Nostalgia, a sentimental longing for the past, is a very common and highly social-emotional experience. It is centered around the self, important social connections, and meaningful life events. In other words, when our mind drowns itself in these sentimental memories, it makes us revisit the precious moments we shared with friends and loved ones.
So to invite you on a new trip down memory lane, we at Bored Panda are continuing our series on the popular subreddit r/Nostalgia, and have once again compiled its best recent posts. Continue scrolling to check them out, and if you missed our earlier publications, catch up here, here, and here.
This post may include affiliate links.
Who Remembers Making Textbook Covers From Grocery Bags In The Late 1970s And 80s?
Erasers That Never Erased Anything
Research often shows that nostalgia is a primarily positive emotion that can lift people's spirits. But in these studies, participants are usually asked to recall a past event that makes them feel most nostalgic, and the Dornsife team at the University of Southern California thinks that this approach tends to result in people recalling a unique and overly positive, fond memory.
They have found the opposite may be true. Just like in Bruce Springsteen’s nostalgic song Glory Days, people look back to the good times when they feel dissatisfied with their current life.
Manual Credit Card Machine. You Know The Sounds It Makes
The POS system went out at our coffee shop. I was newer... and older, and asked the others where the "ker-chunker" machine was. They just stared at me blankly until an elderly customer came up to me and said, "I know exactly what you're talking about".
But if you really want to ride the way-back machine, do you remember the little books they had to look the card number up in to see if it was real? I remember they couldn't find my mom's card in the book once and they tried to confiscate it. She was _not_ going to let that happen.
Load More Replies...
This is why the numbers are raised on credit cards! Soon to be gone as well if my new smooth cards are any indication
They are no longer compliant with the rules set forth by the credit card industry (PCI).
Load More Replies...
These are still in use as backups. When phones and internet service both go down, out comes the manual device
As a gen zer I was always confused about the scene in Home Alone 2 where they use one of these
We had one under the desk at my old job (2008ish), I dreaded the possibility of being given a card that needed to use it because I didn’t know how! Never happened in my time thankfully.
They came with triplicate carbon paper that would fit into the device and you'd call the number on the back of the card to get authorization for the transaction, they would give you the authorization number over the phone and you'd write it onto the slip, and then kuh-klunk the movable part back and forth across the slip with the card underneath it. This would result in a threefold receipt, one for the customer, one for the retailer, and one for the credit card company, containing the card details, the authorization number, the transaction details, and the cardholder signature.
Load More Replies...
These still get used if the credit system is down. Granted they're far less likely to be used
Likely to be used in Florida the rest of this week, at least!
Load More Replies...
These were gone along with the embossed cards courtesy of PCI regulations.
And the thick book in about size 2 font with every credit card number in existence that needed to be checked before your transaction was approved.
If you own a bar/restaurant you still keep one of these in your “crash kit” if all power goes out you need to have an option to charge cards.
Wouldn’t work because cards don’t have raised numbers. I have seen retailers fill out the slips manually.
Load More Replies...
A lot of places still have these as backup, for when the credit card machines go down. It actually happens more often than you'd think.
Wouldn’t work because cards don’t have raised numbers. I have seen retailers fill out the slips manually.
Load More Replies...
I know it never made the "declined" sound....life used to hit different. Like you could Strobl up to an appliance store. Grab four 30" TVs for like $1500 and swipe a bogus card
I still had to use these 2/3 years ago when i worked in retail. If the internet went down, it was the only way to get payment.
The clacker! The carbon papers. The tearing up of the carbon papers.
Once had a big power outage in the area in the 2000s when I worked at a restaurant. We actually had one of these under the desk for emergencies and ran the cards that way.
Yes. And I remember them back when they had carbon copies. It was such a security risk. If you didn't tear them into little pieces when the customer didn't want them, people would steal them from the trash.
I remember watching my parents use these on holidays to pay for things.
