outdoors in a wooden carty thing, attempting to pierce our own ears with needles aged 8, getting mums 10JPS at the shop, playing on the kerbside messing around in the dirt and doing caps, waterfights in the road with squeezy washing up bottles.
God it was all so much fun!!!

Going down the shop and buying the headmistress a pack of cigs.

The smoking section at the back of the plane!

4 children sliding around back seat of car no seatbelts

Smoking everywhere

I went to dry ski slope with teacher in yr 6 as a treat for winning star chart. Me and top boy went with her and her boyfriend in her car on a Saturday.

Good to look at what we miss! Walking a few miles with brother and dog, friends at 7-8 to viaduct, streams, granny’s. Adventures and confidence.. no wonder I travelled the world alone for 4m at a time by age 18 - with no means of comms to home at all. The biggest thing I’m proud of in my life!

I used to be left out the front of our house in a pram, with the dog keeping guard. I think it was so my mum couldn't hear me cry and could get on with housework (I was youngest of 4). The dog was a boxer with a reputation, but pretty ancient by then.
Also taking 2p pocket money down the sweet shop and getting a ha'penny's worth of different sweets from the jars.
Yes to the out-all-day-on-your-bikes and sleeping the boot of the car on long car journeys

Our life was far more Enid blyton than today - being shot at by a random angry local farmer with a air rifle… losing the dog, bike accidents.
Today the traffic speed, esp on small 30mph roads are the worry - bit after ruthless training We we’re one of the only ones to let them walk to school alone. No wonder they’ve all been abroad to work in church linked orphanages at 16/17 / independently with 1-3 friends- (some support structure in place) once in Uganda and once in South Africa. I value experiential learning often over (or alongside) cognitive and have often run large scale community programmes for Bankers as head of exec development for too 3000 leaders.

2nd year of Secondary School (Y8) I went on a two week holiday to Benidorm! Basically the Teachers let us run riot in the holiday complex, some older girls got caught with boys in their hotel rooms and the Teachers took us to a nightclub....I was twelve!!

In the car, no seat belts, mum and dad smoking, plus she wore liberal amounts of Opium perfume.

Dad taking me and 6 friends to London Dungeons for my birthday (I was 9). Chucked us all in the back of a large transit van where we rolled about, slamming into each other when he braked or went round corners.

Playing on railway lines, setting fire to a common (that was awful and accidental), messing about on building sites and filling in the foundations they Builders dug during the day, riding bikes off a jetty into a lake etc etc.

In my teens regularly hitchhiking because we couldn't afford taxis.

Ah yes the smell of perfume, smoke and car sickness

We’d get chocolate and orange juice and also have hair gel for ballet

That mix would take me back

Also travelling Europe meeting strangers who became friends with the odd phone call every week or so from pay phone with a telecard no mobile or SM

“Very rarely seeing dog shit in public”

We used to see loads - people used to just let their dogs out, not walk them.
The dog shit used to go white though. I don’t know what they used to feed them 😳

Loads of dog shit... my friend had a go cart and he sat at the front steering and I was at the back making it go faster by pushing the wheels along with my hands... we went through plenty of dog shit...