Things We All Did in the 90s That Make No Sense Today: A look back at then and now

Ah, the 1990s. It was a magnificent, transitional decade. We were right on the cusp of the digital explosion, straddling the line between analog charm and high-tech convenience. But looking back from today’s perspective, some of the things we did daily seem absolutely bonkers.

If you were to explain 90s etiquette and daily survival skills to a teenager today, they would look at you like you were speaking a foreign language. Here are a few things we all did back then that make zero sense now – and what we do instead.

1. Dialing an 800-Number to “Watch” Movie Trailers

Remember when you wanted to know what time Titanic or Jurassic Park was playing at the local theater? You didn’t pull up an app. You picked up a landline phone and dialed 1-800-555-FILM (or your local MovieFone number).

You’d have to sit patiently through an enthusiastic voice listing every single movie, rating, and showtime, praying you didn’t blink and miss the one you actually wanted to hear. If you missed it? You had to wait for the recording to loop all over again.

Or hope there was a newspaper nearby and try to find the movie listings. Yuck! I can’t stand newspaper ink!

• What we do now: We just tap our smartphones. Between Google, Fandango, and streaming trailers on YouTube, we have every showtime and movie clip globally available in seconds. You get so much info that you practically don’t even have to go watch the movie at all.

2. Walking into a Store to Literally “Rent” a Physical Movie

Friday nights in the 90s had a specific ritual: driving to Blockbuster, wandering the aisles for an hour, and hoping with everything in your soul that there was still a copy of the new release hidden behind the display box. If there was, you grabbed it, paid a few bucks, and had a strict deadline to bring it back. And heaven forbid you forgot to rewind it! “Please Rewind” wasn’t just a polite suggestion; it was a financial threat.

• What we do now: We scroll endlessly through Netflix, Hulu, or Amazon Prime from the comfort of our couches. The only “late fee” we suffer now is the emotional toll of the Netflix email asking if “Don’t forget to finish watching…”

3. Blowing on Game Cartridges to Make Them Work

If your Nintendo or Sega game started freezing or pixelating, there was only one universal, scientifically unproven solution: pull the cartridge out, take a deep breath, and blow into it like you were blowing out birthday candles. We all did it. We swore by it.

• What we do now: Games are either entirely digital downloads or on pristine discs. If a game glitches today, we wait for a software patch to download over Wi-Fi. (And honestly, blowing on a digital download just fogs up your TV screen.)

4. Printing Out Physical Map Directions Before a Road Trip

Going somewhere new in the 90s required serious administrative prep. You either had an 8 ½ x 11in stapled MapQuest printout sitting on your passenger seat, or you were wrestling with a massive, folding paper glovebox map that never, ever went back into its original shape. If you missed a turn, you were entirely on your own until you hit a gas station to ask for directions.

• What we do now: GPS and smartphone apps like Google Maps or Waze. A calm, automated voice tells us exactly when to turn, reroutes us around traffic in real-time, and gently forgives us when we miss our exit.

5. Carrying a Separate Device Just for 8 to12 Songs

If you wanted to listen to music on a walk or a jog, you needed a portable CD player or an old Walkman (and hopefully the CD player had “anti-skip protection,” which worked about 40% of the time). You were limited to the 8 to 12 songs on that specific album unless you carried a giant, zippered nylon binder full of compact discs or tapes with you.

• What we do now: Smartphones and streaming services like Spotify or Apple Music. We now carry millions of songs in our pockets, completely skip-free, without needing a single piece of plastic.

6. The Terror of the “Internet Button” on Cell Phones

By the late 90s, some of us had those early flip phones or Nokia bricks. Many of them featured a dedicated button for the mobile web (anybody remember WAP browsers?). Accidental presses of that button caused immediate, cold-sweat panic. You would frantically mash the “End” button, terrified that those two seconds of loading a blank screen would cost you $50 on your next phone bill.

• What we do now: We are always connected. Unlimited data plans and ubiquitous Wi-Fi mean we never think twice about being online. In fact, we have to actively try to disconnect!

A Simpler, Weirder Time

Looking back, it’s a wonder we survived the decade with our sanity intact. We spent our days untangling cords, waiting twenty minutes for a single photo to download, and feeding digital pets keychain-sized meals. Yet, despite how absolutely absurd these habits seem to us today, there is a distinct, cozy charm to the memory of it all. It was a time when being offline was the default, and patience wasn’t just a virtue; it was required to hear your favorite song.

Now, it’s your turn! Which of these 90s habits were you most guilty of? Do you miss the days of the floppy disk, or are you glad to leave the dial-up static in the past? Let me know in the comments below! Also, what other memories from the 90s do you have? I’d love to talk about them!

Personally, it was great, but give me my broadband, Wi-Fi, Amazon everything, and my smartphone!!!

This is something I do miss. Funny emails people used to pass around. I compiled some of those funny graphics HERE

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