odium ,

Read a book, play card/board/video games, watch movies, listen to radio, go to a public space in your community (parks, squares, etc.)

Nasom ,

When in the bathroom, the marketing and ingredients to all the shampoos were read.

kersploosh ,
@kersploosh@sh.itjust.works avatar

Some people had magazine racks next to the toilet. There was a whole Seinfeld episode about George taking a book into the bathroom.

can Mod ,
ChefTyler1980 ,

Uncle John’s Bathroom Reader, new book annually, great way to pass the time on the toilet.

TheBigBrother ,

We used to interact physically with other people..

TheMinions ,

At 10pm on a weekday? I mean I get chatting to your significant other about stuff but outside of that I don’t see anything happening even if we removed phones from the equation.

BearOfaTime ,

You'd be surprised how many phone calls took place at that time.

Mayne talking about a show, or chatting someone up, etc. You were bored, so a phone was great.

TheMinions ,

Fair enough.

I didn’t consider a phone call from a dumb phone as human contact. Guess it goes to show how much I conflate phone with smart phone now.

saltesc ,

Go to bed early, sleep well, wake up for a whole new day feeling refreshed.

TheMinions ,

I mean that’s not interacting with other people on a weeknight is all haha.

I don’t feel bad texting (or replying here late at night) but I wouldn’t go knock on my neighbors’s door past 8 and expect to talk to them or anything like that.

skeptomatic ,

They used to have these things called "books", before they were all banned.

TheBigBrother ,

LMAO..

TheMinions ,

That’s not physically interacting with people though?

Drunemeton ,
@Drunemeton@lemmy.world avatar

User name checks out!

scytale ,
  • Watch tv.
  • Read a book.
  • Play single-player pc games.
  • Literally go outside and touch grass.
lennybird ,
@lennybird@lemmy.world avatar

There's something to be said for browsing TV. Having favorites channels and recalling between two different shows between commercials. Sucks if commercials were synced.

Like, some films I wouldn't put on voluntarily but I'd watch if I caught it on you know? Also found a lot of new stuff I wouldn't have otherwise seen.

altima_neo ,
@altima_neo@lemmy.zip avatar

It's interesting how some movies suck you in even though they're definitely aren't your thing.

MrsDoyle ,
@MrsDoyle@sh.itjust.works avatar

Back in the 80s TV where I lived used to show Bollywood films at about 1am, which was when I got home from work. So I started watching this film, which was apparently a romance. Sparky career woman rejects advances of handsome fellow. Everyone starts singing and dancing. Ok, a musical then. Thugs burst in and shoot the place up. Woman’s father is killed, she swears vengeance. Uh ok… Local politician tries to shut down newspaper our heroine has just inherited, handsome fellow intervenes. More singing and dancing, ending in fireworks! which is apparently Bollywood for hot sex. Plot twist, handsome fellow is actually a baddie! I had to stop watching at 4am, no idea how it ended up.

AllNewTypeFace ,
@AllNewTypeFace@leminal.space avatar

Windows Solitaire. Or, before Windows, Solitaire with actual playing cards.

BearOfaTime ,

There were handheld electronic card game players in the 80's.

over_clox ,

BMX flatland bicycle tricks. Sometimes even rode a unicycle.

solrize ,

We had something like e-readers and they didn't need recharging as they were made out of dead trees. But each one held just one book, so you had to take a bunch of them to the bathroom with you.

BearOfaTime ,

Readers Digest contained multiple books in one volume

Maeve ,

They were abridged though.

solrize ,

Right. There were also Ace Doubles, but you had to be good at reading upside down if you wanted to use both halves.

ReSordo ,

Phone bad book gud

uid0gid0 ,

This reminds me of the time I checked out all the Dune books from the library, they were all hardbacks and the stack was nearly 2 feet high. The librarian was like, "You're not going to read all that before they're due" She was right but she let me check them all out anyway.

Alice ,
@Alice@hilariouschaos.com avatar

Literally complain about it while sitting on the couch bored

finley ,

We talked to each other, read books, went on walks…

Also, tv. Lots of tv.

ripcord ,
@ripcord@lemmy.world avatar

Read books.

Boozilla ,
@Boozilla@lemmy.world avatar

Some tropes of the 80s and 90s: Teenagers ignoring their family while listening to a Walkman. Dads reading the newspaper and ignoring their family. Moms talking on the landline phone with friends and neighhbors. Nerds reading comic books. Dads playing golf. Mom shopping. Teens just "hanging out" at some random place like a parking lot, near a lake, under a bridge, behind the band hall, etc. Smoking. Crossword puzzles. Jigsaw puzzles. Cards.

Crackhappy ,
@Crackhappy@lemmy.world avatar

I have learned a lot about you, looking through your post history. Would you mind looking through mine?

asbestos ,
@asbestos@lemmy.world avatar

the fuck

Crackhappy ,
@Crackhappy@lemmy.world avatar

I don't know, but I looked through your post history and I was rather less impressed. :(

asbestos ,
@asbestos@lemmy.world avatar

Me too buddy, me too

NeoNachtwaechter ,

There wasn't so much boredom, because there were no smartphones.

emptyother ,
@emptyother@programming.dev avatar

Dream about the day we could install Windows on our cell phones and carry our computers with us everywhere. And play snake on our dumb phones.

NorthWestWind ,
@NorthWestWind@lemmy.world avatar

Child me draws.
Adult me thinks.

You know why we lack philosophy now

atrielienz , (edited )

Before smartphones we had snake and Tetris on non smart phones and we liked it. Before that books and news papers were popular.

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