I Lived the 80s

A Gen X Life and the Pop Culture That Defined It

De: B Harrison Smith

Narrado por: B Harrison Smith

Gen X is the “forgotten generation.” We made our own meals after school and Saturday mornings, we got dirty, played miles away from home with no way to reach us, we told offensive jokes, we built and jumped bike ramps, broke bones and drank from garden hoses, we had three network channels, we didn’t “mediate” with bullies—we kicked their asses, we had land lines, house phones and cordless phones that you could beat someone with, MTV showed music videos, Steven Spielberg and Michael Jackson ruled, we knew who we were gonna call, girls had big hair, guys popped their collars, there were clogs, and penny loafers, you chose Beta or VHS at the video store, high school lunch could be hell, we partied like it was 1999, teachers were off the wall, we had nerds, preps, stoners, burners, geeks, jocks, we drank Malt Duck, White Mountain wine coolers and Mickey’s Big Mouths, we got our permits at 15 and learned to drive on stick shift, the malls were our hangouts. There was no Internet or social media.

And we liked it.

(Oh yeah, we also had AIDS, terrorism, crack, racism, homophobia, subway shootings, cocaine, corrupt politicians, pollution, book banning, political correctness, TV preachers, climate change, stranger danger and Can’t Stop the Music.)

©2023 B Harrison Smith (P)2023 BearManor Media

A story that could be from anyone I grew up with

I enjoyed how real and normal this story was in that it could have been written by anyone I knew back then or even myself. Little details that I had forgotten about or reminded and that was fun too.

A Precise Representation of the GenX Experience

He’s done a wonderful job of capturing teenage life in the 80s. He’s a great speaker with a comforting voice. If you, too, lived the 80s you’ll relate to most everything he shares and will appreciate how he represents our experiences.

My only gripe with the performance is that it’s pronounced “new-clear,” not “new-que-lure.” That he uses the word dozens upon dozens of times throughout the book, is a filmmaker & writer, yet cannot properly pronounce a word is irritating and cringing. I’m not aware that this is some regional pronunciation, but even if it were we, the listener, are likely not from that region.

His story evokes many memories from my own experience.

Amazing how much he remembers from that time. Guess I should have kept a journal.
Loved hearing the songs and movies that were the soundtrack back then.
Didn’t know who he was before I read it, but now I have to go watch all his movies!
I also cringed at nucular, and was dumbfounded at the numerous editing mistakes or lack of editing, especially for a movie guy’s book.

An enjoyable trip through time, especially if you loved through it.

I really enjoyed this book. I listened to it over several months traveling back and forth to Iowa during the 6 hour drive from Chicago.
It was a great time capsule from a wonderful time to be alive as well as many heartwarming and heartbreaking stories. Thank you for sharing that window into your life.

Worse than a college production

I really enjoyed the writing in this book and the story was great and nostalgic. However, the performer often trips over, and swallows words And sometimes repeats lines stops and repeats them again. It’s almost as if nobody listened to this before they released it. it really is a shame because it takes away from the story.