I was in the US in 2019 and many shops and restaurants still used them there!
we use only debet cards here. i dont know anyone who owns a credit card. 🤷
When you worked in a store you hated when people paid that way because it took so long to process and call in for authorization. Cash or cheques were preferable.
They're still used when the net goes down or the retailer's computer crashes. Never ditch your old, manual tech.
Wouldn’t work because cards don’t have raised numbers. I have seen retailers fill out the slips manually.
Load More Replies...
I had to use one of these in a small corner of an old K-Mart back in 2004. Never again.
I actually loved that sound...just like depositing money in the bank and it enoyed certain friends, you had a card like that...little did they know. 🙄
😂🤣power went out temporarily about 2years ago when I was managing a newly opened restaurant (during the pandemic)...Found 2 of them in the restaurant basement with the carbon papers!! Saved the day! Because Credit Card Machines today NEED ELECTRICITY. But not the older, obsolete Card Machines! They are, by far, the superior card machine
I remember Belinda Skelton telling a story of how her dad thwarted a robber in pitch black darkness by swiping that thing. It sounded like a shotgun cocking and scared him off.
What’s a “Personal Check”? More like “No Credit, Don’t Ask” was the more familiar sign. I’m
I worked in a ghetto in 2006 and used one of these . Some old white lady plus boss stood over me bc she wanted me take every piece of paper out of the trash after she tore it up !
Man! I remember the pride in having my very first credit card get used in one of these and seeing my name on that receipt, like a real grown-up! 😂😂😂 Funny how excited you are to become a grown-up then you are and it's quickly anticlimactic!
We still have those in restaurants in case the power goes out. Its better than a crayon and a piece of paper.
Sorry: Typo... Don't they still use these in the US...
Load More Replies...
And getting a finger stuck or the carbon sticking or not having enough space to write everything.
You also had to look in a book that was sent to your business every month that listed all the credit-card numbers that were either stolen or expired to see if the one you were processing was listed in there. If your card was stolen then it took forever to be listed while somebody was still using it.
I remember working in retail in the 90's and they finally did away with these. We were all soooooo happy because we hated them!
A Top 10 Gift If You Were A Kid In The 90’s, I Present To You, The Ultimate Surround Sound Audio, Complete With The Option To Extend The Speakers 2 Feet While Simultaneously Having A Glow-In-The-Dark Solar System On Your Ceiling
Rear Door Ashtrays; Playing With These As A Kid On Car Rides
"When people are asked to describe something that makes them feel very nostalgic, the positive elements dominate,” said David Newman, the study’s lead author and a Ph.D. candidate at USC Dornsife. “They think of a pleasant past experience, and the memories they bring to mind have a positive influence on how they see their own life.”
So, the USC Dornsife team captured how frequently people may feel nostalgic and how intense their feelings are in daily life. The psychologists asked about 230 undergraduate students, in exchange for course credit, to complete daily questionnaires for 14 days.
Who Remembers The Parachute Guy. Would Always Get Stuck Up A Tree Or On A Roof
I still love these guys lol - the excitement you feel as you yeet it off the top of the staircase - ah, the good days…
Getting To Play With The Parachute In The 90s Was Peak “Life Is Good”
Back When I Was Growing Up, Ice Cream Came In A Box!
Then there were 10 boxes of just the strawberry part left in the freezer
These diary studies included questions about whether they had positive or negative interactions with friends or acquaintances, experienced positive moments of achievement, or had negative moments, such as falling behind on coursework.
They also asked about events that could potentially evoke feelings of nostalgia, such as whether the participants had heard a song on the radio that they hadn’t heard in a while.
Image Transferring With Silly Putty
The 64 Pack Of Crayons With A Built In Sharpener
The Clear Craze Of The 90s When Almost Everything Was Clear
Leather Phone Cases Used By Some Dads In The Early 2000s
The results showed that people were likely to feel nostalgic when things were going wrong in the present.
