Where's my Food Capsule and Jetpack?

You're looking at a 12-year-old Ken here, it's 1982. At this point, I'm: a drummer in the Hadley Marching Band, a lapsed Cub Scout, an altar boy and starting pitcher for my little league baseball team and still bummed about the Brewers losing the World Series. No, I didn't forsake my beloved Cubs but once the Cubs were eliminated from contention, I chose the Brew Crew as my favorite in the series, even then, I hated the Cards.

Duran Duran's "Rio" was all over the charts, as was Prince's "1999".  Cheers, St. Elsewhere, Knight Rider and Family Ties all debuted on T.V. and I got my first drum kit, a 1963 Slingerland four-piece that I wish I still had. I learned that being in Pep Band gets you female attention, cementing the reason why every single musician plays an instrument. Chicks dig musicians.

If you had asked me what I had envisioned 25 years into the future back in 1982, I was probably  hoping for an entire meal contained in one little pill and also a new method of travel: mini-planes or jetpacks or teleporting and would never have believed that you could carry an entire  music library in a device smaller than my Walkman. I probably would've been impressed that bottled water became such a huge commodity and amazed by the advances in video gaming technology, at the time I was playing Atari's Adventure and thought that was the height of graphics.

Your turn. Go back twenty-five years in your life and tell us what you predicted or what you were hoping would happen, what technology would've most impressed you today and which fad would seem most ridiculous and/or successful

Comments

[Kent]

For me at that age, looking to the future pretty much only entailed losing my virginity. I always thought maybe someone’s hot mom or sister simply would not be able to resist my skateboard, braces or 100 lb horror show of a body.

[freakgirl]

1982 for me too. Just entering high school, I guess. Joined the orchestra (violin) and the choir. Loving Duran Duran and the whole new wave thing.

I would think about what life would be like when I was THIRTY - oh, so old. I figured I'd be married with kids and a dog and I'd feel really old. Well, I'm married now. No kids, two cats, and I only feel old when I'm hungover.

I, too, wanted my flying car and my meal pills. I also had a fear of nuclear war and that our planet would be completely polluted by the time I grew up. Guess I wasn't so far off the map there.

The internet and computers would have impressed me the most. In school, we had just gotten our first computers and all we did was enter like 30 lines of code just to make it loop our names across the screen. And DVDs would have blown my mind! Our family used to rent videotapes AND a VCR from the neighborhood 7-11. The VCR came in this big giant suitcase that we had to lug two blocks home.

I also was a year or two away from finally getting cable and MTV.

[ken]

Kent- I remember seeing "Fast Times" right around this time and thinking that was the template for eveybody's teenage years and how disappointing MY teenage years were.

Deb- I had a huge nuclear war obsession/fear right around this time as well, the very idea of it mortified me.

I too remember the old program 10: "My Name" 20: Go to 10 and it would fill my screen with the name. I also remember loading programs off of an audio casette into a TRS-80 computer. Our big familial decision was whether to buy a VHS or Betamax (we picked VHS) and the gimormous top-loading Quasar VCR we bought, complete with (corded) remote control.

[ken]

Oh, and Kent, if Van Halen does reunite with DLR and they tour this year, we are SO going!

[jeff w.]

Ken and Kent's comments prompted me to look up a few things. I also remember being worried about a nuclear attack, but "The Day After" did not air until late 1983. What I also remember from this time, was a profound recognition of death. I had been watched the Blue and the Grey (which did air in 19820, and the sheer numbers of civil war deaths and the senselessness of just running at each other in those battles really bothered me. I couldn't get over the idea of being that guy in row 1 and thinking, well, here's where I'm going to die, but I need to doe this because maybe the guy in row 8 will be okay. And of course, as I had early done at age 6 or 7 when a Son of Svengoolie movie ruined my ability to watch movies that involve rotting faces, I never told anyone how much the Blue and the Grey was affecting me, because I was concerned I might not get to watch it anymore. I was probably also obsessed with space and battlestar galactica around this time. A friend and I would write to Nasa and request autographed pictures of Apollo and Space shuttle flight crews. They would actually send them to you too. That stopped after shuttle missions became unnotable. Strangley, I don't remember thinking all that much about the future.

[ken]

I guess the Jetpack thing really does exist...

http://www.jet-man.com/actuel.html

[David]

I think I'm a little older than many of the people who visit this blog, so I might be looking at things from a slightly different perspective than many.

In 1982, most of us first heard of the Falkland Islands. Lovers of comedy lost a friend in the bigger-than-life John Belushi and lovers of classic film mourned the passing of Princess Grace (Kelly) and Ingrid Bergman.

