(by 34 people)
Turned on, tuned in and droppin' in everywhere
By sheer numbers, we've sucked more out of the world, and maybe put more back than any generation on the planet. Take a look at some of the things we've done and the people and forces that influenced us. You'll have lots of opportunities to add your favorites to lists and to voice your opinion. Dig it!
Image courtesy Mimsi Bags & Accessories
Our parents and grandparents gave us the automobile, washing machine, flight, the H-bomb and the A-bomb, the Cold War, other wars we couldn't win, and cold fear of communism. They also gave us prosperity like the world has never seen, minds of our own, unprecedented literature, and rock and roll.We listened, rolled over, tuned out, jumped back in, bought more, traveled more, invented more, than any generation in the history of human kind.
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We raised our consciousness, transacted our analyses, identified our dysfunctions, and co-opted our co-dependencies. We jogged for health and beauty, sculpted hard bodies, danced with Richard Simmons, boxed Tai-bo, and ran marathons.Time passed and we traded our buses for Beamers and flower power for power suits, power lunches and power sleep. We dressed for success and played as hard as we worked.
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Today we keep our bodies limber with Yoga, our minds at peace with Zen, and our fingers on the pulse of the next generation. We're plugged in to cell phones, I-Tunes, Blackberries, bluetooth, and we catch the game on handheld TVs. (Eat your heart out, Dick Tracy.)We're the hippest, coolest, hottest, youngest grandparents the planet has ever seen. We're turned on, tuned in, and droppin' in everywhere. We e-vite, e-trade, e-mail, e-bay, and now we Squidoo.
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What they said
Boomers who changed our world
What's your top boomer quote? Move 'em around. Add to 'em. Pop 'em in here! Try to use quotes that are sourced, 'cause a falsely attributed quote isn't half as much fun.
#1
Steve Jobs - CEO Apple Computer
I didn't see it then, but it turned out that getting fired from Apple was the best thing that could have ever happened to me. The heaviness of being s...10 points
#2
Sally Ride, Astronaut
Mind-numbing, bone-rattling and exhilarating - On how it feels to be blasted into space5 points
#3
Oprah Winfrey, Talk-show host
Though I am grateful for the blessings of wealth, it hasn't changed who I am. My feet are still on the ground. I'm just wearing better shoes.5 points
#4
Amy Tan, Author
I didn't fear failure. I expected failure.3 points
#5
Denzel Washington - Actor
Hollywood is a town that has some stars on the sidewalk - Dateline NBC, July 23rd, 20043 points
#6
Bill Clinton, 42nd US president
The world knows of Rosa Parks because of a single, simple act of dignity and courage that struck a lethal blow to the foundations of legal bigotry.2 points
#7
Barbara Lee, Congresswoman
It was a vote of conscience - On why she cast Congress' only vote against giving the president broad authority to attack suspected terrorists2 points
#8
Linda (Lovelace) Borman - Actor
My name is not Linda Lovelace - Lifelong mantra following her role in Deep Throat2 points
#9
Richard Stallman - Wikiquote
My work on free software is motivated by an idealistic goal: spreading freedom and cooperation. I want to encourage free software to spread, replacing...2 points
#10
Garry Trudeau, Doonesbury cartoonist
Commencement speeches were invented largely in the belief that outgoing college students should never be released into the world until they have been...1 point
#11
George W. Bush, 43rd US President
I just want you to know that, when we talk about war, we're really talking about peace - Remarks on home ownership at the Department of Housing and Ur...1 point
We heard it, we danced to it, we changed it, we made history
The music - Ten of the best
Listen to the original Hound Dog by Big Mama Thornton and tell me in the comments below whether you like it better than Elvis' version.
Oh yeah, and you can vote on these and add to 'em too.
