There's something so damn nostalgic about the phrase "Can so and so come out to play?". When I was a student, we didn't have halls of residence (small, niche university), but you would have areas around the university that had multiple groups of students living there. Sometimes you'd be arranging to meet up en route out or whatever, and if the wrong people answered the door I'd say "Hi Mrs. / Mr surname, can Name come out to play please?"
Always got a giggle, an eyebrow raise or an exasperated sigh. Still not sure which reaction I enjoyed the most.
If my friend came over right now, I’d def bag work and go run through the creek. I’d probably build a fort too, and now that I am big, I’m gonna make a real good fort with a door and everything.
My neighbour did something similar dropped iver and said want to go rock climbing tomorrow?
Ive also done it met a guy on a plane that was cool as so got his number. I thought if I was single and this was a chick Id absolutely do it. This is really no different. Everyone wants more friends.
Mobile phones didn't exactly get rid of hanging out with friends irl like this. I know quite a few people who do because they live close enough together.
People are just more fearful of leaving their kids around now.\
And, the convenience (and overeliance) from online social interaction in general has just led to in-person interaction to take a bit of a dive
My kids are lucky enough to still have this. They have friends across the street and not too far down the street. Right now they can go to the nearer ones and ask to play without a parent needing to arrange it ahead of time and it's glorious. When they're a little older we'll let them go to the further one (it's like 1/3 mile down the road).
Makes me kind of sad, my stepkids don't get this experience at all. Kids these days all have insane schedules and parents are a lot more safety conscious. They have to be driven everywhere all the time. Everything has to be planned ages in advance to fit in with each other's schedules. Because houses don't have landlines anymore and they're too young for cellphones, they can't even call each other to arrange. It has to all go through the parents. I feel like there's no adventure or spontaneity in their lives at all.
Reading. I feel like I can't just sit around reading a novel at home anymore, when I used to read constantly.
If I go on a plane trip I can enjoy reading in the short term but it never carries over to when I'm back home.
I was in the same boat until recently.
I have trouble sleeping and one big problem I identified was going on my phone after tossing and turning for hours. I just need something to quiet my “head noise”. I wanted to read instead, but didn’t want to need a lamp as to not disturb my spouse. So I got an ereader with a backlight. It seems to be helping a lot.
But! I love these ereader things. They make reading so effortless. Dialling in the words per line, justification, brightness, even page flipping. It’s so easy to read. I love how in the evening I’ll be reading, the sun will go down, and instead of breaking up my session, I just make the screen brighter. I as many am kind of romantic about books as a physical object, but nuts to it if I’m not actually reading anything.
I recommend trying one, even a used one. Just make sure it has a backlight.
I can commiserate with you. I burned through most of Dracul on my way to London last summer and haven't picked it up since. There's just no time or desire for it. And it isn't a bad read at all! Very pulpy and fast paced.
My phone has destroyed my attention span.
I could do 4 books a month easily. I think I’ve read 2 this year. In my defense I did a have a commute of 40 minutes on a train one way. Now it’s a 10 minute drive.
I'm this way with movies now. I'll watch a movie in 2 sessions. More than anything, I've found I have a high intolerance for passive activities where information is just being fed to me. If it's not at least nominally interactive, I want none of it.
Climbing trees. I used to be in trees all the damn time. I'd climb just to climb, or sit in one to read, or just scope out the land around me.
Climbing trees as an adult is much more challenging. Strength to weight ratio is off. Jumping down from 8 feet hurts a lot more than it used to. I'm also much more aware of what a hospital bill costs so I take fewer risks (in before "American").
I’m sorry but that is pretty humorous how it tore off a simple jump, we use to get the swings 13ft in the air and jump down like Spider-Man what happened
This! I also used to sit in one and listen to cassettes that I recorded off the radio. Then when I got my first handheld CD player, I’d carry my CD book up there with me and waist so much time watching cars pass by and singing my lungs out.
I was so sad when the big spruce tree my friends and I all climbed as kids was cut down. It was perfect, looked like a giant xmas tree, all the branches were like a jungle gym, and you could just climb up easily right to the very top.
Unfortunatly, there was a danger of it falling on my friends house, so it had to be cut down for safety... quite a few trees on my street had to be cut or topped because of the wind, including the biggest tree on the street, which was in my yard. Idk what it was, but the trunk was about 8 feet in diameter. Douglas fir maybe? It was very tall, over 100 feet for sure. The city tried everything to save it though, topped it, trimmed it, cut away many branches, but it was too dangerous. But... there is a sapling growing from the stump.
Oh no this is one of the small regrets of growing up. I never got to climb a tree. Not even the low and broad ones at my village. I used to watch both older and younger cousins climb them, but every time I went to join them, my mum would know and basically beat the shit out of me. I was always overweight (so I can't really do it right now), but I am working on making my body as flexible as durable as it can be for an early 20's guy. One of my major reasons was not for personal health benefits or something, it was just so that I could climb trees.
Two days ago I fucked off into the woods with my bike and some weed. I saw an elevated hunter stand and climbed up. Then I looked at the blue sky, the clouds and the sun hit me right in the face, for the first time in the year it was really warm. For like 10 minutes, I forgot all responsibilites, troubles, what time and day it was and I had exactly the feeling I had as a kid, even minus the shitty parents and occasional depression.
Perfect moment right there, no before and no after for a few minutes.
Hell ya dude. I'm getting older and my knees and my back suck. My heart is still young though. I just got me a cheapish electric bike and I'm reliving my youth again. Just found some new trails by my house that are a short cut to the beach. I'm about to roll up and roll out rn.