"These negative experiences colored nostalgia in a negative light," Newman said. On days when people felt nostalgic, they reported feeling more stressed, depressed, and lonely; expressed more regret and rumination; were less satisfied with their life, and reported lower self-esteem. They also felt less peaceful and calm and expressed more rumination on the following day.
Anybody Else Have Parents Who Saved National Geographics And Included Them On The Family Bookshelf?
Weekend Nights At The Skating Rink Were As Close To A Nightclub Scene As Us Pre-High Schoolers Got Back In The Day
I had my first kiss at the local roller rink in 1990 when I was 13. Cal-Skate lol. It's still in business in the same location 😊
The Original Mouse Trap
I still have mine circa 1963. My desperately want Christmas present. Now my grandkids have grown out of it.
Windows 95 Themes
But although people tend to feel nostalgic when they have had negative experiences, the team of psychologists found another surprising positive correlation.
People were likely to feel nostalgic on days “when they had helped others, were reminded of old friendships or music, felt inspired and engaged in social media use," the researchers explained.
The Original Facebook
Pre 9/11 When A Kid Was Able To Visit The Cockpit Of An Airplane
Pizza Hut Glasses
They would bounce and bounce and bounce if you dropped them. No hiding it!
Highlights Magazine
My great grandma at one point had a Highlights subscription, one issue included a game that she carefully removed and taped together, we played it with buttons. I wish I could go back and actually listen when she talked.
Based on their analysis, Newman and colleagues concluded that nostalgia is a mixed bag — but the mix is decidedly negative in day-to-day life.
"The results from these studies stand in sharp contrast to the prevailing conclusion from previous research, which had indicated that nostalgia is a mixed but predominantly positive emotion,” Newman said.
"Deliberately engaging in the recollection of extremely nostalgic moments may improve well-being,” he said. "But in most situations in daily life, feeling nostalgic may not feel very pleasant."
Cd-Rom Games
The Most Relatable Rugrats Quote: "It's Four O'clock In The Morning! Why On Earth Are You Making Chocolate Pudding?" "Because I've Lost Control Of My Life" 1993
Eating Mac N' Cheese By Arranging A Single Noodle On Each Fork Tine
Taking Flintstones Vitamins Growing Up
The Way The Sanford King Size Permanent Marker Smelled
Styrofoam Airplanes
Nothing That Wasn’t Candy Ever Tasted More Like Candy That Ludens Cough Drops
I've got a big candy dish full of these right now beside me in bed right now! My son and I both are on the tail end of a week long COVID infection. Thank God it wasn't anything worse than having the flu (thank you vaccines!). Those body aches, though, there's no description for them they were so intense. Anyway, Luden's cough drops are the best cough aide you can buy, other than liquor😁!
An Ancient Memory. Busytown Mysteries
I refuse to accept this is obsolete. Every one of my nephews was given a Busytown book as their first gift from me.
Short Circuit
Came Across My Game Boy Earlier Today While Cleaning Out Some Old Boxes
A Favorite Show From Childhood. Anybody Remember Muppet Babies?
Whistle Pops (1970's)
Wendy’s Sunrooms
I Found These McDonald's Transformer Toys In My Parents' Attic Recently
Og Goosebumps (1992-1997)
Tale Spin (1990-1991)
Aim (1997-2017)
How many CDs did they mail out over the years? One million? 10 million? Billions?
Who Watched "Are You Afraid Of The Dark?" Growing Up? What A 90s Masterpiece
"The Hologram Store" That Sold Beauties Like These At The Mall
Different Decade, Same Spooky Family
Apple Computers In Late 90s/ Early 2000s
Back when they offered affordable design for the masses. That went downhill fast from there...
