Gen X is the toughest generation.

Born from the mire of metallic jungle gyms and a street light curfew, most latchkey kids in the 80s lived for radical bike stunts, climbing trees, and making petty bets with the other local kids. Whoever built the coolest bike became the king and the whole neighborhood was their realm. All you had to do was narrowly escape bodily injury from the scariest homemade bike ramp and the title of ‘Coolest Kid in School’ could be yours.

Alas, heroics are far more complicated now and not just because our knees crack and our back always hurts. The world has become a very different place for Gen X. So as the sepia memories of a phone-less, 1980s childhood get stuck on replay in your nostalgia centers, just know that you may not look it, but back in your day, the baseball card in your bicycle spokes made you feel like Lord of the Block—and that feeling never fades.