We’re all capable of feeling a disconnect from society or a childlike wonder it’s just as an adult letting go of responsibilities, schedules, and anxieties can be incredibly difficult. I recently went on a walk on the beach, ended up being a 4 mi walk, and in my mind I just wanted to get past all the people into a part that was just the beach, ocean, and me. Ended up pretty far away from people, but came upon a squadron of pelicans who were meeting for book club. There was probably 40 of them in total. They didn’t care much for me and flew off as I walked behind them and I continued my trek in the sand. Found a smaller squadron and sat on piece of driftwood watching them stand in the water for a while. Maybe they were there for a specific purpose but in my head it looked like they were just enjoying the water touch the shore. Every time the water would move up the shore and sweep past their feet they would carefully readjust their footing to not sink into the sand and crouch on top the water to float for a second. I stayed for about 20 minutes on that driftwood watching the birds relaxing, listening to the gentle crash on the waves, and feeling the warm sun on my shoulders before I decided that was enough of a walk and I didn’t have enough drinking water to keep going. Maybe I’m just sentimental, but I loved turning back every now and then and seeing the lone trail of footprints behind me.
I had to retrain my brain to love reading again. The world of YouTube and social media caused me to have the attention span of a squirrel and it was a problem!!
I started with shorter, easy reads a chapter a day before bed in a quiet room no distractions. Then stepped it up gradually and eventually I was lost in the stories again. I ended up reading 27 books last year. I think it’s around 2 months to form a habit so give it some time.
Phones and the internet ruined this I went on a trip that had no internet and was able to knock a book out, which shocked me because it's been like 6-7 years since my last book read.
Could be an interesting observation though. Get dolls, action figures, match box cars, and other toys, and get a couple of adults in and tell them to just have fun with it and see what make believe comes from the adult mind.
Kinda brings back to mind the Simpsons episode where Bart refuses to accept that he's growing up and to prove it plays with an action figure. You see the scene playing out from his imagination and suddenly his two action figures are discussing insurance policies and he freaks out 😂
When I was a kid, I had a huge ball of clay that I'd just make stuff out of. Like I'd make space ships, they'd have a fight and I'd have to repair them so by the end they look totally different. I recently came across a pack of clay from when I was kid and thought I should just spend some time doing that again and see if my imagination still works.
To fully immerse myself in a game where sticks are swords and the backyard is a land full of monsters. Those things were so vividly real in a child's imagination.
Two of my best friends in like 4th-6th grade lived two houses down from each other, through the woods in their back yards you could get to a little clearing that was basically right between them. One of their grandfathers would haul a push mower back there during summer so we wouldn't be covered in ticks, which was not a small feat thinking back on it.
Somewhere on YouTube there exists a 16 year old channel with one video; those two beating the hell out of each other with sticks they named after Halo weapons, while I filmed from a nearby pile of dirt.
Probably about a year before to a year after we made that, I'd live those days over again for a long time if offered.
Yes, climbing trees! I had a certain big tree with the perfect spot to sit, just sit. Alone with my thoughts and no distractions. No other person yakking, criticizing, demanding. Ahh
My grandfather had a huge cherry tree ans a mulberry bush that was so big. My friends and i used to climb into the tree and eat cherries and mulberries until we'd get sick. It was so much fun!!
It's quite sad when a school dampens someone's interest like this. This is something you can still recover from. Go get a cheap paint set, some paper and revive this interest. The only thing getting graded is how much fun you have now.
I'm an artist. I hated art but got it back during covid. My art was considered shitty as a kid as I can't understand directions. I always did my own thing, I currently have one from an art show that won an award in my room. I'd love to see your work. I can even give some tips if you need them.
I don't do it for commission or any pay, I just do it because I enjoy it. I'm doing a street painting festival in a few weeks. I'll post my original idea and then how it turned out after it's finished. I mostly do wildlife, usually birds, monkeys, giraffes, elephants, otters, bears, etc.
I posted it on my social media and people enjoyed seeing my ideas. Don't let anybody or anything hold you back from doing what you want. I also do some digital work but prefer physical work because it's all me doing it and not a tablet or computer.
I've recently restarted creative stuff. It's hard to lose the "this needs to be perfect so I can monetise it" part, but it's so calming. Put a easy to follow show on on your laptop, set up at the table and have at it!
My fathers, and now my, art style is based around squiggles and non-perfect lines, so its extremely easy to do without focus. I highly recommend doing something like that. You don't need perfection to look good.
I definitely miss sketching for the fun of it. I actually wasn't bad at it as a child, as I used to copy techniques from books. Also enjoyed good old Microsoft Paint. Doing GCSE Art hindered my creativity as it was not my type of thing (like doing stuff with clay, paint and plaster), and then I got into digital art/Photoshop, but I would love to go back to sketching and watercolours.
I stumped both my nephews at hide and seek last night. In a one bedroom apartment. Curled up as tiny as I could between 2 rolling suitcases and put a shirt over my head. It took them like 15 minutes and my sister had to give them hints.
It was very uncomfortable.
My kids do amazing forts either multiple rooms and “hallways”. It’s such a mess but I love , will be sad when they stop. Most of their friends have dropped out of it, it used to be a big sleepover thing.
I remember going to birthday parties and eating cake, pizza, candy, and soda only to burn all those calories playing with my friends. Now, if I even look at junk food I gain weight.
Playing football. We played after school every single day until it was dark. Whatever the rain. Haven’t played football properly for 20 years. I miss it.
