Edie Weinstein, shares insights about being part of the baby-boomer generation and unpacks the stereotypes associated with it.

I was born on Oct. 13, 1958, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Dwight D. Eisenhower was president of the United States and the country had recently launched the Explorer 1 satellite, extending our reach into outer space. The average cost of a new home was $12,750, which was what my parents paid for our three-bedroom, two-bath house in one of the original Levitt communities called Willingboro, New Jersey. Six decades later, that amount of money could instead buy a modest used car.

And speaking of a gallon of gas? It was only a quarter. In my neck of the woods in 2020, it averages $2.50 a gallon. I remember my parents talking about their childhood when a loaf of bread was five cents and penny candy really did only cost a penny. I would roll my eyes at their glorifying the “good old days.” Now, my 32-year-old son considers me ancient and the time in which I grew up too simplistic — and inexpensive — to be believed.

The Baby Boomer Generation

I am squarely a member of the baby boomer generation, which includes people born between 1944 and 1964, named because of an upswing in births following World War II. As I write this, there are 73 million of us in the United States.