15 Things You Did in the ’70s You Can’t Do Today
The 1970s were a unique time of freedom, experimentation, and different safety standards. Looking back now, it’s almost hard to believe some of the everyday activities that were completely normal back then would raise eyebrows—or even legal issues—today.
Here’s a nostalgic but eye-opening look at 15 things that were commonplace in the ’70s that you simply can’t do today.
Smoking Indoors Everywhere
In the ’70s, lighting up a cigarette indoors was as normal as checking your phone is today. Restaurants, offices, hospitals, and even airplanes were filled with smoke, with ashtrays conveniently placed on every table and armrest.
Nobody batted an eye when someone lit up during a business meeting or while waiting in line at the bank. Today’s smoke-free public spaces would seem bizarrely restrictive to a time traveler from the disco decade.
Riding Without Seatbelts
Family road trips in the ’70s meant kids freely bouncing around in the backseat or even lying down in the rear window space of sedans. Parents rarely enforced seatbelt use, and many cars didn’t even have functional belts in the back.
The freedom to move around the car during long journeys was considered normal, not negligent. Today’s click-it-or-ticket world with mandatory child seats would seem oppressively cautious to ’70s drivers.
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Drinking While Driving
Open container laws were practically non-existent in many states during the ’70s, making it perfectly acceptable to sip a beer while cruising down the highway. The concept of a designated driver hadn’t caught on yet, and attitudes toward drinking and driving were remarkably casual.
Having a cold one behind the wheel wasn’t just tolerated—it was often part of the road trip experience. The idea of breathalyzers and DUI checkpoints would have felt intrusive and unnecessary to many at the time.
Letting Kids Play Unsupervised All Day
The classic parental directive of the ’70s—”be home when the streetlights come on”—gave kids hours of unsupervised freedom. Children as young as six or seven would leave after breakfast and roam the neighborhood, parks, or woods without adult supervision until dinner time.
Nobody called child protective services or worried about “free-range parenting.” The current emphasis on constant supervision would seem stifling to both parents and kids from the ’70s.
Playing With Lawn Darts
Few toys epitomize the relaxed safety standards of the ’70s better than lawn darts. These weighted metal spikes with plastic fins were thrown high into the air, aiming at plastic rings on the ground.
The fact that children were given heavy, pointed projectiles capable of piercing skulls as a fun backyard game seems almost unbelievable today. The inevitable injuries eventually led to their ban in the 1980s.
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Making Phone Calls From Payphones
Before cell phones, communication on the go meant hunting down a payphone, hoping it wasn’t broken, having the correct change ready, and possibly waiting in line to use it. Payphones were social hubs where people would crowd around during emergencies or after school.
While technically you can still find some payphones today, they’re nearly extinct. This once-essential communication method is now practically a historical artifact.
Using Typewriters For Everything
Long before Google Docs or Microsoft Word, typing meant dealing with a mechanical or electric typewriter. Mistakes required correction fluid, starting over, or living with imperfections.
Creating multiple copies meant using carbon paper inserted between sheets. Today’s ease of digital editing would seem magical to ’70s office workers.
Recording Music Off The Radio
Armed with cassette tapes and patience, ’70s music lovers would sit by their radios for hours, finger poised over the record button, waiting for favorite songs to play. This DIY method of music acquisition required timing, luck, and accepting the DJ’s voice occasionally cutting into the beginning or end of songs.
The instant access to virtually any song today would seem like science fiction to ’70s teens. Streaming, downloads, and curated playlists were decades away.
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Hitchhiking As Transportation
Sticking out your thumb to catch a ride with strangers was a common and accepted form of transportation in the ’70s. College students, travelers, and everyday people regularly hitchhiked to get around.
Cars would routinely stop to pick up roadside strangers without the paralyzing fear that accompanies the thought today. The casual trust between drivers and hitchhikers has vanished in modern times.
Using Lead Paint and Asbestos Products
Home improvement in the ’70s often involved products now known to be highly toxic. Lead paint was still widely used in homes until 1978, and asbestos could be found in insulation, floor tiles, and even consumer goods.
DIY renovators handled these materials without protective equipment, unaware of the serious health risks. Today’s strict regulations and removal protocols would seem absurdly cautious to the average ’70s homeowner.
Sending Kids to Buy Cigarettes
It wasn’t uncommon for parents to send their children to the corner store with a note and money to buy cigarettes. Store clerks would happily sell tobacco products to minors who were obviously purchasing for their parents.
This everyday errand is now not only illegal but would likely result in calls to family services. What once was routine now borders on unthinkable.
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Driving Gas-Guzzlers Without Emissions Testing
Cars of the ’70s were often massive steel machines that consumed fuel at rates that would shock today’s drivers. V8 engines were common in family cars, and nobody worried about their carbon footprint or emissions testing.
These vehicles spewed leaded gas exhaust without catalytic converters or other pollution controls. Environmental awareness had yet to reshape automotive priorities.
Paying With Checks Everywhere
Before debit cards and digital payments, personal checks were a primary payment method for everything from groceries to clothing. People carried checkbooks everywhere, and stores patiently waited as customers filled out checks at the register.
The verification process was minimal—often just a glance at a driver’s license. The speed and security of today’s payment systems would amaze shoppers from the ’70s.
Using Maps and Asking for Directions
Long before GPS and smartphones, navigation meant paper maps poorly folded in your glove compartment and regularly asking strangers for directions. Gas station attendants were unofficial information providers, and getting lost was a normal part of travel.
Planning a trip to an unfamiliar area required advance preparation and the humility to admit when you needed help. The turn-by-turn navigation we take for granted today would seem like science fiction to ’70s travelers.
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Leaving Doors Unlocked
Many families in the ’70s regularly left their homes and cars unlocked. In some neighborhoods, people didn’t even know where their house keys were since they never used them.
This level of community trust extended to leaving keys in the ignition while shopping or running into a friend’s house without knocking. Today’s security consciousness would seem paranoid and socially cold to many from the ’70s.
The Shifting Perspective
The contrast between then and now reveals not just changing laws and technologies but evolving societal values around safety, health, environmental impact, and privacy. What seemed perfectly normal in the 1970s often appears reckless through today’s lens.
While we’ve gained important protections, we’ve perhaps lost some of the casual freedom and social trust that characterized that distinctive decade. Nostalgia reminds us how quickly cultural norms can change.
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