What if it Snows?

I don't miss that at all.

If family was traveling, and I knew about it, everything went to the answering machine.

 

Maybe there was more thinking than being articulate about the sadness of places like Radio Shack coming to an end. It’s not nostalgia by rose colored glasses. These places offered a wide range of learning. The products like some of the kits, even the component level items were not expensive. It did take planning, saving and priorities. Then the building of things taught skills, reading blueprints and schematics. Motor skills, logic and reasoning, troubleshooting.
Working with tools. Reading and understanding directions ( some of these kits had terrible written directions )The whole task of building something and the satisfaction when finished and it worked as it was supposed to. The accomplishments of your efforts. Then moving on to more and more complex things.
All the time learning and advancing knowledge and skills. Feeding the thinking, creativity and curiosity.

 

Choice "B", don't depend on anyone at all.
I'm exactly1 55 gallon drum of water away from that.

 

When I was a small boy, they had a project kit where you could learn about how electrical connections worked. They had bells and buzzers and all manner of cool projects.
I was looking for one for my grandson, they don't make them anymore.
Just look at the stupid phone.
We'll tell you what you need to know.

Hazul says we've lost 8 years of life expectancy. I said, "hot dog".

 

Something like this?
Snap Circuits Light - Steve Spangler Science

 

It never fails people want skills, but they don't want to pay for them. Even worse is when they hire you for your skills, then expect to tell you how to do a job they can't do themselves.

 

I had a chemistry set when I was a pre-teen that was one of the coolest toys I ever received. I can't imagine something like that being available today. The bubble wrap crowd would absolutely lose their ####.

 

Sorta. But not really. Idea is the same

 

There's some out there, also check Barnes and Noble, they tend to carry some better fun/educational items for kids. There's other sets you can find online that don't have the phone plug in, but they'll still be different than we had as kids.

 

If I can operate said pumps can I smoke Pall Malls? The smoke settles the diesel and make it's flow better.

And Lucas in the zippo makes it burn better