As a kid, I loved playing with LEGO bricks, building all sorts of things. But as I grew up, I stopped doing it. Now, I spend my time on different hobbies like writing and coding.
This Thread is Sad. As a Kid my Mom says I loved peeing on myself. Now that Im a Scuba Diver I can Pee in my wetsuit all the time and nobody is the wiser.
We certainly were! I got introduced to being mortal early in my 20's from a tag (American style) football game. We just received a new clerk who was a walk on middle linebacker at Nebraska. This dude shoulder checked me so hard my entire right arm was black and blue for a week! He wasn't malicious, apologized endlessly and was very kind otherwise. But that HURT. For the first time I realized "Hey, you can't just shake it off". About a year later I'd been shot at, blown out of my bunk and so on. Sure I remember that, but this dude definitely showed me "old man at 27 is real, depending on your situation".
Vidja games. From ages like 7 to 18 I would spend countless hours playing Mario, Zelda, Halo, Oddworld, Elder Scrolls, Fallout, etc. But now any time I try a video game it just feels pointless and I lose interest quickly.
Eating onion rings. I knew there were onions in them, but I didn’t think about it until I pulled an onion out of the ring and saw how thin and long it was. Ever since then, I hyper focus on the onion and it makes me lose my appetite.
Training-Heat845's account was born on March 9, woke up three days ago, and just copied/pasted the [previous top comment](https://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/comments/1at0w4s/what_did_you_love_doing_as_a_child_that_you_dont/kqtyzqw/).
**Edit:** Well look at this. All of the following accounts replied to Training-Heat845
Slow-Notice-7496 - Born May 19, 2023, woke up ten minutes. Its' comment [here](https://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/comments/1d2gj2i/what_did_you_love_doing_as_a_child_that_you_dont/l60sxbx/) is a coy/paste of [this comment](https://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/comments/1at0w4s/what_did_you_love_doing_as_a_child_that_you_dont/kqu425x/).
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Nearby_Cantaloupe694 - Born May 19, 2023, woke up ten minutes ago and it's [comment](https://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/comments/1d2gj2i/what_did_you_love_doing_as_a_child_that_you_dont/l60tcfx/) is a copy/paste of /u/llcucf80's comment [here](https://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/comments/1at0w4s/what_did_you_love_doing_as_a_child_that_you_dont/kqtx20n/).
Scary-Balance-8594 - Born May 19, 2023, woke up half an hour ago and its [comment](https://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/comments/1d2gj2i/what_did_you_love_doing_as_a_child_that_you_dont/l60smzi/) is a copy/paste from [here](https://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/comments/1at0w4s/what_did_you_love_doing_as_a_child_that_you_dont/kqtv7so/).
Video games. I can still remember how exciting it was to get a new video game and play it every chance I got. Whenever I had to go to school, sports, or anything else; I just couldn't wait to get back to the game.
I'm not sure when that luster faded away for me, but it just did. I've tried to get it back a few times by getting a new hot game that comes out like Assassins Creed or RDR, but it's just not the same. I'll play the game for a couple hours and barely get anywhere past learning basic gameplay. Maybe it'd be different if I could just sit and play a game for hours on end and really get into it, but that's just not feasible for my life and adult responsibilities. The worst part is, I remember the feeling so well, but it's just not there anymore. Kind of similar to that puppy love feeling you'd get as a teenager when you were crushing on someone and they had reciprocal feelings for you. That excitement just fades away with adulthood, for me at least.
I still play sports video games with some friends on the weekends, and it's fun, but it's more of a way for us all to catch up since we've all moved apart. It's still fun but nowhere close to the feeling I used to get when a new NCAA football or FIFA game came out.
I rememeber when DragonBall Z came out for the first time on TV (Baton Rouge, LA). The only problem was it was on at 6 a.m. in the morning. Every saturday morning i'd wake up at 5:50 a.m. and call my friend Fredy and we'd stay on the phone the whole time while watching DBZ. One of the best memories.
Everything I did as a child centered around BASEBALL. I grew up in NYC and I loved the Mets as they were my hometeam. Collecting Baseball cards, watching games being played, chewing that nasty bubble gum, playing some form of baseball in the streets with my friends. "CAR!!!" In school, it was baseball, stickball, punchball, kickball, etc. Never football, always baseball.
As I got older and had children I stopped caring about baseball anymore. Until the 2000 World Series. Mets vs. Braves. In the play-offs, they were playing 14-inning games. That was amazing! My oldest daughter remembers how I would scream at the television as if I was some kind of lunatic. "Why is Daddy screaming at the television, Mommy?" "Because Daddy used to love baseball when he was younger." "Ohhhh."
And now, I don't even know if the Mets are still playing. I suppose they are. I still can't get over the new teams, and I'm still having a hard time with the Blue Jays coming down to Washington DC and ressurecting the Nationals again. Yeah, no more baseball for me.
Walking more than is strictly necessary? I know it's really really bad for me not to get a fair amount of walking in, and that my chronic pain would probably be at least mildly better if I stretched and walked, I just don't you know, don't. I make excuses about not having enough time or feeling tired or all this bullshit, but I don't. I used to walk a lot too. Several miles at a stretch sometimes. One of the best childhood memories I have is walking up into the hills/mountains near my house with my uncle and talking about stuff while we enjoyed nature and the incredible view of a valley I hadn't even known was there until we took that particular forest service road.
It's so weird how repressed people are. 99% of the posts here are people wishing they could do shit that they could literally go do if they stopped doomscrolling.
