As I read these posts, I wonder what the memories of today's teens/20somethings will be in 25 years. Will they be talking about all the chain restaurants they used to go to for dinner? Will it be the movies they used to watch in their parents' home theater? Or will it be the hours spent in front of the computer on FB or with a droid/iphone in their hand texting the friend sitting next to them in the car? IMO, today's generation is missing out on the social events/places that make lasting memories.
The other thing that goes through my mind reading these posts is how government intervention changes our lives. You have the banning of smoking in public places along with an alcoholic beverage board that has taken enforcement to the nth degree. This, along with zoning regulations allowing chain restaurants/big box stores to open, has all taken away the fabric of our communities, where the places like Ark & Dove Pub/Pennies/Monks Inn/Hideaway Bar/Tennison's Bar used to provide a social venue for memory making. These places anchored our communities, making them smaller, where we knew our neighbors and knew how to socialize. In today's St. Mary's County, we have lost a lot of our communities, we no longer know our neighbors, and we rely on websites like SoMD to socialize, where 90% of us have never met and never will meet IRL.
I think our lives are more miserable with traffic, crowds at all the chain stores, and hectic lives that don't allow us to slow down and spend time with our families. When I say families, I am not talking immediate, but extended, including aunts, uncles, cousins, etc. As a kid, every Sunday we went to our grandmother's house and played all day with our cousins, where we explored the woods, swam in the creek, ate homecooked meals, rode bicycles. How many of us do anything similar to that today? Our Friday evenings would include going to Scheibles to sit on the picnic tables and have an RC cola, socializing with friends, while watching all the fishing boats come in with the days catch. But again, because of government regulations, the charter boat fishing business is not what it used to be. These are just some of the examples that I see.
I miss the good ole days!