"There were music, books, cards, games, museums, visiting neighbors, school events, crafts, summer pool outings, etc."

Actually, my mother's (quite reasonable) excuse for cutting corners where she could was that she worked full time. So we didn't do much of the stuff you mention - that's what grandma was for :).

Of course, I also work full time and still cook real food - but I have a cleaner, so I don't have to choose between cooking a nice meal or cleaning the bathroom. Then again, my mother never owned an ironing board, and I iron all of our clothes...it's all trade-offs, isn't it?

Back OT, I don't know why the orangey goodness of Kraft Dinner has got such appeal - even for my daughter, who didn't grow up eating it. As the Barenaked Ladies once sang:

If I had a million dollars
We wouldn't have to eat Kraft Dinner
"But we would."
"Of course we would. We'd just eat more."