W for...

WALKMAN:

Like Kleenex, Q-Tip and Rollerblades, Walkman is another trademarked term mistaken for a generic one. The generic term is personal music player. I know I had one of these, but it wasn't the original made by Sony. And I didn't seem to have it for very long--very few memories of listening to the thing. It seemingly died out on me early. I didn't bother with the CD version, and I don't think that one ever really caught on. And don't get me started on the MP3 player and iPod. I could not have afforded one of those at the time when they were first released, and I was still heavily into CDs at that time.

Nevertheless, I'd see plenty of others toting one. Unlike the smartphones, tablet computers and MP3 players of today, we were not allowed to have these devices or boom boxes at school. If we did, they would be confiscated. These things were only luxury items, not a very important part of our lives--the way the smartphones and computers of today have become.  A sign of how times have changed. Many then were worried about theft of such items, and the school would not be responsible. Are they not worried about such theft today?

WATER (FLAVORED):

Upon seeing a picture on Facebook recently, I got flashbacks to this drink. I took this to school for lunch at least once in high school. I had not thought of this in years and now have seen that it is still around. Who knew?

Another brand of flavored water that comes to mind is Koala Springs, a spring water from Australia, flavored with fruit juices. I know I drank this one and liked it. I'd love to see this one come back!

WATCHES: 

These fancy watches were all the rage in the mid 1980s. I only had a generic knockoff, not that many could tell the difference.

I haven't used watches in years, as many of them have tended to break down on me in more recent years. I kind of miss it, though, because it would be easier to glance at the time on my wrist, rather than having to take out my phone every time to check the time.  But certainly none of those smart watches for me! I've got enough smart stuff already!

WIND-UP TOYS:

No doubt everyone had some form of wind-up toys, whether it was small, simple one or a more complex one. Wind-up toys were one of those you frequent found in cereal boxes. I can imagine many people running these toys across their living room floors, and if they had pets, the pets would probably go chasing after the toys or get scared by it.

WATERCOLOR PAINT SETS:

This was a set of watercolor paints I had. This very one.

There were also paint-with-water books. The author of this article says that kids today would not understand such a concept, but upon searching, I saw that paint-with-water books are still being made today.

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WOW! Only three days left, and more eXCITEMENT on Friday.