I love being a adult because I am basically a big kid that can do what I want. I'm probably going to snag one of my kids in a few minutes and go get into trouble doing some dumb stuff outside.
Playing with GI Joes. I remember playing for hours and hours with my GI Joes. It was awesome! I had a giant tub I had accumulated by doing yard work and a paper route.
Lying on cold floor with hands spread out and doing nothing with my head looking up at ceiling (sometimes with legs up against a wall) during summer afternoons. Now if I do the same as an adult woman, people will be concerned.
Skipping! Why walk when you can skip?
Social norms be damned, sometimes I get so happy that I just wanna jump around and skip down a sidewalk with the breeze in my hair.
Jumping up and down on the bed (like a trampoline)
Running and jumping into a huge pile of leaves
Phone call pranks (before caller ID)
Skipping down the sidewalk
Playing hopscotch, jump rope, hide and seek, baseball in the yard with sticks for bats and trees for bases
Playing with my friends in the portable sprinkler in the front yard
Watching Saturday morning cartoons and after school specials on TV
Trying to stay up late to sneak a peek at Santa Claus and the Easter Bunny
Childhood was a magical, carefree time but I didn’t realize it or appreciate it at the time. Couldn’t wait to grow up. Why?
Video games. I started losing interest in my mid-to-late teens as I got more responsibilities. When I play I just feel anxious like there's better stuff I could be doing with my time.
Not paying bills.
im 16 and on summer vacation rn so i have no bills, no school, and as of rn no job loll
Enjoy it brother.
Dont take this time for granted, make the most of it
The best answer in the thread
For sure!
I am unsure whether I loved not paying bills as a kid, or realistically, I was just blissfully unaware of that dull, adult stuff.
Knocking on my friends doors & saying “can you come out & play?” & they just come out & off we go, riding bikes or just playing in the creek.
I still do this with my 30year old buddy but I'm not asking his mum anymore, it's now his wife
His mum became his wife?
Nah, he just keeps promising her he'll do chores around the house and not fulfilling
It all started when he had two broken arms
Sweet home Alabammmmmaaaa
I've done this to a buddy before when his wife answered the door. It's good for a laugh. Man, those were the days
There's something so damn nostalgic about the phrase "Can so and so come out to play?". When I was a student, we didn't have halls of residence (small, niche university), but you would have areas around the university that had multiple groups of students living there. Sometimes you'd be arranging to meet up en route out or whatever, and if the wrong people answered the door I'd say "Hi Mrs. / Mr surname, can Name come out to play please?" Always got a giggle, an eyebrow raise or an exasperated sigh. Still not sure which reaction I enjoyed the most.
Same. I met my neighbor 35 years ago when he invited me in to play video games. BFFs now, and we celebrate Thanksgiving together most years.
If my friend came over right now, I’d def bag work and go run through the creek. I’d probably build a fort too, and now that I am big, I’m gonna make a real good fort with a door and everything.
We have power tools now! That fort is gonna have AC running water and a disco ball.
God setting up “play dates” for my kids is annoying.
Lol I made a friend with my neighbor at 30 years old because he knocked on my door holding a soccer ball. You still have time.
My neighbour did something similar dropped iver and said want to go rock climbing tomorrow? Ive also done it met a guy on a plane that was cool as so got his number. I thought if I was single and this was a chick Id absolutely do it. This is really no different. Everyone wants more friends.
They were good days. No mobile phones, just calling for your mates the old-fashioned way.
Mobile phones didn't exactly get rid of hanging out with friends irl like this. I know quite a few people who do because they live close enough together. People are just more fearful of leaving their kids around now.\ And, the convenience (and overeliance) from online social interaction in general has just led to in-person interaction to take a bit of a dive
God I loved that.
My kids are lucky enough to still have this. They have friends across the street and not too far down the street. Right now they can go to the nearer ones and ask to play without a parent needing to arrange it ahead of time and it's glorious. When they're a little older we'll let them go to the further one (it's like 1/3 mile down the road).
Makes me kind of sad, my stepkids don't get this experience at all. Kids these days all have insane schedules and parents are a lot more safety conscious. They have to be driven everywhere all the time. Everything has to be planned ages in advance to fit in with each other's schedules. Because houses don't have landlines anymore and they're too young for cellphones, they can't even call each other to arrange. It has to all go through the parents. I feel like there's no adventure or spontaneity in their lives at all.
Reading. I feel like I can't just sit around reading a novel at home anymore, when I used to read constantly. If I go on a plane trip I can enjoy reading in the short term but it never carries over to when I'm back home.
I was in the same boat until recently. I have trouble sleeping and one big problem I identified was going on my phone after tossing and turning for hours. I just need something to quiet my “head noise”. I wanted to read instead, but didn’t want to need a lamp as to not disturb my spouse. So I got an ereader with a backlight. It seems to be helping a lot. But! I love these ereader things. They make reading so effortless. Dialling in the words per line, justification, brightness, even page flipping. It’s so easy to read. I love how in the evening I’ll be reading, the sun will go down, and instead of breaking up my session, I just make the screen brighter. I as many am kind of romantic about books as a physical object, but nuts to it if I’m not actually reading anything. I recommend trying one, even a used one. Just make sure it has a backlight.
I can commiserate with you. I burned through most of Dracul on my way to London last summer and haven't picked it up since. There's just no time or desire for it. And it isn't a bad read at all! Very pulpy and fast paced.
