The biological clock is not slowing down for anyone, unless you’re Gwen Stefani or Angelina Jolie, of course. However, this article is not an instructional guide helping you to capture a drip and a drop from the fountain of youth; let’s simply sit back and reflect on the things we didn’t appreciate as youths.
1. Sleeping In
It seems like we had so much more freedom to do things on the weekend when we were younger. We could go skateboarding, play in the park, go to the movies, watch morning cartoons and binge eat everything in sight. Sleeping past 9 a.m. on the weekend made you an L7 weenie. Now, any chance to sleep past 7 a.m. feels like a gift from Queen Beyoncé herself.
2. Being driven around
The minute you got your license, you were unstoppable; rides were on you, and you were handing your iPod touch to your friend to “DJ” the excursion. Anywhere anyone needed to go, you appeared to offer your vehicle as the travel vessel. Now when someone offers to drive you somewhere, you’re looking around for hidden cameras and wondering when Ashton’s going to jump out and scream, “Punk’d!”
3. Going to the movies
In middle school, going to the movies was your first chance to go on a first date. “Date” being thrown around rather loosely because it was more of a 12 person event, where you switched with Jimmy to sit next to Cindy, who would only move over if Mike would share his popcorn, but that only came at the cost of letting Mike sit next to Brittany H., not Brittany A. Nowadays, going to the movies is just as much of a chore with way less of a reward: a $40 bill that was roughly your entire paycheck for the day.
4. A Consistent School Schedule
I’m not saying having class cancelled is a bad thing, but when you’ve made your way through the morning commute, driven over cement planters in the parking lot just to shimmy out of the passenger seat of your car which is now parked between an SUV and a my-sports-car-deserves-two-parking-spots, just to sprint to class challenging Usain Bolt’s Olympic record, only to find a “CLASS IS CANCELLED” sign, you’re going to miss the monotony of a M-F, 8-3 high school schedule.
5. Naps
I personally would not be caught dead taking a nap when I was younger. That behavior was straight up for babies, and I scoffed at anyone who had the audacity to fall asleep in class. But now as the post midterm exhaustion starts to set in, I catch myself doing the head-bob and waking up like I was sliding off the Titanic.
6. Metabolism
When was the last time you ate a box of cookies and didn’t feel immediate regret or have to cancel plans with someone so you could sprint on a treadmill at the BRIC for 3 hours straight? Probably when you were in elementary school and the concept of a metabolism didn’t exist. Can you imagine if we were able to eat anything we wanted like we did when we were younger without self loathing?
7. Being Care-Free
Sure, waking up to three new breakouts on your face right before the middle school dance was probably up there with Britney and Justin (OG) breaking up. But that’s nothing compared to the inevitable debt after graduating, applying for 346 entry level jobs, having to figure out what a 401k plan is, and having to plan your grocery list for the month just so you can guarantee your ONE trip to Starbucks. Let’s face it, the stress of the past would be a welcomed change to the real life problems we face now.
What are some of the things that you miss or took for granted in the past? Let us know using the hashtag #CampusCropChat on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
