Were you a latchkey kid?

[dolo amber]

I remember being 8-9 and coming home from school, grabbing a snack, sitting in front of the telly watching The Brady Bunch and Gilligan's Island, then going out to play with my friends till my parents got home a few hours later. Granted, this was the mid-late 70s, but if my kids did that these days I'd have to be dosed with Valium to make it through the afternoon...:silly:

[Gothic Sponge]

1. Yes

I did the same. The TV was my babysitter.

[Jack Schitt]

2. I wish I was.

At least one of my parents was home all the time. :(

[Hobarticus]

3. Yep...raised by single mom, the whole "immoral and corrupt" nine yards...

And I turned out just fine!

:crazy:

[skygazer]

4. I was around the same time as you

Mom and dad got home around 6. My older brother and I came home on the bus and hung out - he usually watched tv and I went outside and played. I was 8 and he was 11.

I also used to go camping in the woods behind my house by myself at the age of 9 or 10 with a sleeping bag, a book of matches and a .22 rifle. Didn't seem unusual at the time (it wasn't unusual at the time) but I think about it now and it seems insane!

[Lavender Brown]

5. Yep... and I would forget my keys all the time

and I'd sit outside or walk blocks to a friend's house until my parents came home. Sometimes I had to stay with a crazy fundie lady who was friends with my mom. :scared:

[ZenLefty]

6. Yes, I was.

And I turned out just fine, thankyouverymuch. :silly:

I remember watching a sitcom that addresed the 'problem' of latchkey kids, how they grow up without parental love, and of course the heroes of the show talked the single mother into quitting her job to take care of her kid (they didn't address what mom would do for money; guess it just popped out of trees in that show). I thought it was completely ludicrous, since I was perfectly fine without mother in the way when I made something to eat.

Now that I've grown up, I realize it's at least better for kids when they have a parent in their life more often. Depends on the parent, of course.

[Heyo]

7. yep...

...that was me.. come home from school, nobody would be home for several hours... grab a snack, make some mack -n- cheese and grab some Tang and just chiiiiiiilll...

Those were the BEST moments of my life!!

(sniff)

:(

Heyo :headbang:

[no name no slogan]

8. Yes, at the same time you were.

My folks divorced when I was four, and my mom went to work full-time shortly thereafter.

By the time I was 8 (1977), I was staying on my own after school-- oftentimes until fairly late in the evening, as my mother had to work late.

I grew up watching bad TV after school and playing with Star Wars figures. Since I was also an only child, I was a bit of a loner, and had a very active imagination-- which has served me very well in my adult life.

I was the only latchkey kid in my neighborhood, and sure it was rough sometimes, but I feel I gained a sense of maturity at a young age that my friends didn't get until they were teenagers. I'm also one of the few kids in my neighborhood who graduated college and got a career-- many of my playmates from that time are dead or in jail.

[BamaGirl]

9. Yep

which is why I am a stay at home mom now lol. I cringe to think of my kids getting into even half the crap I did lol.

[AlCzervik]

10. yup, my Mom used to leave at 5:00am every morning

to go to her primary job and then she wouldn't be home until about 8:00pm becuase she had a second job that started 3:00pm. We did ok, would have been nice to have more time together. She died when i was 17 and i swear working so much contibuted to her death.

[Moonbeam_Starlight]

11. Yep

starting in second grade I wore a housekey on a long red piece of yarn tied around my neck every day.

It was like that until I graduated from high school. No one was ever home.

And while I don't think it's the HORRIBLE thing the right makes it out to be, there were a couple of times when I had a really bad day and wished there were someone NICE at home to talk to. My mother was abusive, not nice, and stepfather was an alcoholic, so generally them not being home a lot was a GOOD thing.

[jjmalonejr]

12. Sometimes yes, sometimes no

With a couple of divorces and my mom's on-again-off-again work schedule, the situation changed back and forth.

I think I turned out OK, but I think kids are best served by a parent at home.

It's a shame that so many people who agree with that proposition, fail to recognize that it's ECONOMIC NECESSITY that usually creates the latchkey kid, not uppity career women who don't care about the best interests of their children.

