Family returns from living in 1986

Would you be able to function if you woke up to find it’s 1986?

A couple in Ontario has spent the last year living in 1986, the year they were born. Today, they returned to 2014, according to CTV.

They got the idea when they noticed their son was spending too much time watching TV.

“You can’t get a hold of your friends, you’re not in the loop with text, you can’t go online to research… it just forced us to be spontaneous and find other things to do and be creative,” Blair McMillan, who also grew a mullet, said.

They bought an old Nintendo, a couple of radios, encyclopedias, some road maps, and a rotary-dial telephone.

They hated each other at times, they admit, but found the overall experience provided a valuable lesson on living with 2014 technology.

“We would suggest to anybody to take some time and put it away…even if it’s just a walk with your family or significant other, leave the phone at home,” Morgan Patey, McMillan’s wife, said.

McMillan tells the CBC he’ll probably buy a cellphone today, but he won’t be parenting the same.

“It will never really be the same,” he said, “because we’ll be a lot more aware of what they’re using. Obviously the kids are at an age now where they’re just using their technology for games and, you could argue, not productive things.”