Scary Stories To Tell In The Dark. Nightmares For A Kid In The 90's
For My First Father's Day My Incredible Wife Bought Me My Favourite Toy From My Childhood So My Son And I Can Play Together. She Even Re-Did All The Stickering
My grandma got this exact one for me and my cousins along with a pirate one and a wild west one... love it
Rollercoaster Tycoon 🥹
McDonald's Packaging From The Early 90s
Hybrid Theory And Meteora Were Big Parts Of My High School Years. Linkin Park
The Old Taco Bell Packaging (Also The Easy Button)
Gameboy, American Girl Dolls, Blockbuster, Beanie Babies, Longaberger Baskets, Boom Box, And A Bowl Cut. The Dream Of 1998z
Malcolm In The Middle
Lost (2004)
Somewhere between the third and the nth season I just stopped paying attention on the plot and just stayed to watch Sawyer without a shirt...
My McDonald's Halloween Buckets From 1986
My First Dog
Kit Kat With Tinfoil Wrapping
in the UK they still do when they come in the multipacks. For some reason though, kitkat chunkies are just the best. xP
Speaking Of Foil, Who Remembers Corn Pops In That Foil Bag?
Sobe: Who Else Remembers These Fantastic Drinks
Bacardi Breezer alcopops... If you were a british teen in the 2000's, you'll know what I mean.. unfortunately it got discontinued in 2015, but they were so good.
Bath And Body Works Cucumber Melon
I was never a fan of this one. My favorites are Juniper Breeze and Coconut Lime Verbena.
Picture Viewers
I still have a plastic tv that rotated pictures of Brookfield zoo at the touch of a button.
Honeywell Thermostat
Inflatable Furniture
McDonald's Old Hot Apple Pie Paper Packaging
Pert Plus, It's All You Need
Who Remembers Schwans?
They're definitely still around; I pass our local truck at least once every couple weeks.
Who Remembers The Old School Foil Wrapped Ding Dongs?
The Red Roof Design Of The McDonald's
Crunch Bar With The Foil
Plastic Juice Containers That Taisted Horrible But We Drank Them Anyway
Wax bottles with kool ade inside. Chewed the wax like gum when it was empty. Wax lips.
Olden Days Hot Topic
Yes!!! When it was more metal and punk. Now it's emo and just goofy with side of dildos. I'm not kidding I went in the other day, small section of sex toys....I guess teens gotta get there's too, I thought it was a little odd.
Remember Penny? From The Early 90's Anti-Drug Psas Between Saturday Morning Cartoons?
Who Remembers Ecco The Dolphin?
Ohhh my gosh! I completely forgot this existed...! So many memories flooding back to me now!
Coke Machines With A Huge Coke Button
Brittney Spears & Christina Aguilera At The 2000 Mtv Vma's
Windows 95 - Ski Free
Found Stashed Inside The Dash Of My 90’s Camaro While Doing Some Wiring , Motley Crue Live, Folded In A 90’s Dairy Queen Napkin
we still have a hole box of these. and honestly i preffer them to CDs as they didn't get messed up as easily lol
Flintstones Push UPS
L'oreal No Tear Shampoo
Sim City 2000
Who Remembers Bubble Beeper?
Who Remembers The Story Of Tikki Tikki Tembo-No Sa Rembo-Chari Bari Ruchi-Pip Peri Pembo And His Little Bro Chang?
They Live | 1988
An Array Of Retro Cherry Coke Can Designs
Used to get the coke fountain drink at lunch and put cherry brandy in it. Made the summer days pass by nicely in high school.
My Wallet From Elementary School
The 90s Was The Wild West Of Candies. None More Egregious Than Ooze Tubes
You can still get these. My sister gets them in her showbags from the Melbourne Show every year.
Nintendo Dust Covers
Me & My Mum In My First School Photo 2004 💕
Charlie The Unicorn
Philadelphia Snack Bars - Strawberry Cheese Cake - Please Bring These Back!
Smashing Pumpkins Before Billy Corgan Started His 3 Decade “Uncle Fester Cosplay“ Phase
Just Found A Rain Forest Cafe
Reebok Pumps
I am still not putting the money they asked back then for a pair of sneakers
Those Old School Vo5 Shampoo Bottles
Did Anyone Ever Get Bored And Pretend That Ordinary Objects Were Spaceships?
