Gen X Reflects on Everyday Things That Have Mysteriously Disappeared Since Childhood

John Summers • Contributor

Oct 15, 2024 12:00 AM EDT

There's no question—the world today feels vastly different than the one we grew up in. As children, our world was analog. It was slower, rougher, dirtier, and it even smelled different (mostly like cigarettes and aftershave). Today's world feels more sterile and clean. It's digital, fast, and everything reacts instantly. And as for the smell? Well, it smells like… nothing, actually.

A recent Reddit thread in a Gen X group dives into all the things that were common when we were kids but have now become distant memories. These were things we used to see and interact with every day, but now they're gone to the point that we sit our children down to tell them about it like we're the village elders. Whether it's payphones, floppy disks, or the constant background hum of cassette tapes rewinding, our kids can hardly believe these relics of the past ever existed. And yet, they shaped our childhoods.

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