#2
The Beatles - Let It Be
They loved Elvis' sound and the sounds comin' from the South--R and B, Blues, Country. They mixed it all up with the sounds of industrial Livermore, s...6 points
#4
The Doors - Light My Fire (long version)
Sippin' a milkshake at lunchtime on a wintry day, smell of white leather seats in the big Ford Galaxy 500, sweetheart close beside, and Light My F...5 points
#5
Creedence Clearwater Revival Band - Green River
Remember when you felt like you'd been dancin' for hours to the same song and still you hoped it wouldn't end?4 points
#6
The Doors - Riders on the Storm
One of the most hauntingly beautiful rock ballads of the era, and that boy Jim could wear leather pants, mm hmm4 points
#8
The Eagles - Hotel California
We got a little softer as the sixties faded to the seventies, but the beat went on3 points
#9
Fleetwood Mac - Rumours
Mmmmm, the veils and the riffs and the harmonies kept you dancin' like you were twenty3 points
#10
Big Brother and the Holding Company - Cheap Thrills
Do you remember where you were the first time you heard this album and Janis' gravelly, electrifying voice? I can smell the room, feel the orange ...2 points
#11
The Rolling Stones - Forty Licks
Mick still can't get no satisfaction, but the Stones keep rollin' and rockin' in their sixties1 point
#12
The Very Best of Dusty Springfield
(Viewer added) The undisputed queen of blue-eyed soul, and one of the best female singers of the 60s and beyond.1 point
#13
Natural Woman: Very Best of Carole King
(Viewer added) How can I choose one song from this album, now CD. This was one of my favorites and one of my daughter's favorites as well. I was born in 1939; she was born in 1963; my current husband was born in 1949. I think that we cover the gambit, from the beginning to the end and beyond. My personal favorite from this album was the title song, (You make me feel like a) Natural Woman. Great Album/1 point
#14
Led Zeppelin: A Classical Tribute
(Viewer added) Stairway To Heaven. The greatest music in the history of rock like you ve never heard it before. Featured here are the musical highlights from Led Zeppelin's career from 1968-1980 featuring the entire spectrum of Zeppelin classics.1 point
#15
Paul Weller's You Do Something to Me on Catch-Flame!
(Viewer added) Click through, scroll down, and listen to You Do Something to Me on Disc 2 - Unashamedly romantic. Still gives me the shivers, but the best kind! What is it about Paul Weller? Hmmmmmm....0 points
#16
Blue
(Viewer added) One of the very best albums ever made, in my Opinion. Worth playing again if you have not heard this for a while.0 points
What do you think?
Elvis learned his style in the backwoods shacks where people like Big Mama Thornton rocked the night. Did you listen to the Amazon snippet of her singin' Hound Dog?
What did you think?
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HomeAndBedroom
elvis was in the army but he's better off as king of rock and roll! Posted June 27, 2008 |
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Lovin_workin_at_home
Yes, I listened. Elvis was better! Did you know that he and Johnny Cash got their start together? I learned that from Johnny's brother, Tommy, who used to beg to tag along and sit backstage while the older boys sang. Who woulda thunk it? Posted April 10, 2008 |
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poutine
Love Elvis better. I grew up with his songs and like Susan52 said "there's not much that can beat childhood memories." Posted December 05, 2007 |
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Forgiven
5 Star lens! Please visit my faithography lens when you get time and rate it if you would. Posted August 20, 2007 |
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FESA
Wonderful site! I love Elvis - can't get enough. Great job on your lens. Sincerely, Fran (FESA) Posted July 14, 2007 |
It's a little bit country, a little bit folk, a little bit ...
Was it country that rocked you on your heels durin' that time? Downhome folk pickin' mixed with a little blues? From Maria Muldaur's "My Tennessee Mountain Home" to Bobby Gentry's "Ode to Billy Joe" to Johnny Cash's "Folsom Prison", we sang, we cried, we stomped and we two-stepped in our high-heeled shit-kickers and our boot-legged (I'm not talkin' about whiskey here) jeans. It just don't get any better 'n that.
Thanks to Lovin_workin_at_home for gettin' this one started with Johnny Cash's 16 Biggest Hits.
#1
16 Biggest Hits
If you don't remember Folsum Prison and Ring of Fire, then you ain't a boomer! It wasn't all rock, remember?3 points
#2
Maria Muldaur
Smokey, country, bluesy, sexy (Don't you feel my leg), mellow and hot all at once just like the cover. A must-have.3 points
#3
The Essential Marty Robbins
He's the cowboy who made it in pop too. What more is there to say. You really gotta hear 'im.2 points
#4
Roses in the Snow
Crunchy-delicious mix of bluegrass and country with greats rangin' from Flatt and Scruggs to Paul Simon. Throw in some Johnny Cash, some Dolly Parton ...1 point
Constantly changin'
and full of fun
This lens is chock full of plexos, polls, and places to post your opinion, includin' right here, so don't be shy! I'm cookin' up new Baby Boomer trivia and history all the time so if you love all things Boomer, check back often.
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FESA
I've nominated/voted for Boomers Rockin' the World. I love spending time here. This site is absolutely fantastic!! It's full of historical and fun content that sparks so many memories and moments, including music, books, quotes and news events. Thanks for the memories! Great work! Fran (FESA) Posted July 29, 2007 |
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rksmythe
You've been blessed by a SquidAngel. Keep up the good work. Proud to be a Boomer! Posted May 09, 2007 |
They shook us up, knocked us out, made us think, and rocked our world
Voices that shaped our generation
Who influenced you? Add 'em in here! (Again, please include the source of the quote.)