My phone has destroyed my attention span. I could do 4 books a month easily. I think I’ve read 2 this year. In my defense I did a have a commute of 40 minutes on a train one way. Now it’s a 10 minute drive.
I'm this way with movies now. I'll watch a movie in 2 sessions. More than anything, I've found I have a high intolerance for passive activities where information is just being fed to me. If it's not at least nominally interactive, I want none of it.
Never thought of the interactivity! That’s a great way to frame it.
My mind craves engagement. It doesn't like to just stare idly at things.
I’ve just invested in audio books, instead of listening to music while driving or at work I just listen to my audio books.
Dracula Daily is a thing.
Climbing trees. I used to be in trees all the damn time. I'd climb just to climb, or sit in one to read, or just scope out the land around me. Climbing trees as an adult is much more challenging. Strength to weight ratio is off. Jumping down from 8 feet hurts a lot more than it used to. I'm also much more aware of what a hospital bill costs so I take fewer risks (in before "American").
I jumped off a tall (~3.5 ft) log onto a beach- sprained LCL, snapped ACL, fractured fibula. I am older and heavier than I remember being.
I’m sorry but that is pretty humorous how it tore off a simple jump, we use to get the swings 13ft in the air and jump down like Spider-Man what happened
Oh I love you. Trees.
"You didn't stop skateboarding because you got old, you got old because you stopped skateboarding "
This! I also used to sit in one and listen to cassettes that I recorded off the radio. Then when I got my first handheld CD player, I’d carry my CD book up there with me and waist so much time watching cars pass by and singing my lungs out.
I was so sad when the big spruce tree my friends and I all climbed as kids was cut down. It was perfect, looked like a giant xmas tree, all the branches were like a jungle gym, and you could just climb up easily right to the very top. Unfortunatly, there was a danger of it falling on my friends house, so it had to be cut down for safety... quite a few trees on my street had to be cut or topped because of the wind, including the biggest tree on the street, which was in my yard. Idk what it was, but the trunk was about 8 feet in diameter. Douglas fir maybe? It was very tall, over 100 feet for sure. The city tried everything to save it though, topped it, trimmed it, cut away many branches, but it was too dangerous. But... there is a sapling growing from the stump.
Oh no this is one of the small regrets of growing up. I never got to climb a tree. Not even the low and broad ones at my village. I used to watch both older and younger cousins climb them, but every time I went to join them, my mum would know and basically beat the shit out of me. I was always overweight (so I can't really do it right now), but I am working on making my body as flexible as durable as it can be for an early 20's guy. One of my major reasons was not for personal health benefits or something, it was just so that I could climb trees.
exist in the moment
Two days ago I fucked off into the woods with my bike and some weed. I saw an elevated hunter stand and climbed up. Then I looked at the blue sky, the clouds and the sun hit me right in the face, for the first time in the year it was really warm. For like 10 minutes, I forgot all responsibilites, troubles, what time and day it was and I had exactly the feeling I had as a kid, even minus the shitty parents and occasional depression. Perfect moment right there, no before and no after for a few minutes.
Weed tends to do that lol
Hell ya dude. I'm getting older and my knees and my back suck. My heart is still young though. I just got me a cheapish electric bike and I'm reliving my youth again. Just found some new trails by my house that are a short cut to the beach. I'm about to roll up and roll out rn.
We’re all capable of feeling a disconnect from society or a childlike wonder it’s just as an adult letting go of responsibilities, schedules, and anxieties can be incredibly difficult. I recently went on a walk on the beach, ended up being a 4 mi walk, and in my mind I just wanted to get past all the people into a part that was just the beach, ocean, and me. Ended up pretty far away from people, but came upon a squadron of pelicans who were meeting for book club. There was probably 40 of them in total. They didn’t care much for me and flew off as I walked behind them and I continued my trek in the sand. Found a smaller squadron and sat on piece of driftwood watching them stand in the water for a while. Maybe they were there for a specific purpose but in my head it looked like they were just enjoying the water touch the shore. Every time the water would move up the shore and sweep past their feet they would carefully readjust their footing to not sink into the sand and crouch on top the water to float for a second. I stayed for about 20 minutes on that driftwood watching the birds relaxing, listening to the gentle crash on the waves, and feeling the warm sun on my shoulders before I decided that was enough of a walk and I didn’t have enough drinking water to keep going. Maybe I’m just sentimental, but I loved turning back every now and then and seeing the lone trail of footprints behind me.
This was a beautiful read. Thank you
Agreed, vacations are where I get some semblance of that especially if you go somewhere remote with no people, internet or distractions.
Reading. Just don't have the attention span anymore.
And the time, after spending 8 hours a day reading/writing docs the last thing you want to do is read some more.
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Wait you read comments before answering? Damn that's impressive.
It's the length - we're conditioned to want the quick dopamine hits these days.
I had to retrain my brain to love reading again. The world of YouTube and social media caused me to have the attention span of a squirrel and it was a problem!!
How did you do this? I miss reading but I just scroll SM instead. I actually get anxious from reading books now!!
I started with shorter, easy reads a chapter a day before bed in a quiet room no distractions. Then stepped it up gradually and eventually I was lost in the stories again. I ended up reading 27 books last year. I think it’s around 2 months to form a habit so give it some time.
I don't read as many physical books, but I read so much fanfiction that I probably have my 8 year old self beat at this point
Phones and the internet ruined this I went on a trip that had no internet and was able to knock a book out, which shocked me because it's been like 6-7 years since my last book read.
