"It's So Cringey." Older Adults Are Calling Out The "Beloved" Past Trends That They Can't Stand Now
We recently asked older adults of the BuzzFeed Community to tell us which trends from "back in the day" they're glad aren't common now. Here's what they had to say:
1."Jellies, the shoes. OMG, they were bad then, and I have no idea why I see them for sale now. They're blister factories and stink as an insult to injury."
2."Having to go to the movies without a pre-purchased ticket or assigned seat was a hassle. You'd have to wait in long lines to sit in lousy seats or find out the show was sold out."
3."What was with all the feather roach clips in the late '70s and early '80s? They looked so very, very dumb, and I often thought many teens who wore them did not know what they were."
4."Can we just talk about '80s frizzy hair for a moment? It looked good on exactly no one. Why were we doing so much damage to our hair with all that ratting and crimping? HOW did it ever become a trend?! I want answers! LOL."
—39, Arizona
5."Smoking inside buildings. For a non-smoker, it's literally one of the worst and most suffocating smells. So glad I don't have to smell like an ashtray anymore after visiting a restaurant!"
—39, Illinois
"I'm glad about the smoking thing. Back then, you went everywhere, and mostly everyone was smoking — no matter if it was on an airplane, in a restaurant, in a hospital, in the car, etc. I even remember when I went outside with my friends, and every time I came home, all of my clothes had that horrendous smell of smoke, even though I had never smoked in my life. I'm glad it's more controlled these days."
—39, Colombia
6."Parachute pants. They even made a brief comeback a few years ago. Why, though?"
—42, USA
7."Something that was very popular in the '70s was shag carpeting. Everyone had it. I remember my sister had a rake for hers (really!). It was horrible to vacuum, and if you dropped something in it, you'd never find it again. I'm so glad it's not in style now."
—68, Montana
8."Casseroles were just gross. So many moms made these every day. What a way to waste good ingredients or not a good way to use crappy ingredients. Why not just put the ingredients in a blender and drink with a straw? That's about how appetizing it was."
—46, USA
9."Having only one landline phone in the kitchen and being on a party line! When I was a teen back in the day, I would stretch the curly cord on the phone hand-piece so I could hide under the kitchen table to talk to my boyfriend or other friends. I'm not sure why I thought nobody could hear me there; my parents were usually sitting in the living room just around the corner and could probably hear everything I said."
"If not them, someone on the party line was most always listening! No privacy ever!!!"
—Anonymous, North Carolina
10."Riding without seatbelts. I remember being made fun of for always buckling up, even into the mid-'90s. However, my grandfather was a highway patrolman in rural Wisconsin before all cars had restraints. Those are the people who literally patrol the rural roads, looking for motorists needing assistance. Well, Grandpa was often first on the scene of many accidents, and he said the worst ones were where people got ejected because they were not wearing a seatbelt. Please be safe and buckle up."
—39, Texas
11."Paper maps that need folding. The thought of trying to decipher if you were going in the right direction with appropriate exits to your destination."
—52, Wisconsin
12."We wore 'poodle skirts' with five to six crinolines underneath. Those crinolines were so scratchy, and the whole deal (the skirt and crinolines) made sitting at a desk an origami exercise. To top off our poodle skirts, we also wore cardigan sweaters buttoned up the back."
—83, Wisconsin
13."Does anyone remember the Flock of Seagulls-esque bangs that women had for a few minutes at the beginning of the '90s? We do because we have pictures of my sister proudly sporting them at school! LOL. They were hair-sprayed almost straight up from the forehead and swept slightly to the side. They gave Something About Mary vibes before that even existed."
—43, USA
14."Harvest gold and puke green home colors (furniture, appliances, paint, decor, etc.) of the '70s. Ugly then and ugly now."
—46, USA
15."Pagers, beepers. It was kinda neat at first, and then, it just seemed annoying. It was cute to send my boyfriend an 8-3-1 page, though, which means 'I love you' (eight letters, three words, one meaning). It's so cringey now, LOL. Glad they are not really a thing anymore."
—47, USA
16."Low-rise jeans. I absolutely hate that these are making a comeback. It's so unflattering, and no matter what, you'll be showing some crack sitting down or bending over. ... If the G-string peaking out makes a comeback, too, I will freak out."
—42, Maryland
17."They were called Earth Shoes. The soles were configured so that the heel of the shoe was lower than the toe. I think this was supposed to be better for your back/posture. I had a pair in seventh grade. Looking back, they were the ugliest shoes ever made, and I wouldn’t be caught dead in them now — not even to a '70s-themed party; they were that bad."
—59, Illinois
Older adults, what are some other past trends from "back then" that you hate now? Tell us your thoughts in the comments below. Or, if you prefer to remain anonymous, feel free to use this Google form.
Note: Some responses have been edited for length and/or clarity.