#1
Martin Luther King, Jr., Civil Rights Leader
One has a moral responsibility to disobey unjust laws - In letter from Birmingham jail upon his arrest for civil disobedience5 points
#2
John Lennon, Musician
All we are saying, is give peace a chance3 points
#3
Gloria Steinem
There's more to bunnyhood than stuffing bosoms - About her undercover reporter stint as a Playboy bunny, in Outrageous Acts and Everyday Rebellions1 point
#4
Fritz Perls, Psychologist
I do my thing and you do your thing. I am not in this world to live up to your expectations, and you are not in this world to live up to mine. You are...1 point
#5
Allen Ginsberg, Poet & Author
America I'm putting my queer shoulder to the wheel - in America, 19561 point
#6
Ken Kesey, author
The answer is never the answer. What's really interesting is the mystery. If you seek the mystery instead of the answer, you'll always be seeking. I'v...1 point
#7
Janis Joplin, Musician
So when I got home, this guy comes up to me and he says, "Well, I hear you learned about the Great Saturday Night Swindle." That's what he c...1 point
#8
Timothy Leary, Counter-culture guru
Turn on, tune in, drop out1 point
#9
Alan Watts, Author
Zen ... does not confuse spirituality with thinking about God while one is peeling potatoes. Zen spirituality is just to peel the potatoes. - The Way...1 point
#10
Marilyn Monroe - Actor
Well behaved woman rarely make history1 point
#11
Erica Jong
The zipless f--k is absolutely pure. It is free of ulterior motives. There is no power game . The man is not "taking" and the woman is not &...0 points
You're a boomer if ...
you were born between 1946 and 1964 and ...
#1
JFK: The Day the Nation Cried
... you remember exactly where you were when you learned that Kennedy had been shot5 points
#2
National Geographic - Vietnam's Unseen War - Pictures from the Other Side
... a lot of the guys you knew went to Vietnam and came home broken, or didn't come home at all4 points
#3
From the Earth to the Moon - The Signature Edition
... you watched the live telecast of the first moon walk4 points
#4
Norma Rae / Working Girl
... you embraced - or not - feminism and the feminist mystique and the idea that a woman's place wasn't necessarily in the kitchen4 points
#7
Surfin USA
... every guy you knew got a tan and wore a madras shirt and loafers without socks2 points
#8
The Grateful Dead Collection
... you opened your mind to a whole lot of ideas your parents never knew existed (so you thought)2 points
#9
Historic Civil Rights & Black History Films DVD: African American Racism & Prejudice Movies w/ Martin Luther King (MLK) & Maya Angelou Footage
... you watched Dr. King give his I have a Dream speech, live2 points
#10
NBC News Presents: Deep Throat - The Full Story of Watergate
... you know why 18 minutes of erased tape brought down Richard Nixon (and you know what I mean by tape)1 point
#11
Macarena Non Stop
... if you were a woman, you wore shoulder pads on your camisole, shoulder pads on your blouse, and shoulder pads on your dress-for-success blazer, and you danced the macarena0 points
#12
Baby Boomers Can My Eighties Be Like My Fifties? (Springer Series on Life Styles and Issues in Aging)
... you are starting to look at books like this one0 points
Boomers deliver
Boomers brought a lot of good to the world, not that we haven't messed up here and there, but stayin' on the positive side. What have you, or someone you know or admire, contributed that makes you feel warm and fuzzy inside?
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Frankster
I am proud of the way boomers are taking action in righting some wrongs. We're joining the Peace Core; starting or joining non-profits to save endangered species, feed people, stop the violence and save the environment. With the help and support of non-boomers, we can make a huge difference. Posted June 01, 2007 |
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wahagirl
This is a fun site even if you aren't a "Boomer"! Posted May 22, 2007 |
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KnotGypsy
Ha Ha, Margaret, My mother, a little too old for the boomers never understood my penchant for long hair on men. One time, some years ago, she finally asked me. I told her. She never said another word to me about it! I think I embarrassed her. Posted May 18, 2007 |
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Margaret_Schaut
Long hair on men gets my vote. Great lens! Posted December 21, 2006 |
Dedicated to families and survivors of the Vietnam war
The war that wasn't a war
Our brothers, cousins, classmates, friends and husbands fought--and many died--in Viet Nam. Our unarmed sisters and conscientious objectors in the MASH tents patched up their comrades' torn, bullet-ridden, often drug-wracked bodies best they could and sent them home, one by one.There were no parades, no glory days for the soldiers returning home from the war that was not a war.
Those of us who stayed behind patched up their souls best we could. A lot of 'em didn't get better. Some are still druggin' and dyin' slow in cardboard shantytowns under overpasses and in wheelchairs parked on city streets, holdin' out a ragged paper cup for spare change.
Some, though, came home and started families, built houses and office buildings and businesses. Some became teachers, hospital administrators, congressmen, senators. Some ran for president. Some train our sons and grandsons to kill and send them overseas to fight in wars that can't be won.
Image: Vietnam Women's Memorial
Courtesy jcolman