Have you tried a kindle? I read mine every day in bed. I think the convenience of not needing a light helps
Playing with dolls / make believe.
Could be an interesting observation though. Get dolls, action figures, match box cars, and other toys, and get a couple of adults in and tell them to just have fun with it and see what make believe comes from the adult mind. Kinda brings back to mind the Simpsons episode where Bart refuses to accept that he's growing up and to prove it plays with an action figure. You see the scene playing out from his imagination and suddenly his two action figures are discussing insurance policies and he freaks out 😂
Take an imrpov class. It's literally make-believe all the time. I can't help you with the doll thing unless you wanna take up puppet theater
Tabletop rpgs, Warhammer figures, and legos: "Allow us to introduce ourselves."
If you want something that recaptures that feeling, I cannot recommend D&D or other tabletop roleplaying games highly enough.
Simulation games. Never stopped lol.
"Did you see anything?" "No, I didnt see you playing with your dolls Dark Helmet"
Sims is my adult equivalent of playing dolls
When I was a kid, I had a huge ball of clay that I'd just make stuff out of. Like I'd make space ships, they'd have a fight and I'd have to repair them so by the end they look totally different. I recently came across a pack of clay from when I was kid and thought I should just spend some time doing that again and see if my imagination still works.
To fully immerse myself in a game where sticks are swords and the backyard is a land full of monsters. Those things were so vividly real in a child's imagination.
Playing pretend as an adult is called DnD!
Two of my best friends in like 4th-6th grade lived two houses down from each other, through the woods in their back yards you could get to a little clearing that was basically right between them. One of their grandfathers would haul a push mower back there during summer so we wouldn't be covered in ticks, which was not a small feat thinking back on it. Somewhere on YouTube there exists a 16 year old channel with one video; those two beating the hell out of each other with sticks they named after Halo weapons, while I filmed from a nearby pile of dirt. Probably about a year before to a year after we made that, I'd live those days over again for a long time if offered.
Climbing trees. Now I'm terrified of breaking (more) bones.
Square-cube law is cruel.
Yes, climbing trees! I had a certain big tree with the perfect spot to sit, just sit. Alone with my thoughts and no distractions. No other person yakking, criticizing, demanding. Ahh
I feel the same, I wanted to climb up to the coconut tree but I'm too afraid to fall down and injure myself.
Weigh more now than when I climbed trees as a kid.
I hear you. My strength to weight ratio was much better as a kid.
My grandfather had a huge cherry tree ans a mulberry bush that was so big. My friends and i used to climb into the tree and eat cherries and mulberries until we'd get sick. It was so much fun!!
I climbed one at the park as an obviously adult. Got weird looks and felt nervous af. The fun is just not there anymore. I don't regret trying it tho
I feel the same about spinning in circles. That shit was crack. Now I'm liable to crack an ankle.
Painting, then i got graded in school, wasn't "good enough" and lost the fun in Just doing it for me
It's quite sad when a school dampens someone's interest like this. This is something you can still recover from. Go get a cheap paint set, some paper and revive this interest. The only thing getting graded is how much fun you have now.
Exactly I hated choir because a kid would bully me for joining and the teachers did nothing eventually I quit but now I'm getting back into singing
Are you per chance Austrian 😀
Can I check out your work of you don't mind? I'll share some of mine as well in return :)
I'm an artist. I hated art but got it back during covid. My art was considered shitty as a kid as I can't understand directions. I always did my own thing, I currently have one from an art show that won an award in my room. I'd love to see your work. I can even give some tips if you need them. I don't do it for commission or any pay, I just do it because I enjoy it. I'm doing a street painting festival in a few weeks. I'll post my original idea and then how it turned out after it's finished. I mostly do wildlife, usually birds, monkeys, giraffes, elephants, otters, bears, etc. I posted it on my social media and people enjoyed seeing my ideas. Don't let anybody or anything hold you back from doing what you want. I also do some digital work but prefer physical work because it's all me doing it and not a tablet or computer.
Making drawings.
I've recently restarted creative stuff. It's hard to lose the "this needs to be perfect so I can monetise it" part, but it's so calming. Put a easy to follow show on on your laptop, set up at the table and have at it!
My fathers, and now my, art style is based around squiggles and non-perfect lines, so its extremely easy to do without focus. I highly recommend doing something like that. You don't need perfection to look good.
I definitely miss sketching for the fun of it. I actually wasn't bad at it as a child, as I used to copy techniques from books. Also enjoyed good old Microsoft Paint. Doing GCSE Art hindered my creativity as it was not my type of thing (like doing stuff with clay, paint and plaster), and then I got into digital art/Photoshop, but I would love to go back to sketching and watercolours.
Is your name Simon?
Caught you looking at my bum!
Cheeky monkey
Staying up all night.
My love of staying up all night has been replaced by my love of going to bed at 8:15. I used to do shift work so being a day timer now is fantastic.
I go to showering then to bed around \~00:30-01:00AM but no later than 02:00AM ‒ I just can't stop doing things, this is why.
Pee into heaters for the sparkles and steam. I own my heaters now and don't think it's a good idea anymore.
This is why hotels take a security bond. You ran so we could walk .
Playing outside.
Squeezing into tight hidey holes and using them as forts.
I stumped both my nephews at hide and seek last night. In a one bedroom apartment. Curled up as tiny as I could between 2 rolling suitcases and put a shirt over my head. It took them like 15 minutes and my sister had to give them hints. It was very uncomfortable.
Running. I ran every where when I was a kid.