Bread Sampler At The Grocery Store
Kellogg's Star Wars Spoon
U.S. Mail Delivery Jeeps
my older brother bought one of these. the steering wheel was on the right.
Night At The Roxbury (1998)
Everytime I hear 'What is Love' I still chuckle and nobody else gets it lol
Your Halloween Was Legit If You Ever Had The Blood Pumping Scream Mask
I bought one of these. But it was not working. The blood was spilled everywhere. But not in the mask... :-)
Anybody Else Have The Talkboy When They Were Younger?
Cosmic Brownie
Who Else Remembers The Rumor That If You Found A Star On The Tootsie Pop Wrapper It Meant Good Luck?
The Big Comfy Couch (1992-2007)
Fruit Roll UPS Peel N Build Pizza Snack
When Nutri Grain Wrappers Used To Be A Single Shiny Color Matching Their Flavor
Og Fruit Gushers - Why Did They Ditch The Classic Paper Packaging For Foil???
What Doritos Used To Look Like
The Simpsons Hit & Run (2003)!
Oh my God, I remember this. It was unbelievably frustrating if your memory is c**p and your orientation worse.
Country Apple Body Splash From Bath & Body Works
The Short Lived Eddie Murphy Claymation, The Pjs
Old Design Of The Sprite Soda Can
My Street Shark Costume From Around 1994
Love You Forever
Red Wendy’s Doesn’t Taste As Good As Yellow Used To
I Was Wondering What Happened To Snackwell's Cookies Since I Haven't Seen Them In A While... Turns Out They Were Discontinued A Few Months Ago
You can still get these but they aren't the same recipe and are as dense as bricks now. No more crispy shell and fluffy inside :(
Found My Old D.a.r.e Mug I Got Back In The 90s
D.A.R.E. actually influenced me to never do drugs. I found it beneficial. As for the people who said it didn't, I don't know.. 🤷♀️
McDonald's In The Early 2000's
I Never Realized That Starbursts Changed The Wrappers Until I Saw These Sitting On Display In The Store And Got Hit With So Much Nostalgia
Sega Dreamcast (9/9/99)
P.b. Crisps Are The G.o.a.t. Of Snack Foods
Star Wars: Shadows Of The Empire - Nintendo 64 (1996)
Going even further back, the Atari 2600 Empire Strikes Back game. You were just a snowspeeder taking down as many AT-ATs as possible in a set time limit.
The Last Of The Mohicans (1992)
Saving Silverman (2001) Such A Wildly Underrated Movie
I'm waiting for it to be a major Broadway hit! R Lee Ermy was a hilarious mess in this movie! It is/was SO underrated!
Fisher Price Castle Set
K-Marts Video Game Section In 2001
This Classic Taco Bell Hot Sauce Design
TV Displays In The 2000s
It's a nice nostalgia trip, but someone really needs to learn what "obsolete" means.
You can still sometimes get them in candy shops. I know of at least 5 places where I live that have them still.
Load More Replies...
Oh... Um. If obsolete means my daughter played/watched etc. What am I? Ultra -obsolete? Uber-vintage? Damn. I'm still in my 40's
Oh my gosh, I just found mine when I cleaned out some totes!
Load More Replies...
Wax Lips... Candy Cigarettes, Pine Bros Cough Drops, Commodore 64's, 8 inch floppy disks...
Does anyone remember The Young Ones https://www.google.com/search?q=the+young+ones&oq=the+young+ones&aqs=chrome.0.0i355i433i512j46i433i512j0i512l4j46i512j0i512.10698j0j1&client=ms-android-google&sourceid=chrome-mobile&ie=UTF-8#imgrc=dTyoxYqEM9dlqM
I guess what's nostalgia for some people is 'just a little while ago " for others.
