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I played outside every day. we had dial up internet so that wasn't much of an influence early on - my first email was an earthlink email and my first real internet exposure was AIM. What I really spent my days doing - I played tony hawk and tried to skateboard irl but sucked :), I bought pokemon card packs from "Golden Comics" and traded cards with neighbors, listened to CDs on a walkman on my front porch, stayed up late reading Harry Potter, and just hung out with friends all the time. Played pickup basketball games in our apt complex's basketball court and we all told stories of the mean old lady with a fenced in yard behind the court. Dont lose a ball over her fence or she'll shoot you if her dog doesnt get you first.
I didnt have a cell phone til sophmore year of highschool - and it was some old LG flip phone back when everyone cool had a razer. Me and my siblings would make home video / comedy movies all the time only for them to all get lost on some old bricked windows xp family computer 🥹
in other words, goated tbh
@alex
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🚸I had a strict self-imposed morning routine starting in elementary school where I would set an alarm to wake up at 5:00 am, get up and go to the backyard where I would do circuits alternating between running laps, jumping rope, jumping jacks, push-ups, and crunches. Then I would sit and watch Pappyland, Golden Girls, and knitting shows until my dad made me breakfast and I would try to get to school very early just so that I could be there before other people were.
I wanted to be a standup comedian when I was four, then a news broadcaster, then an author, to name a few. I wrote a novella in fifth grade and shared it with everyone I could. I loved agility training my dog Holly. I was a voracious reader and checked out every book out in my school library to the point my school librarian started bringing me her own books from home that she thought I would be interested in.
I had approximately one million Barbie dolls and their associated accessories and I liked to make outfits for them and have them act out news broadcasts and murder mysteries. I would take roly polies from the dirt or crickets from the pet store and build habitats for them. I liked gardening with my dad, pulling weeds, propagating cuttings, and planting seeds. I loved going to the zoo and watching movies on TCM with my mom!
My dad is an artist and taught me the fundamentals of art and to use all kinds of different mediums, but my favorite was oil pastel. I enjoyed doing still lives the most. I liked to rearrange and decorate my bedroom—once I made a closet breakfast nook that I was really excited about; I called it Dorothea’s Cafe after my late grandmother and decorated it with her embroideries. I loved Nancy Drew games and other computer games. At night I would take bubble baths in the dark and play whale sounds in my Barbie car that had a built in CD player.
As I got older, I was in youth symphony orchestra (I played viola which is so me), choir, school musicals (wanted to be a Broadway star until I realized I couldn’t dance but also I kept getting cast as a boy), math club, and speech competitions (poetry readings and dramatic readings were my favorite). I liked to write original fiction and comics for my weird goth/emo/scene anime nerd friends to read. I did get into anime and manga at this time and I loved reading nonfiction to learn about as many things as I could.
In high school I gradually retreated into my shell after a series of traumatic experiences, one of which I’m writing about now, until basically I stopped doing all extracurriculars except for Japanese Club (lol). I just really loved my Japanese language teacher and wanted to spend more time with her :-) by that time I would just read classic tones and furiously scribble poetry and drawings by myself. I also liked to collage and do photography and I unfortunately became a Tumblr user. That’s about it…
I wanted to be a standup comedian when I was four, then a news broadcaster, then an author, to name a few. I wrote a novella in fifth grade and shared it with everyone I could. I loved agility training my dog Holly. I was a voracious reader and checked out every book out in my school library to the point my school librarian started bringing me her own books from home that she thought I would be interested in.
I had approximately one million Barbie dolls and their associated accessories and I liked to make outfits for them and have them act out news broadcasts and murder mysteries. I would take roly polies from the dirt or crickets from the pet store and build habitats for them. I liked gardening with my dad, pulling weeds, propagating cuttings, and planting seeds. I loved going to the zoo and watching movies on TCM with my mom!
My dad is an artist and taught me the fundamentals of art and to use all kinds of different mediums, but my favorite was oil pastel. I enjoyed doing still lives the most. I liked to rearrange and decorate my bedroom—once I made a closet breakfast nook that I was really excited about; I called it Dorothea’s Cafe after my late grandmother and decorated it with her embroideries. I loved Nancy Drew games and other computer games. At night I would take bubble baths in the dark and play whale sounds in my Barbie car that had a built in CD player.
As I got older, I was in youth symphony orchestra (I played viola which is so me), choir, school musicals (wanted to be a Broadway star until I realized I couldn’t dance but also I kept getting cast as a boy), math club, and speech competitions (poetry readings and dramatic readings were my favorite). I liked to write original fiction and comics for my weird goth/emo/scene anime nerd friends to read. I did get into anime and manga at this time and I loved reading nonfiction to learn about as many things as I could.