Videos were a relatively new phenomenon and we were watching as well as listening to such artists as the Police, Pat Benatar, the Go-Go's, J.Geils Band (who can forget those angels in the Centerfold video?), and a young upstart named John Cougar.

Chariots of Fire won the Best Picture Oscar, and people were also watching: E.T., Tootsie, Ghandi and Blade Runner.

I spent hours of quality time in front of the boob tube watching Hill Street Blues, MASH, Barney Miller, Taxi and SCTV. And I've spent hours MORE quality time SINCE then watching some of those shows in reruns.

On a personal note, in April of that year, my then-wife gave birth to a healthy son. In June, I changed occupations to a job I'm still working to this day. And in October of that year, along with my wife and new son, I took a two-week trip through Canada, visiting my wifes many aunts (from Regina, Saskatchewan to Chatham, Ontario).

I guess the most amazing change that's occured over the last 25 years is the exponential increase in technology used by most people on a daily basis. Turn off the lights sometime and walk (carefully) through your house to see what I mean. If your place is anything like mine, multi-colored L.E.D. lights are twinkling everywhere. Cell phones, once used only by rich folks, are used by school kids and senior citizens alike. Just about all the information in the world is immediately available SOMEWHERE on the internet and people communicate instantly via email and instant messaging. Very few homes are without a computer.

Then again, there seems to be a downside to the changing times. Here's a minor one: In 1981, Christopher Cross won an ASTOUNDING five Grammys. With the advent of music videos, Cross (who wasn't a particularly handsome fellow) was never heard from again, while prettier people like Madonna and Duran Duran started making it big.

And though the first part of the century saw AMAZING strides in the eradication of killer diseases, it seems that the last 25 years has had a marked increase in diseases and syndromes. People who were born in '82 (like my son) have never known a world without AIDS. Commercials flood the airwaves for products to help with conditions that weren't even thought of 25 years ago, products whos' side-effects often sound worse than the ailments they purport to cure. (Headaches? Priapism? Anal leakage? Oh MY!) Attention Deficit Disorder was virtually unheard of in '82 and, as I understand it, the diagnosis of autism has also risen in recent years. What's up with that? AND...there sure seems to be a connection between the technology explosion and the obesity explosion in recent times.

For the most part, I made few predictions back in '82. I was too busy with raising a kid and holding down a job and other examples of daily trivia. But here are two predictions I DID make: The first time I saw Madonna (I think it was in here Lucky Star video) I remember saying to myself, "WOW! She's something special. We'll be seeing more of her." And upon seeing young John Cougar at some music awards with his band I remember thinking, "Wow! Look at those wasted punks. It's too bad they won't be getting very far in the busines. There music isn't bad." Well...one out of two isn't TOO bad.

Enough rambling. Thanks for the great blog, and the interesting topic, Ken.

[Megan]

Twenty-five years ago, I was 4. Sorry, I'm not helping, am I? ;)

[Kent]

Ken, hell yes we are going to Van Halen if it happens. I saw DLR when he toured with Sammy (barf) a few years ago. A little sad but the songs still rock the hell out of most other songs.

[TWM]

Let me think, twenty-five years ago...

I was hoping that the world would look something like 2001: A Space Odyssey.

My 1982 self would have been amazed that my 2007 self owns a computer that (in some ways) can do more than Captain Kirk's computers could.

And my 1982 self would have been disgusted with the price that some artistes charge for concert tickets.

[Scotty]

Twenty-five years ago I was in Junior High as well. All I can remember was trying really hard not to do something embarrassing, nothing that would attract attention to myself.

[dj]

Scotty, I think '82 was about the time of "The Pack", right? It was our suburban 12-year-old attempt at starting a street gang.

I think maybe we just watched "Warriors" a few too many times.

[Scotty]

I remember patrolling the neighborhood trying to catch M.M. spraying graffiti on the sidewalks. We were ready to beat down anyone who was messing around on our turf. Looking back I'd like to think we made the mean streets of Glen Ellyn a little safer.

[Molly]

I was 6 and really mad at Sister Beth for spanking me with one of those pointer things for talking too loud in the bathroom. I spent a lot of time in the corner thinking about how life would be when I got to first grade.

[DW]

Around this time i'm pretty sure I was listening to too much Def Leppard, 'Scorps', and Quiet Riot, honing my pyromanic skills and collecting 'Chinese stars' and nunchucks (all while running around rural IL in snap button western shirts and cowboy boots...).

Clearly I was preparing for some sort of coming conflict (probably with Commies)- that or just watching too much Mad Max, Red Dawn and A-Team.

Either way, none of this left much time to think about the future. There was barely enough time left to clean the barn...