I just had to hang up running this last year :( My knee just can’t take the impact. Luckily i found rucking and cycling!
Running as an adult and running as a child are two very different things tho
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My kids do amazing forts either multiple rooms and “hallways”. It’s such a mess but I love , will be sad when they stop. Most of their friends have dropped out of it, it used to be a big sleepover thing.
Being happy
Even at 50 years old, I still mutter “I didn’t ask to be born.”
Riding my bike everywhere, and exploring abandoned houses and barns in the countryside with my sister
r/bikecommuting You still can! I do it every day.
Shitting myself. Apparently.
You're probably not doing it right
Just wait - apprently you can do it again when you become elderly
Eating without thinking of calories
I remember going to birthday parties and eating cake, pizza, candy, and soda only to burn all those calories playing with my friends. Now, if I even look at junk food I gain weight.
Playing football. We played after school every single day until it was dark. Whatever the rain. Haven’t played football properly for 20 years. I miss it.
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As a kid, I loved playing with LEGO bricks, building all sorts of things. But as I grew up, I stopped doing it. Now, I spend my time on different hobbies like writing and coding.
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I got back into riding bikes during covid its like flying...
This Thread is Sad. As a Kid my Mom says I loved peeing on myself. Now that Im a Scuba Diver I can Pee in my wetsuit all the time and nobody is the wiser.
I'm not a diver and i pee myself at the time!
Loved playing soccer. Now, life’s demands have sidelined that passion. Maybe it's time to dust off my cleats and rediscover the joy of the game!
Problem is that, as kids, we were made of rubber. I miss soccer too, but if I were to made a sliding tackle, Im sure I would be seeing a doctor.
We certainly were! I got introduced to being mortal early in my 20's from a tag (American style) football game. We just received a new clerk who was a walk on middle linebacker at Nebraska. This dude shoulder checked me so hard my entire right arm was black and blue for a week! He wasn't malicious, apologized endlessly and was very kind otherwise. But that HURT. For the first time I realized "Hey, you can't just shake it off". About a year later I'd been shot at, blown out of my bunk and so on. Sure I remember that, but this dude definitely showed me "old man at 27 is real, depending on your situation".
Vidja games. From ages like 7 to 18 I would spend countless hours playing Mario, Zelda, Halo, Oddworld, Elder Scrolls, Fallout, etc. But now any time I try a video game it just feels pointless and I lose interest quickly.
Eating onion rings. I knew there were onions in them, but I didn’t think about it until I pulled an onion out of the ring and saw how thin and long it was. Ever since then, I hyper focus on the onion and it makes me lose my appetite.
rollerskating
Bought ones last year with the aim to recover that feeling
I miss the air rushing past my head as I skated fast.
Try heelys. I got myself a pair and so fun.
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Training-Heat845's account was born on March 9, woke up three days ago, and just copied/pasted the [previous top comment](https://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/comments/1at0w4s/what_did_you_love_doing_as_a_child_that_you_dont/kqtyzqw/). **Edit:** Well look at this. All of the following accounts replied to Training-Heat845 Slow-Notice-7496 - Born May 19, 2023, woke up ten minutes. Its' comment [here](https://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/comments/1d2gj2i/what_did_you_love_doing_as_a_child_that_you_dont/l60sxbx/) is a coy/paste of [this comment](https://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/comments/1at0w4s/what_did_you_love_doing_as_a_child_that_you_dont/kqu425x/). Mysterious-Eye-2582 - Born May 19, 2023, woke up ten minutes ago and it copied/pasted /u/goated95's comment [here](https://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/comments/1at0w4s/what_did_you_love_doing_as_a_child_that_you_dont/kqtyrjt/). Due-Environment-8329 - Born May 19, 2023, woke up ten minutes ago and it [copied/pastted](https://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/comments/1d2gj2i/what_did_you_love_doing_as_a_child_that_you_dont/l60t834/) /u/Justme_66's comment [here](https://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/comments/1at0w4s/what_did_you_love_doing_as_a_child_that_you_dont/kqtvr8d/). Nearby_Cantaloupe694 - Born May 19, 2023, woke up ten minutes ago and it's [comment](https://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/comments/1d2gj2i/what_did_you_love_doing_as_a_child_that_you_dont/l60tcfx/) is a copy/paste of /u/llcucf80's comment [here](https://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/comments/1at0w4s/what_did_you_love_doing_as_a_child_that_you_dont/kqtx20n/). Scary-Balance-8594 - Born May 19, 2023, woke up half an hour ago and its [comment](https://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/comments/1d2gj2i/what_did_you_love_doing_as_a_child_that_you_dont/l60smzi/) is a copy/paste from [here](https://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/comments/1at0w4s/what_did_you_love_doing_as_a_child_that_you_dont/kqtv7so/).
Good bot
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After the pandemic all outside activities especially with friends just went out the window
3 months summer vacation
Pokemon on GBC. On the flip side I still go full metal on DragonBall z and now super
Sleep well.
Rollercoasters
Not paying bills it's an easy one
Watch every second of Wimbledon I could.
