Basically everything

Something I Thought Was a Luxury as a Kid

Multiple Telephones

I always thought a house with two telephones was a luxury. It seemed like a symbol of affluence to have a phone in different rooms.

Extra Televisions

Having more than one television in the house felt extravagant. We only had one, and the idea of multiple screens was fascinating.

Remote-Controlled Television

A television with a remote control was enticing. The ease of changing channels without getting up felt incredibly advanced at the time.

Cars with Power Windows

Cars equipped with power windows were a sign of sophistication. The manual crank seemed outdated compared to them.

Automatic Transmissions

Owning a car with an automatic transmission seemed like a luxury; most vehicles we encountered were manual.

New Clothes

Getting new clothes was rare for us. Usually, it was only at Christmas or when a well-off relative gifted them. We mostly relied on thrift store finds or hand-me-downs.

Personal Transportation

Having a car was a dream. My childhood was filled with walking or riding the bus everywhere.

Computers and Video Game Systems

If a family owned a computer or a video game system in the late 1970s and early 1980s, they were perceived as rich.

Color Television

Finally, the moment we had our first color television in 1978 was monumental. It was on my mom's birthday, and she cried, saying, "I feel rich today." That simple color TV brought so much joy to her life, showing how a small investment could create lasting happiness.

As I write this I realize it's sad ,but I thought my Aunt Mary was rich because she owned a house and she didn't move around all the time.

New parquet flooring at home.
Inground personal pool. (I still do in this climate)
Buying exotic fruits like pineapple, coconuts and idk what was available then. (Surely not yet mango, lychee or papaya. I've only learned about those as an adult)
Buying chocolates in gift shops as opposed to regular stores.
Duty Free stores at airports with all those expensive well-known brands of perfumes.
Owning any pet that was considered exotic then. "Mary can't have a hamster like any other kid, she has to have a guinea pig."

Having a large yard to play in plus dad put up a pool for us. Many fond memories of my childhood.

We'd buy a loaf of bread. $5 worth of chips from the Fish and Chip shop and eat it on the beach.

Everything was a luxury to me back then. A home phone. Hamburger and hot dog buns. Eating out, even if it was fast food. Heat and air conditioning. More than one pair of shoes. The list is long.

Fast food x)
We only get to eat on Jollibee or Mcdonalds once or twice a month. I thought it was luxury 🥹

Food

A TV in my room

Having a television and (separately) a car. We didn't have the former until I was around 7 and the latter when I was 10 or so.

A weekend that felt like a weekend.

Cable TV

DVD player

Shoes and clothes that weren't from Kmart

Having cable tv

Going out to eat

A computer

Waterbeds

colour tv

TV mounted on the wall

TVs in more than one room


Double door fridge

Cable

Cordless phones

Slim line touchtone phones

More than 1 phone

1 VCR or more

Giant ''Ghetto Blaster'' tape decks

Power anything in a car

A computer...even if it was a Commodore 64

Game system

Component stereos

Livingroom Entertainment Center wall units

Name brand running shoes

Dine-in restaurants

A new bike

Going to a movie theater

Air conditioning. We never had it, and Georgia summers were hot.

Having your own phone number.

@OriginalNedKelly 😮BOUGHT BOUGHT I DO NOT UNDERSTAND THE MEANING OF THAT DEFINITION NED lol 😆

Anything that was American....

Burgers.

Knickerbocker Glories.

Super Heroes.

Remote controls for the TV.



They turned out to be disappointing.....