Childhood

So while on the way home from my visit to the dentist, I had the most random thought about how kids of today no longer have a childhood. Things that our generation used to go crazy about never seem familiar to kids today anymore. And I think this is really sad, because all of my younger nieces and nephews, all their lives just revolve around iPhone and iPad games... Sometimes I think to myself, do they even really know how playing at the playground feels like anymore?

1. Maple, Audition, Habbo Hotel, Neopets, Runescape, Battleon etc

I remember that each of these games became really popular in a different period of time and almost everyone in school talks about it everyday. So if you didn't play it you just couldn't "fit in", you know? Those days when not everyone has their own computer, and probably has to wait for their sibling to finish using before they can use it. Those days when homework didn't take up so much time and all it takes to make us happy would be that short amount of time in front of the computer. Those days when computers still look like that:

2. Handphones

Most of us didn't own a handphone. Some even don't know the existence of one. All we could rely on was our house telephones. So close friends would definitely exchange house numbers. We all knew our best friend's house number, calling to ask about homework or to just chat. And chatting could often take up to 3 or 4 hours. I could still remember my mom nagging "phone bills very cheap isit? talk so long?" Those were really the days, days when the first sentence after someone picks up the phone is "请问XXX在家吗？" Which translates to "may I speak to XXX?"

Those who owned handphones were probably a level above everyone else. And could you imagine? Everyone else envying this particular person who carried this phone:

And the most popular games were Snake and Bounce:

3. MAMA Shops

Every school definitely had one of those shops nearby where we "hang out" everyday after school or in between remedial classes. And the most popular hit in store was:

4. Bookshops

Bookshops in school were like shopping malls. I remember everyone rushing to the bookshop during recess to check out what was the IN thing you know? And then flipping through our small cartoon purses to see if we have enough money for those stuff...

Do you still remember the game??????

The kind of wallets that make the most noise when opening...

Girls' favourites. Writing down stupid stuff and locking it up so nobody can read...

Pencils with replaceable lead tips!!! Omg fav of the past

The coolest pencil box ever in the past: it's a MUST-HAVE

There are SO many things worth reminiscing about in our childhood!!! The furthest place I ever went to by myself or with my friends was probably Causeway Point? The most badass place people ever visited was the arcade. It was the most IN thing if you have a collection of neoprints with your friends...especially the card ones!! I don't think it's available anywhere now?

Collecting stickers were like the coolest thing anyone could be doing. Owning at least 5 sticker books, bringing it to school to show it off to your friends and exchanging stickers with them. Rearing terrapins and water babies... Doing the stupidest and most random things that were "IN" for us and thinking we're cool like that...

The only times I bought new clothes would probably be the CNY season. And I could only buy clothes when my mom was around basically because 1) no money and 2) no fashion sense. Kids nowadays can even travel all the way to Bugis?? Squeezing with the crowd and buying crop tops and shorts and whatnots...

The vast difference between our childhood is really just... Kids, instead of spending each and every second with your iPad games, why not go out to the playground and really play and sweat and scream and shout and laugh? You wouldn't wanna be spending the most worry-free and happiest times of your life at home staring at an emotionless screen y'know...

I really would pay anything to revisit those days again :(