[Susang]

13. Sometimes

My Mom worked part time until I was in high school, then full time. So I was a part time latch-key kid. ;-)

Personally, I kind of liked it. I've always been kind of independant and a loner. I liked being able to watch TV or read or do whatever I liked. I didn't like having to start dinner. :-(

[lapislzi]

14. I was and so is my daughter

She is at home eating her lunch as I type this (early dismissal today).

We started this year (she's 10), and it's so far been a great lesson in responsibility for her. She calls me as soon as she gets in the door. She never forgets to call. She does her homework, prepares a snack, feeds the cats, and does a few light chores before she can have computer or TV time.

My husband (a teacher) usually gets home an hour or so after she does.

I also grew up in the 70s...I remember that's when the latchkey concept really took off because either both parents had to go out to work, or your parents were divorced.

[ellie]

15. Yes, I was

My brother and I would race home and watch General Hospital, then Gilligan's Island, the Flinstones, and the Brady Bunch. It was great

[AlCzervik]

17. I still remmeber the day Luke and Laura got married.

[ellie]

28. I'm so old, I remember

when Luke raped Laura! In fact, I remember when Laura killed David Hamilton!

[Pacifist Patriot]

16. Off and on, yes.

My parents would probably be arrested for neglect today. We were fine.

[flvegan]

18. Yup. Mom was a teacher, so

By age 9, I was getting my own breakfast, getting my butt to the busstop and off to school. After school, it was up to me to let the dog out, and get my paper route done.

[Magrittes Pipe]

19. Yup, in the mid- late-'80s.

I never got murdered.

You're just too edgy. :P

[furrylitldevil]

20. I was

Latch key all the way, this was the mid-late 80's

[LynzM]

21. Yup, starting in middle school

Which for me was the 90's. Come home, read the comics in the newspaper, have a snack, read a book. Sometimes watched tv. Occasionally locked myself out and had to go next door to get keys, or sit outside and be cold, if the neighbors weren't home. I still remember the keychain I had my keys on, and it was a 4-leaf clover. All in all, it was fine. My mom would be home in a couple hours, and she had to work. I was a pretty responsible kid, and never got in trouble because of it, so it was ok...

[ChavezSpeakstheTruth]

22. Sure was - and, knowing my Mom, she was dosed with valium anyway

[Donkeyboy75]

23. HAHAHAHA

You're old.

Yep. I'm a latchkey key. A cautionary tale if there ever was one. :scared:

[scarlet_owl]

24. Yes, starting when I was about eight.

My sister and I would come home from school, do our chores and homework, then go to the park or watch TV. Our parents would get home around 5:30.

[AgadorSparticus]

25. oh yea. and like you and probably every other latch key kid,

i'd come home, eat a snack (ding dongs, ho hos, or doritos. my parents felt guilty and got me whatever i wanted) and watch Tom & Jerry, woody woodpecker, the munsters, and gilligan's island until my parents came home at 5:30. it was all good. i'm not sure i could do that today either with my kids.

[VaYallaDawg]

26. Sure was.

I'm like the other poster who commented this - my parents would probably be prosecuted for neglect today. They were good parents, but people didn't worry so much back then (that was a looooooong time ago!)

[SmileyBoy]

27. Yes, very much so.

I treasured those hours before the parents came home.

[underpants]

29. Yes but I turned out to be TV

:bounce:

My Mom (single mother at the time) SWEARS that we always had a baby sitter. She couldn't have afforded that no way. We didn't have a babysitter.

[buckettgirl]

30. I was...But

that was in the late 80's, early 90's. The elementary school and the middle school were both just a few blocks from my house.
Never had a key though... my parents left the door unlocked.

[prozacnation]

31. Yes, I was..

I remember being 7 or so and having to wear my key around my neck so it wouldn't get lost. Between wearing a key and being a chubby kid I never had a chance. I even have a school picture that shows me wearing a stupid green fuzzy yarn necklace with my key showing. Attractive, huh?

It amazes me to this day how much responsibility I had at that young age. I would never allow my kids to be home alone for the amount of time that I was. However, times were different and my Mom did the best she could. At least that's what I tell my therapist. Just kidding.

[HEyHEY]

32. Yeppers - Dad work from 5:00 am until sometime at night

Mom worked until 7 or 8