This list has reminded me where my processed food addiction came from. Not to sound like a geezer, but between profit maximization and health concerns, modern snack foods can't hold a candle to the industrial, toxin filled, abominations before god that were the chemical snack food chimeras of deliciousness in the 90's.
Hand crank car windows. Fighting over who gets "shot gun" and the window seat. Halloween masks you couldn't see out of. NOT wearing a seat belt or helmet. 8 track tapes. Common sense
So funny this came up in my feed! Just last night my husband was so excited putting one of those planes together. About an hour later I came into the living room from the kitchen and got abruptly hit in the face by it not realizing I was walking into a flight zone……Such child nostalgia for sure 😒🤣
The best - und so sustainable: Making Textbook Covers From Grocery Bags. How is this done nowadays?? I loved doodeling on the covers :-)
You want obsolete? I was born in 1953-I didn't get half of these. Gen X?
" 50 Obsolete Things To Prove How Much The World Has Moved On And Changed ".the american world that is !
all I can think of while going through this is Animaniac's "Randy Beaman's Pal"
i mean this in the best way possible, but these lists always make me upset. the people who grew up with this stuff have children, like my parents had all this and they saved a bunch and stuff and so me and my siblings understand a good deal of this stuff. and some of this is still in use and popular. stop saying only 80s and 90s kids will understand, because i was born in 2007 and i understand.
Don't be upset over people feel nostalgic for things from their youth. 15 years from now you'll be doing the same thing with the fads of today.
Load More Replies...
It's a nice nostalgia trip, but someone really needs to learn what "obsolete" means.
You can still sometimes get them in candy shops. I know of at least 5 places where I live that have them still.
Load More Replies... Oh... Um. If obsolete means my daughter played/watched etc. What am I? Ultra -obsolete? Uber-vintage? Damn. I'm still in my 40's
Oh my gosh, I just found mine when I cleaned out some totes!
Load More Replies... Wax Lips... Candy Cigarettes, Pine Bros Cough Drops, Commodore 64's, 8 inch floppy disks...
Does anyone remember The Young Ones https://www.google.com/search?q=the+young+ones&oq=the+young+ones&aqs=chrome.0.0i355i433i512j46i433i512j0i512l4j46i512j0i512.10698j0j1&client=ms-android-google&sourceid=chrome-mobile&ie=UTF-8#imgrc=dTyoxYqEM9dlqM
I guess what's nostalgia for some people is 'just a little while ago " for others.
This list has reminded me where my processed food addiction came from. Not to sound like a geezer, but between profit maximization and health concerns, modern snack foods can't hold a candle to the industrial, toxin filled, abominations before god that were the chemical snack food chimeras of deliciousness in the 90's.
Hand crank car windows. Fighting over who gets "shot gun" and the window seat. Halloween masks you couldn't see out of. NOT wearing a seat belt or helmet. 8 track tapes. Common sense
So funny this came up in my feed! Just last night my husband was so excited putting one of those planes together. About an hour later I came into the living room from the kitchen and got abruptly hit in the face by it not realizing I was walking into a flight zone……Such child nostalgia for sure 😒🤣
The best - und so sustainable: Making Textbook Covers From Grocery Bags. How is this done nowadays?? I loved doodeling on the covers :-)
You want obsolete? I was born in 1953-I didn't get half of these. Gen X?
" 50 Obsolete Things To Prove How Much The World Has Moved On And Changed ".the american world that is !
all I can think of while going through this is Animaniac's "Randy Beaman's Pal"
i mean this in the best way possible, but these lists always make me upset. the people who grew up with this stuff have children, like my parents had all this and they saved a bunch and stuff and so me and my siblings understand a good deal of this stuff. and some of this is still in use and popular. stop saying only 80s and 90s kids will understand, because i was born in 2007 and i understand.
Don't be upset over people feel nostalgic for things from their youth. 15 years from now you'll be doing the same thing with the fads of today.
Load More Replies...