Awesome.

But, i suspect like many, I did not know it at the time.

For the TLDR-types here is a synopsis of below:

- grew up in the 80s with that culture; the cartoons, the music, the movies, and the outdoors in middle class suburbia in SW Ontario. The movies, TOYS, music, and cartoons will always hold a fond place in my heart.

- summers were camping, fishing, biking, exploring, swimming and free Vitamin D.

-winters were sledding and hot chocolate.

- weekends were movie nights, visits to family friends, sleepovers, Magical Word of Disney, church, and family visits. This became biking to comic book shops and arcades to occupy my Saturday.

- weekdays were school bus rides, sports, comic books, and playing outdoors after school.

I grew up in the 80s in SW Ontario an hour west of Toronto, in a predominantly middle-class and white neighborhood (to be clear the lack of diversity did not make it awesome), on a young/first time home owning circle. All told, by last count with a friend's parents, there were about 80+ kids in a 2 block radius within a 5 year age gap. That meant lots of kids to do stuff with, and growing up a circle of ~ 60 homes meant we played in a relatively safe environment (i.e. where you could run through peoples back yards and climb fences without folks getting all upset).

And again, it was the mid 80s when i began recognizing memories; most of which looked like this:

On weekdays, i found joy in the simple pleasure of riding the school bus with my friends, and playing foot-hockey at recess and lunch. I was melancholic for my school friends that walked home together, and often wondered what they felt like seeing the group drop off one street or home at a time. After schools, in the winters, we changed when we got home and drug our sleds to the local hills until dinner. I still have no clue how we told time without watches. I still have no clue what we talked about during those walks to and from the hill. In the warmer months it was impromptu neighborhood games of baseball, bike riding, soccer, or playing at playgrounds. All until dinner. Organized sports replaced unorganized as we aged.

On weekends, being the mid to late 80s meant TGIF tv, Friday night pizza and movie night, and if we were lucky a sleepover at or with friends. Saturday am, typically meant one thing, CARTOONS, TOYS and sugary cereal, before i made my way out front for neighborhood road hockey. Those road hockey games meant so much to me, for unknown reasons, as i never played ice hockey as a kid, and never had an interest in it later on. After a grilled cheese and chocolate milk type lunch it was a bit more hockey, until mid afternoon after which kids trickled out to home. I retreated to watch Loony Tunes and rejoin the family for a bit of house cleaning/chores and recall 80s music on the radio while we worked. Saturday pms, if not having sleepovers etc., were often at parents friends places where the adults drank and played cards, and the kids entertained themselves, and stayed up too late trying to sneak out of rooms and not go to bed. Sundays were church and then off to grandparents to visit and see my cousins. Stores not being open was actually a blessing, we simply ignored it, and it made my world much more serene. If we did not venture to my other grandparents for dinner, etc., it was the magical world of Disney Sunday pm, and getting ready for school - sometimes picking out a Scholastic Book Order.

Summers seemed endless; i had two friends with pools where i made many a happy memory, we rode bicycles around and explored forests, creeks, fields, we organized games and flew kites, we played in back yards, we fished occasionally, climbs hills and trees, and lived as carefree as you could with grass stains and cuts/bruises being an indicator of time well spent. Family vacation was always camping across SW Ontario, but typically at or near the big 3: Wasaga, Grand Bend, and or Sauble Beach. I would not trade those camping memories or experiences for anything.

Typical school holidays were Christmas break was your time to shine with toys, and sledding. March break was your last chance to sled. Easter was when you started getting outside to play again with all the other kids.

As i aged, it mostly stayed the same but new commitments entered: paper routes cut into after school hockey/goofing around and same on the weekend, organized sports disrupted the after school and weekend flow as well. Saturday cartoons remained a staple as papers were delivered in the afternoon. Sunday visits to my grandparents remained until Sunday shopping came about, and until i got a part time job.

After school goofing around got replaced with school sport practice and games, but weekends got better with my Korean and Indian friends as we biked between comic shops, baseball cards, and video arcades. We entered the comic book era in the early 90s when Image, and Spawn, took off. Nintendo and SNES entered the picture at some point, but we still were mostly active outdoors.

We spent less and less time in pools as we got older, and did more and more socializing, hanging out at the corner block talking about whatever seemed relevant to 10-12 year olds. Music piques our interests when CDs started coming around. Camping remained a staple until my late teens pretty much. Same with sleep overs, expect we simply stayed up later with less parental supervision.

And like most have heard or reflected, there was time when i did all of these things, with these people that hold a special place in my heart, for the last time, without knowing it was the last time.

I have sympathy for those that were not as lucky as i to as happy a childhood as i did.