"We didn't have a phone when I was a kid, and I was too shy to smash any public phones, and our town didn't have a pool hall either, so I had to hang out at the public library - and anyway, I told myself stories"

In this quote, the speaker, John Sladek, assesses his youth and the lack of technology and entertainment alternatives in his town. He discusses not having a phone, which was a typical family product at the time, and being too shy to vandalize public phones for fun. He likewise keeps in mind that his town did not have a pool hall, a popular hangout spot for numerous young people. As an outcome, the speaker spent a great deal of time at the general public library, where he captivated himself by creating stories in his imagination. This quote highlights the simpleness of the speaker's childhood and the power of creativity to fill deep space of contemporary amenities.