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People Born Before Share 10 Forgotten Things That They Know How To Do

People that were born before the year 2000 like to reminisce about the stuff that may be forgotten, but they still know how to do. There are so many long…

stacks of vhs tapes


People that were born before the year 2000 like to reminisce about the stuff that may be forgotten, but they still know how to do. There are so many long lost skills that might be gone but not forgotten. If you doubt this, hand a teenager an old rotary phone and let them try to figure out how to make a phone call.

They will not understand the idea of picking up the handle first and listening for a dial tone, never mind how to actually dial a number. They're absolutely clueless unless something comes with buttons to push and a touchscreen.

Long forgotten skills

The world has changed a lot since 2000 . . . when everyone thought Y2K would cause computers to end humanity as we know it.  Now, we know it's A.I. that will cause computers to end humanity as we know it.  

Someone on X posed this question to the internet:  "People born before 2000, what trivial skill do you have that no one uses anymore?"  It went viral, and here are the best responses:

1.  The ability to rewind a cassette tape using a pencil. If you ever had a stuck cassette or if the tape spooled out, you would grab a pencil and insert in the the hole and start twisting it back in.

2.  Proper grammar and punctuation. It’s amazing how each generation has gotten worse when it comes to grammar. It makes you wonder where we are going to be in a few more years.

3.  How to write in cursive.  Someone joked, "I can drive stick shift, while also writing in cursive." So hard to believe that not all schools are even bothering with teach cursive. How will they be able to read something like old letters that their parents wrote?

4.  How to use a rotary phone.  Someone said, "Not just dialing a rotary phone, but dialing it aggressively." Like we mentioned above, this is so amazing to witness when a Gen Z person tries to make a call with one.

5.  How to refold a paper map. With the advent of GPS and satellite mapping, the need to unfold and refold a big paper map to its original shape is a lost art. Honestly, it was never very easy even back in the day.

6.  Knowing how to load a roll of film into a camera.  And also knowing how to make audio and film edits by physically cutting and splicing the tape.

7.  Being able to parallel park without a backup camera. Today’s generation has no idea how easy it is to back up and park with a camera. We can only imagine how many bumpers have been saved.

8.  Knowing "shorthand" for taking dictation. Admittedly this is something that not many people could do prior to 2000, but now, hardly anyone knows how to do it.

9.  Programming a VCR. Before DVR we had to program our video recorder to record our favorite shows. Now, all we have to do is scroll the guide on our cable box and hit record.

10.  Someone said, "I can make book shelves out of cinder blocks and boards."  That’s not to mention what we could do with a milk crate or two. How many dorm rooms were filled with them and cinder blocks and whatever sheet of wood you could find.

Bob is a native New Englander, growing up (sorta) in Maine where his love for radio started at a young age. While in high school he hosted radio shows on a local radio station, and he has never looked back. Bob joined the US Navy and served onboard the Sixth Fleet Flagship as a radio and TV host. After serving for 3 years, it was off to Emerson College in Boston. Bob hosted shows in Boston on WMEX, WVBF and WSSH in the 80’s and 90’s before heading to radio stations in Raleigh, NC, Manchester, NH, and New York City. Bob has been married for almost 25 years to Carolyn, a Woburn gal and they have 3 daughters, Nicole, Taylor, and Bridget. Bob and Carolyn are proud first-time grandparents to baby Caroline, who they plan to spoil every chance they get! “I started my career in New England and could not be happier to come back to Boston where I can root for all the Boston sports teams and eat lots of lobster rolls and clam chowder (okay not lots)… It is an honor to host the WROR morning show with LBF and wake up the World’s Greatest City!” Bob writes about recipes and restaurants, pop culture and trending topics.