1 {scene: outside Mike’s place. Dustin, Lucas, and Will have bicycles}
1 Mike: Seeya next time, guys.
2 Dustin: Yeah. We’ll just ride our bikes home in the dark, because this is the 80s and kids do that.
3 Dustin: Even though there might be serial killers or evil clowns or weird creepy monsters from another dimension lurking out there...
4 Mike: I am not asking my dad to drive you home!
4 Dustin: Awww...

Man, the 80s were the days, weren't they? I remember walking to and from school by myself every day - Google Maps says the distance was 1.3 kilometres. I never rode a bus to school, and I don't recall ever being driven. It's possible I was driven a few times and have forgotten, but I honestly have zero recollection of it ever happening. I do believe my mother walked me to school until I was maybe about 9 or 10 years old. After that it was by myself. Nowadays it seems all the kids get dropped off in their parents' huge SUVs.

And after school I'd go hang out at a friend's place until dinner time, and then walk from there, sometimes further because they lived on the other side of school. Google Maps says the walking distance between my best friend's place and my place was 2.0 km. It was very urban, along streets with shops and houses, not through forests and stuff like the small town setting of Stranger Things. But still.

Oh, there was the creek that ran along behind the houses across the street from my friend's place, where we used to explore and play games of make-believe, and try to catch frogs and stuff. We saw a brown snake down there one time, and beat a sensible retreat, because we knew they were dangerous.

Oh man, good times.