Nineties Kids Can Relate: Things We Miss From the 90’s

Being a millennial has its perks: you got to experience a simple, dorky childhood followed by the great surge of technology during your adolescent years – the best of both worlds! And although we love all our smartphones, we can’t help but feel nostalgic towards the little things that made us happy back when we had no apps. That’s why we arranged this trip down memory lane for you; here are the simple pleasures that 90’s kids will miss:

1. Passing notes in class

Before owning cellphones and texting, our only means of communication with our friends in class was writing notes and passing them from one person to the other. This generation’s aggressive texters will never get to experience the thrill of passing a note and hoping it won’t get caught, and the embarrassment of the teacher catching your note and reading it out loud…horrifying!

2. The joy of Hi5 and MySpace

Yes, that’s right kids, we did not have the ability to Facebook all our friends, relatives, crushes, or co-workers. The closest thing was MySpace and Hi5, and one of the hardest jobs you had was picking who would be in your MySpace top 10 friends section.

3. Desktop computers

There were no laptops, all we had were desktop computers. There was one desktop per house meaning that everyone had to share it! If you have siblings, it probably means you went through the fights, the bickering, and the silent treatment. You had to come up with a schedule for computer hours and then bribe your siblings with your share of computer hours in exchange for a favor. The best feeling in the world was when it was your turn to be on the computer, Solitaire and Mahjong games galore!

4. Simpler technologies

Everyone envied you if you owned a digital camera, and if your parents let you take it on school trips, you were automatically everyone’s best friend. And if you had a CD player, you were king. You’d lug that baby around along with an entire collection of CD’s on every school trip. Cursed was the day when your favorite CD got a big scratch down the middle and started skipping.

5. Reading shampoo bottles in the bathroom

Before smartphones, our nature-call entertainment comprised of reading shampoo bottles exclusively. We did not text anyone or finish a few levels of Candy Crush, we read shampoo bottles; and boy they were interesting! Sodium laureth sulfate, anyone?

6. Getting notes from your secret admirer

Finding a small cute handwritten letter hidden in your desk written by a person declaring his/her deep love for you is probably what I miss the most about the 90’s. The letter was often soaked in the writer’s perfume, and your best guess about the person’s identity was the handwriting and the smell. Today a secret admirer’s text has lost its magic, a few taps on Truecaller, and you have your secret admirer’s name, number, photos, and his ex-girlfriends testimony about him. No more sleepless nights trying to figure out who the person is, re-reading the letter multiple times, and carefully hiding it from your parents.

7. MSN Messenger

Last but never least, the 90’s version of Whatsapp! Nothing can compare to the thrill you got when you would see your crush go online, but you had to play it cool. You waited a few minutes, you’d go offline and then online again hoping they would notice and talk to you first. And let’s never forget our cheesy nicknames and personal messages, which were almost always song lyrics. You will be embarrassed forever if you nicknamed yourself ~~**CoNcrEte AnGel**~~.

What’s your best memory from the 90’s?