Reply #5: I'd never looked at growing up from this perspective; however,

[LdyGuique]

it makes a lot of sense. I remember the freedom of my own childhood, even though it was in the highly structured 50s -- getting outside was freedom. While I grew up in a small town (5000), I still had access to bits and pieces of undeveloped land, walks into undisturbed places where one felt completely alone, and even the grander outdoors of mountains and such. Even though being a girl made one succumb to socialization processes, there were ways to escape it on occasion.

I still remember when a group of us girls decided to go swimming on one particularly warm January day -- and we took off after school down over the canyon to reach the American River. Damn! It was snowmelt cold and a long hike back up before dark -- but the memory has never faded about how exhilerating it was.

But, we DID live in a less material time and found things to do that didn't involve spending money. We simply had so little money that it wasn't part of the paradigm for the day-in and day-out free time. I can remember only one name-branded item that was a "must have" during high school -- Pendleton wool reversible pleated skirts -- otherwise, we attempted to cajole our parents into clothing that was "in" but without a brand name. Crinolines were crinolines and white buck shoes were white buck shoes.

Time passes and I see so little that brings that infectious joy of escaping rules and regulations without non-parental adults ratting one out or forgetting about the stuff of being "in."