In high school I gradually retreated into my shell after a series of traumatic experiences, one of which I’m writing about now, until basically I stopped doing all extracurriculars except for Japanese Club (lol). I just really loved my Japanese language teacher and wanted to spend more time with her :-) by that time I would just read classic tones and furiously scribble poetry and drawings by myself. I also liked to collage and do photography and I unfortunately became a Tumblr user. That’s about it…
Oct 18, 2024
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But I am kind of a goober with the most boring job on the planet just objectively speaking (luckily it gives me freedom to do other fun things in my spare time like writing and making stuff like a podcast and now YouTube gameplay videos).
You can see a recommended post below this one entitled Well to read about my prior career aspirations. Teen me would probably be disappointed but it’s okay.
I finally own a dog like I wanted. I have clear skin, boobs, and the ability to talk to people now which I never thought would happen. i live somewhere green and rainy instead of the sunny desert!
I did also get to fulfill my attention-seeking childhood dream of being on TV because I’m a hair model for a local salon owner and we did a spot on the morning news (lol). I have very nice hair in general all the time for this same reason which was something I always dreamed of as a reckless serial DIY hair cutter/colorer.
Editing to add that I also wanted to die tragically young of tuberculosis and fall in love in the sanatorium. or to be like Emily Dickinson and live by myself next to a cemetery writing to myself but feared having my imaginary future writing shared posthumously without my consent like Kafka. But look at me now I can’t stop posting so I think I failed at the whole mysterious hermit thing (though I am relatively solitary)
You can see a recommended post below this one entitled Well to read about my prior career aspirations. Teen me would probably be disappointed but it’s okay.
I finally own a dog like I wanted. I have clear skin, boobs, and the ability to talk to people now which I never thought would happen. i live somewhere green and rainy instead of the sunny desert!
I did also get to fulfill my attention-seeking childhood dream of being on TV because I’m a hair model for a local salon owner and we did a spot on the morning news (lol). I have very nice hair in general all the time for this same reason which was something I always dreamed of as a reckless serial DIY hair cutter/colorer.
Editing to add that I also wanted to die tragically young of tuberculosis and fall in love in the sanatorium. or to be like Emily Dickinson and live by myself next to a cemetery writing to myself but feared having my imaginary future writing shared posthumously without my consent like Kafka. But look at me now I can’t stop posting so I think I failed at the whole mysterious hermit thing (though I am relatively solitary)
Oct 18, 2024
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🌹Acting nonchalant and aloof to try to seem cool is a tradition among teenagers dating back to ancient times! There are bible verses where a mother wonders why her sons can’t be more like that David boy who slew a giant. (no there aren’t)
But I agree with you that it’s worrisome these days when there aren‘t many paths to economic security that don’t require putting effort into education.
Something I realized decades after high school was the small group of kids playing Dungeons and Dragons at school were really onto something! They were a close group who did something creative together even though the rest of the school looked down on them.
But I agree with you that it’s worrisome these days when there aren‘t many paths to economic security that don’t require putting effort into education.
Something I realized decades after high school was the small group of kids playing Dungeons and Dragons at school were really onto something! They were a close group who did something creative together even though the rest of the school looked down on them.
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🔁In college I went to the same Mexican place every day for a burrito, got the same coffee at the same Dunkin’ Donuts every morning
Years later im in a new area following the same philosophy, I eat a chicken bruschetta wrap at the same place every time I go out for lunch and still get the same coffee at the same local Dunkin’ Donuts every morning.
I frequent the same full service gas station, go to the same mechanic, Kevin, buy groceries from the same local mart, get my hair cut by the same barber, buy any and all hardware misc from the same little hardware store, Jeds.
When your order gets prepared the second you walk in, and you have a relationship with your daily’s, your life is in a better place.
Years later im in a new area following the same philosophy, I eat a chicken bruschetta wrap at the same place every time I go out for lunch and still get the same coffee at the same local Dunkin’ Donuts every morning.
I frequent the same full service gas station, go to the same mechanic, Kevin, buy groceries from the same local mart, get my hair cut by the same barber, buy any and all hardware misc from the same little hardware store, Jeds.
When your order gets prepared the second you walk in, and you have a relationship with your daily’s, your life is in a better place.
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™️Had a septic company out today with a roadrunner from looney tunes and Mr clean in the logo
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And I mean completely out of cell service with the only option for connection being a 20+ minute drive to town. Just got back from this and feeling REFRESHED.