Viewpoint by Gary Collins/managing editor
Every generation hears it: “What’s wrong with kids these days” or “When I was little, we didn’t do that.”
My dad said he heard the same thing growing up. At times, I’ve found myself thinking the same thing before I stop myself for a second.
Do I want to be one of those older people who sit, gripe and complain yet have no solutions for the problem or try to understand the younger generation?
I can remember 18 or 19 years ago waking up around 6:30 or 7 a.m. to watch cartoons, Saved by The Bell or theBugs Bunny and Tweety Show. Later, I would pester my dad to take my brother and me somewhere because we were just bored and wanted something to do.
But he would sleep until noon or 1 in the afternoon, and I just couldn’t understand that. Why would anyone want to sleep half the day?
Also, I never understood why adults would constantly complain, “I can’t wait until the weekend starts.”
“Why?” I always thought. I hated the weekends. They were the longest, most boring days of the week.
As I got older (somewhere around 15) and got my first job, I learned something: having a job and going to work is tiring. It was about this time that I, too, started looking forward to the weekend, and I didn’t even work full time.
Saturday was the day I could relax and do nothing if possible. Now that I’m 23, I look forward to the weekend and to sleeping until 1 or 2 p.m.
It also seems with age there is less patience for stupidity. I found this out working what started as a part-time job at a grocery store that will remain nameless.
I remember times asking my parents about some random things about something that had happened the day before and getting the answer “I don’t remember.”
How could they not remember? It was just one day ago. Then one day, about three or four years ago, my dad got a nice little chuckle when he asked me about something I had done the day before and I couldn’t remember.
I said I was getting old—yeah, real funny.
I just hope I don’t become a George Wilson (of Dennis the Menace fame) when I’m older.
So this is the way I see it. Why bother fighting it? We’ll all end up becoming our parents at some point.
