Teens Look Back on the Good Ol’ Days

Did you ever want to go down a slide and then realized you were too big? How about wanting to spend Saturday morning watching cartoons and instead having to get ready for work? Or have you wished mom and dad would foot the bill when you felt like going to the movies? Maybe Peter Pan had the right idea after all.

As much as little kids look forward to becoming big kids, and big kids look forward to becoming grown-ups, childhood does have a few things going for it. Hot Topics wonders, “What do you miss most about being a kid?”

“Playing Barbies and dressing them up.” Sandy Thomas, 16, junior, Trabuco Hills

“Getting in the movies for cheap.” Issa Freeman, 15, sophomore, Saddleback

“Eating Play-doh.” Alyssa Tietgen, 13, eighth grade, Costa Mesa High

“Watching cartoon shows like the Road Runner.” Art Gonzalez, 14, sophomore, San Clemente

“My Big Wheel.” Ray Heredia, 16, junior, Trabuco Hills

“Easy classes.” Joe Steen, 14, freshman, Fullerton

“Playing in the sand in the playground.” Shang-pin Hunag, 15, sophomore, University

“Disneyland.” Ian Gilbert, 15, junior, Laguna Hills

“Roller-skating and ice-skating.” Stephanie Rivera, 17, senior, Trabuco Hills

“Parents paying for everything.” Jim Baldwin, 16, junior, Laguna Hills

“Playing cowboys and Indians with my cousins.” Darrell Santos, 16, sophomore, Laguna Beach

“A good playground with swings and slides.” Betsy Lin, 14, sophomore, Costa Mesa

“Being able to get dirty and not cleaning yourself up.” Alison Murphy, 15, sophomore, Ocean View

“Getting away with murder. If you did something wrong, you could just cry it off.” Mike Sarabosing, 16, junior, El Toro

“Staying home and watching ‘Sesame Street.’ ” Katreal Alexander, 15, sophomore, Saddleback

“Climbing trees.” Adam Paugh, 16, junior, El Toro

“Pretending I was the Six Million Dollar Man.” Aaron Mukhopadhyay, 17, senior, Laguna Hills

“Playing house.” Reagan Brandenburg, 15, sophomore, Trabuco Hills

“Stealing butter from the refrigerator.” Michelle Phelps, 14, freshman, Santa Margarita

“Ferris wheels.” Mark Everett, 16, junior, El Toro

“Show and tell.” Amy Halverson, 14, freshman, Calvary Chapel

“People giving you all the answers.” Kathy Dwane, 16, senior, Corona del Mar

“Swinging.” Brigitte Le, 16, junior, Fountain Valley

“No responsibility--it was so kick-back then.” Darren Holt, 17, senior, El Toro

Next Week’s Hot Topic: What TV character would you like to portray in real life? Why?