what's so great about being an adult, anyway?

84 responses total.

being able to drive.
choosing my own bedtime.
having my own phone.
not having a curfew.
being able to go to the movies without a parent/guardian.
cooking.

heh

ain't nothing i can thienk of right now good about being an adult

'Cause I couldn't be a Toys R Us Kid!

If I were a kid again, the age difference between me and my fiancee would just
be too much..... I'll stick where I am agewise thanks.. ;)

The stuff Carson mentioned is definitely good stuff.  Also, I had very
few friends when I was a kid.  Other kids picked on me a lot.  Being an
adult is MUCH better!  I wouldn't want to go back.

   I'm surprised no one has mentioned sex.  Probably the greatest reason
to not want to be a kid anymore is that as you get older, you have a better
sense of the world.  No child can appreciate the beauty of the universe
as adults can.  That goes for most other enjoyable pursuits too.

Being an Adult is both cool and uncool. I don't like the responsibilties,
but I like the freedom. I guess you have to take the good with the bad.
But I realize now that...BILLS SUCK!!!

Freedom?  Hmmm...I wonder why I feel like a slave for the IRS, then...

Freedom IS responsibility, like it or not. Without responsibility, there
can only be the illusion of freedom.  Just like the U.S. today: decreasing
personal responsibility, decreasing freedom, yet we maintain the illusion...

re #7- No adult can appreciate the beauty of the universe as
children can.

Let's see, why don't I want to be a kid?  As an adult I can...
    Commute to/from work
     Work
     Do the shopping
    Pay the bills
    Make dinner
    Change diapers
    Make tomorrow's lunches

OTOH, as a kid, I couldn't collaps into bed with my wonderful, loving
   hubby, kiss my kids, and make my own choices on most everything.


I'd never trade!

control and choice - of my life style, my attitudes, my partners, etc.
sex!
ever-improving understanding of things and opportunities to grow & enjoy
    life.  being an adult is great, as long as I take responsibility
    and control, empowering myself instead of being a "victim"

re#11: AND no childcan appreciate the beauty of the universe as adults can.

 But Steve, as an adult, sex controls your life!  As a child, it is just
something you occasionally talk about.


P.S.  See ya at the SAA meeting tonight.

As an adult I can own private time and space.

re #16:  Mary, I haven't had private time or space since my 1st kid was
born and even the bathroom became a high traffic area!
(Actually, I am blessed with a private office at work.  Otherwise, I'd
have to count the commute as "my private time!!")

Agora 42 is linked to InBetween 16.

Contrary to what steve said, I think that kids have a much better understand-
ing of things.
They don't over analyze
They don't prejudge
They don't bother it if it doesn't bother them
They are curious
They give a damn

re:19 possible should be in the next item...
Kids say the darnd'est things...

   Kids have a more pure sense of wonder about things, yes, but I still
maintain that no child (or very rarey) can appreciate things the way an
adult can.  They simply don't have the experience with which to gauge
things.

Achild's wonder is at the newness and surface beauty, an adult's wonder is
at the inner beauty, the complexity, and the surface beauty.

its interesting that some of you use the words freedom,choice, control.
would most of us choose to work if we really had a choice? i doubt it.
Jim Morrison said it well..."i give away my hours for a hand full of 
dimes" i dont think there is much about conventional adulthood which is 
worth it. atleast when you are  a child conforming to the norm isnt
expected as much.

I have made the choice to work even when I didn't have to.
And the day I retire will be bitter-sweet indeed.  It is in
being productive and involved with life that I *gain* control
and independence.

I had a tough time as a child, and I really didn't like myself that much.
Now that I'm older, I have a say in the kind of person I am, and a much
better idea of the kind of person I want to be.  :)

I like the freedom of choice I have as an adult, and the responsibility of
living with the decisions I make as a built-in system of checks and
balances.  I felt capable of doing this as a child, but was seldom allowed
to try it out.  I also like the independence that comes with it.

Even fewer people would take me seriously.

i wish that there were some way to combine the two.

i miss the sweetness and inocence of childhood.

i'm glad that i'm through with the pain of trying to like myself.  :)

So... trying to get through the pain of hating yourself then?
hmm... that's a novel idea.
I think grwing up is simply figuring ways to maintain as much
innocence as one can, along with dealing with whatever innocence is
lost.

Megan, just be a kid now. It's not that hard.

<peacefrg skips and jumps down the sidewalk chewin' gum and whistlin' dixie>

There was nothing particularly sweet or innocent about my childhood.
It was a horrid time of being abused, frightened anfd pushed around.  
I contended with people telling me awful lies about myself and the world.
I struggled in vain to be a "good enough" little girl so people would
be nice to me.

As an adult I have any warm friends, a beautiful family, a fun and
rewarding job, a lovely home with a warm and loving life partne.  I
have a pretty good grasp on who I am and what the world is about.

Nope, I wouldn't be a kid again for anything.  Being an adult is tough.
Being a kid is hell.

I love to still be a kid...But I agree with mta. I wouldn't want to
live my childhood again. It sounds like we grew up in the same
kind of circumstances.

Being a kid WAS hell... but
what about when it just stays with you...what about
when being an adult is no better?

Then your not trying hard enough.

I was lied to a lot as a kid. I still am a id, and I don't enjoy, it, but I
have afeeling that when I grow up I'll like it even less. In the words of Tom
Waits:

Soome folks turn into things
that they'd never want
the only thing to live for is today
I don't wanna have to shout it out
I don't wanna have my hair fall out
I don't wanna be filled with doubt
I don't wanna be a good boy scout
I don't wanna have to learn to count
I don't wanna have the biggest amount
Well I see my parents fight
They go out and get drunk all night
I'd rather stay here in my room
nothin out there but sad and gloom
I don't wanna live ina big old tomb
I DON'T WANNA GROW UP!

I'm not trying hard enough?
Since WHEN was it my fault?

 Since the beginning of time.

figures

i had no self-image problems until i moved to ann arbor, and was basically
told that i couldn't fit in because i was ugly...that'll give you problems
really qucik!  i fianally got over them in jr. high, when it suddenly 
occured to me that i didn't give a flying fuck what the other people thought..
it's my life...i'm going to live it the way i want to, not the way others
want me to.  now, i don't even care how i look...execpt in photos...sorry
but i don't do photos...:)

<singing> I don't wanta grow up, I'm a toys r us kid

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