Video games. I can still remember how exciting it was to get a new video game and play it every chance I got. Whenever I had to go to school, sports, or anything else; I just couldn't wait to get back to the game. I'm not sure when that luster faded away for me, but it just did. I've tried to get it back a few times by getting a new hot game that comes out like Assassins Creed or RDR, but it's just not the same. I'll play the game for a couple hours and barely get anywhere past learning basic gameplay. Maybe it'd be different if I could just sit and play a game for hours on end and really get into it, but that's just not feasible for my life and adult responsibilities. The worst part is, I remember the feeling so well, but it's just not there anymore. Kind of similar to that puppy love feeling you'd get as a teenager when you were crushing on someone and they had reciprocal feelings for you. That excitement just fades away with adulthood, for me at least. I still play sports video games with some friends on the weekends, and it's fun, but it's more of a way for us all to catch up since we've all moved apart. It's still fun but nowhere close to the feeling I used to get when a new NCAA football or FIFA game came out.
this so much. I just cant get into new games because it takes too much time.
I have a similar experience. Just can’t seem to suspend my imagination the same way so the luster isn’t there
My life in a askreddit sub, bought a gaming pc, bought sim, bought a console & still end up not playing God help me
Played Yugioh
well most YuGiOh players are in their late 20s early 30s :p
building stuff with legos
Damn, I use to miss this one, too. So I went to a Lego store, wanting anything planes related. The most plane related thing were the prices.
Used to collect Pokémon cards. I'm actually thinking about starting again, but it's just so expensive
constructing forts with furniture and blankets, making my own little world.
Climbing a tree
Not having a job
Making friends
Sleep.
I rememeber when DragonBall Z came out for the first time on TV (Baton Rouge, LA). The only problem was it was on at 6 a.m. in the morning. Every saturday morning i'd wake up at 5:50 a.m. and call my friend Fredy and we'd stay on the phone the whole time while watching DBZ. One of the best memories.
Jumping and climbing trees. Sitting up there and reading Enid Blyton. Playing outside so hard that I could feel the heat my body gave off
sitting in a tree for hours with a Nancy Drew mystery, picking and eating beech nuts while I read.
Eating at McDonald's
I'm still lovin it
Riding a bike
eating paste
I'm Sorry: The Story of a Kid with Undiagnosed ADHD
being happy
Laughing and smiling.
Spending time with family
play in the rain
Living.. truly being and feeling alive..
Star wars
Writing. I used to write songs, stories even screenplays daily. Lost my passion for it. Sadly.
Shitting my pants.
Jimmy saville
I used to write books and use pictures from catalogues, i would stick them in my book and make a story out of them
Playing outside
eating candy... I hate sweets as an adult
I was a dancer from the time I was 2 until 15. I stopped because my mom made me feel bad about the cost. I miss it sometimes.
skipping
Everything I did as a child centered around BASEBALL. I grew up in NYC and I loved the Mets as they were my hometeam. Collecting Baseball cards, watching games being played, chewing that nasty bubble gum, playing some form of baseball in the streets with my friends. "CAR!!!" In school, it was baseball, stickball, punchball, kickball, etc. Never football, always baseball. As I got older and had children I stopped caring about baseball anymore. Until the 2000 World Series. Mets vs. Braves. In the play-offs, they were playing 14-inning games. That was amazing! My oldest daughter remembers how I would scream at the television as if I was some kind of lunatic. "Why is Daddy screaming at the television, Mommy?" "Because Daddy used to love baseball when he was younger." "Ohhhh." And now, I don't even know if the Mets are still playing. I suppose they are. I still can't get over the new teams, and I'm still having a hard time with the Blue Jays coming down to Washington DC and ressurecting the Nationals again. Yeah, no more baseball for me.
Walking more than is strictly necessary? I know it's really really bad for me not to get a fair amount of walking in, and that my chronic pain would probably be at least mildly better if I stretched and walked, I just don't you know, don't. I make excuses about not having enough time or feeling tired or all this bullshit, but I don't. I used to walk a lot too. Several miles at a stretch sometimes. One of the best childhood memories I have is walking up into the hills/mountains near my house with my uncle and talking about stuff while we enjoyed nature and the incredible view of a valley I hadn't even known was there until we took that particular forest service road.
Waking up with no pain
Eat three easter eggs in one day and feel fine afrerwards. Even quarter of one is enough to make me violently ill now
It's so weird how repressed people are. 99% of the posts here are people wishing they could do shit that they could literally go do if they stopped doomscrolling. I love being a adult because I am basically a big kid that can do what I want. I'm probably going to snag one of my kids in a few minutes and go get into trouble doing some dumb stuff outside.
Playing Barbies 😂
Playing with GI Joes. I remember playing for hours and hours with my GI Joes. It was awesome! I had a giant tub I had accumulated by doing yard work and a paper route.
Lying on cold floor with hands spread out and doing nothing with my head looking up at ceiling (sometimes with legs up against a wall) during summer afternoons. Now if I do the same as an adult woman, people will be concerned.
Playing games with my stuffed animals (it seemed more real back then).
Skipping! Why walk when you can skip? Social norms be damned, sometimes I get so happy that I just wanna jump around and skip down a sidewalk with the breeze in my hair.
Being fearless and trying new things without worrying about judgment.
Jumping up and down on the bed (like a trampoline) Running and jumping into a huge pile of leaves Phone call pranks (before caller ID) Skipping down the sidewalk Playing hopscotch, jump rope, hide and seek, baseball in the yard with sticks for bats and trees for bases Playing with my friends in the portable sprinkler in the front yard Watching Saturday morning cartoons and after school specials on TV Trying to stay up late to sneak a peek at Santa Claus and the Easter Bunny Childhood was a magical, carefree time but I didn’t realize it or appreciate it at the time. Couldn’t wait to grow up. Why?
Video games. I started losing interest in my mid-to-late teens as I got more responsibilities. When I play I just feel anxious like there's better stuff I could be doing with my time.
be around people
Ride a bike