The Funny Side of Struggle of 1990's Kids for Entertainment Compared to the Present Time

Kids today are completely different from 2 decades ago (even a decade ago). Being born from the 1980s, and a child who spent his entire grade school and secondary school during 1990s, I surely much know how it was like being a child of 1990s from the kids today.

Source: Pixabay

Kids today rely on gadgets where they play, thus lack of physical activities i.e. outdoor childhood games affects their behavior and simply their health. My fellow 1990s kids surely are smiling as they trip back the memory lane with all those outdoor games, the petty fights with their kids, and by remembering those games they played. While kids today only have those online games (or any games in their phones or tablets) without interaction with other kids.

Source: Giphy

What brought me to writing this is after watching this video that was posted on Facebook. It took me back to the good old days of pop music 21 years ago, and it's worth going back. I am a fan of music and I surely had struggle to acquire some music stuff from my favorite artists, unlike today when it can be reached in a click without even paying a penny (unless you are the one paying your internet connection or mobile data). Internet is still on its way to mainstream that decade, and kids are going to do things manually so they will get the entertainment they wanted.

So how it was like being a kid of the 1990s for entertainment from the kids today?

• As already mentioned above, kids today rely on their cellphones, tablets, or television to entertain themselves. Back then, only the privileged ones who has cable TV, thus kids can watch cartoons or kiddie shows for a limited time. Today, kids can watch cartoons all day with the expense of kids channels can offer. How about YouTube which provides thousands (if not millions) of kiddie videos?
  
  Source: Giphy

• I started to love music during mid-1990s. Memorizing lyrics of the songs is the thing. So how can you memorize the lyrics if you haven't had read it but merely by listening to the song. We tried to catch the lyrics by transcribing the song, or if you have a copy of the album which provides the lyrics. Sadly, some albums do not have the lyrics of all the songs on it.

We're used to buy what we call song hits where lyrics of the songs were printed. It's a bit costly for a kid to purchase so you'll have to cut down spending for your snack to save money to buy song hits. If you can't buy one, borrow from your classmates. Have a customized book for song lyrics. Expect your classmates will borrow it as well. If it will be lost, it will surely dishearten you and will take ages to fully move on! Lol!
Today, kids can easily find the lyrics of the song just by Googling or downloading an app where the lyrics appear while playing the song.

Source: Pixabay

• We don't have iTunes where purchasing music online (digital downloads) is within your reach. Aside from iTunes, there are other companies which sells music like Amazon, Google, etc. Looking back about 20 years ago, you have to walk to the music store (or travel of its distant from your home to buy your favorite albums.
  But wait, yes we have CDs but they were costly. A cheaper alternative is cassette tapes. But that's not cheap as you think it is. You have to save money from your allowance so you can buy a cassette tape. I even bought cassette tapes during early 2000s. It even takes work while listening to cassette tapes. You have to turn it once the A-Side was finished.
  If you are a privileged kid, you can buy CDs which can be 2 to 5 times the price of cassette tapes. You can play music from the beginning until its end without doing anything unless your CD player is dirty enough and needs to be cleaned causing the jumps on the song.
  
  Source: Pixabay

• Among young people today, music streaming apps are very popular. This is even cheaper compared to digital downloads. A monthly or a yearly fee will give you access to millions of songs that can be downloaded and played offline through Spotify, Deezer, Apple Music, and the likes.
  Our access to music from different artists then is through FM Radio. Yes, FM Radio is still very much available now, but the listenership has declined. You have to request for your favorite song if you want to hear it the soonest. However, it will take you minutes or even an hour before you are able to hear it. Besides, hearing your favorite song played on air gives a feeling of happiness knowing others can hear it too. If you can't buy a cassette tape or a CD, you have a black tape where you can record it on your stereo. As the recording progresses, the DJ talked to soon before the song finished. Then you'll get mad upon hearing the DJ's voice. Lol!
  
  Source: Pixabay

• I am an avid MTV viewer, and I love watching music videos. It was cool to see other music channels like Channel V (an Asian music channel) and MYX (a local music channel). However, MTV doesn't used to be fun as it was on its glory days. Other music channels is as different. YouTube has taken over the music channels and millions of music videos can easily be searched and watched on YouTube (and similar platforms).

• Kids today has gadgets for games. We also have Nintendo, Tamagotchi, and other gadgets where we can play games. But those were not online. They were not that cheap that even only a few people from middle class buys. I surely would be happy if I have one. I never had such gadgets though. Today, kids can play anything on their cellphones or tablets.
  
  Source: Pixabay

Such huge difference of kids today from our time two decades ago. It was like kids today doesn't know the meaning of struggle as everything they will need for entertainment is within their reach just be tapping on their touchscreen gadgets.

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