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Despite the fact that our parents love to talk about just how hard they used to have it when we stop and think, it becomes depressingly clear that a lot of commonplace things have fallen into the luxury category without almost anyone noticing. 

So one internet user wanted to hear others' thoughts, so people from all over the net shared the items and experiences that used to be downright regular and are now seen as extravagant. We also got in touch with zombiem00se, who made the original post. So read through and prepare a tissue after you weep for better times, and be sure to upvote your favorites. And don’t forget to comment your own thoughts and examples below.

#1

Someone Asked, “What Was Normal 20-30 Years Ago, But Is Considered A Luxury Now?” And Here Are 50 Of The Best Answers Being left the f**k alone.

Buying something and just like, owning it.

Playing a video game without an internet connection.

*Not* having to provide your email address for every single f*****g thing you do.

El_Mariachi_Vive , JESHOOTS.COM Report

#2

Someone Asked, “What Was Normal 20-30 Years Ago, But Is Considered A Luxury Now?” And Here Are 50 Of The Best Answers Good quality fabric in clothing. I have clothes from the 90s (and 80s from my mother) that still hold up today. These days, I'm lucky if my shirt isn't saggy and misshapen within a year.

TheMadLaboratorian , Cristine Enero Report

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Caro Caro
Community Member
10 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Unfortunately most want very cheap clothes and will not pay lots of money for a T-shirt for example. I also think the fashion industry has moved their business to countries where the production costs are way lower - so they can profit more. All we have to do as a consumer is NOT buy too much crappy quality and not be a slave to fashion. It's a simple choice. Even on a small budget you can have a few good pieces of clothing and mix and match.

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#3

Calling a company and getting a *person* on the other end of the phone.

*edit: Thanks for the awards kind people! I really didn't expect this to blow up like this.*

AnnieAcely199 Report

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alaina66
Community Member
10 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Also getting a person who speaks clear enough English or your designated language. India service reps take the cake! Sorry!

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Bored Panda got in touch with zombiem00se and they were kind enough to answer some of our questions. We wanted to know what prompted them to make the thread in the first place. "What inspired the question was at the gas pump, and I had gotten a small bonus from work of about $50 so I knew I'd be able to just let the pump go without having to watch the meter. Then it struck me that people used to be able to do that all the time, just fill their gas tank without worry, and nowadays the normal thing to do is watch it like a hawk so you could also afford groceries for the week and wondered what else could this same mentality be applied to."

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We also wanted to hear their thoughts on what was ultimately causing so many things to become unaffordable. "I think the cause is due to the same thing that's been said many times over now, the cost of living has not kept up with the rate of inflation. The rich get richer by keeping the poor poor. We were told to pull ourselves up by the bootstraps, but those saying that were given boots made of nice Italian leather that was custom fit for them, while the rest of us were given bricks of lead...and the straps are rattlesnakes....very angry rattlesnakes. I'm a millennial, and with millennials, there's of course the same tired participation trophy joke, but the ones complaining about it are the ones who gave the trophies out in the first place and then blamed us for them, all the while they have everything handed to them."

#4

Someone Asked, “What Was Normal 20-30 Years Ago, But Is Considered A Luxury Now?” And Here Are 50 Of The Best Answers Single income families buying a home

THESSIS , Oleksandr Pidvalnyi Report

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vogonpoet
Community Member
10 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Oh. First house I ever lived in my parents bought for $38,000 (NZD), and sold in 1990 for $95,000. It is now worth $1.2 million. That's $100,000 for the house and $1.1 MILLION for the land. It's not even a large plot of land. When my parents bought it they subdivided and sold off more than half the land. That was 41 years ago. It's in a pretty cruddy area of Auckland. Kind of place where it was getting unsafe to walk around in daylight hours when I was a kid, but it's 104% worse now than when it was the 90s (we moved out in 1990).

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#5

Someone Asked, “What Was Normal 20-30 Years Ago, But Is Considered A Luxury Now?” And Here Are 50 Of The Best Answers New furniture made out of real wood

Juls7243 , Vlada Karpovich Report

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SupaCab
Community Member
10 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

This is still possible, but most people don't like the price and waiting that comes from well-crafted, hand-made furniture. Chat to your local carpenter, they're worth their weight in gold, our coffee table, book shelf, and tv stand were all made by hand over 10 years ago and with a bit of polishing once a month still look brand new.

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#6

Someone Asked, “What Was Normal 20-30 Years Ago, But Is Considered A Luxury Now?” And Here Are 50 Of The Best Answers Items not requiring a subscription each month

few29er , Ashley Byrd Report

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Shyla Bouche
Community Member
10 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I do the free streaming. I get lots of old sitcoms, lots of older movies, documentaries, news. I could get sports if I were interested. There are several cat channels for Bouche. We can listen to pretty much any music. If a specific movie is on only one paid stream, well most of them offer free trials. We're both happy with our TV options.

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In general, when people stop and ask “Why are things so damned expensive now?” Current events tend to dominate the discussion. The global supply chain was hit by a jump in fuel costs, as a result of the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine. This pushed the price of most things up because most things are not made within walking distance of your home or nearest store. And thank goodness for that, living next to a factory or manufacturing plant seems more hassle than it would be worth. 

Regardless, the effect is that the cost of transportation went up. And since everything needs transportation, everything got more costly. And just to hit us when we are down, droughts and disease hit food supplies around the world, limiting supply. Since most of us still need to eat, a reduction in supply without a change in demand tends to mean an increase in cost. Hope this revisiting of econ 101 didn’t trigger any unhappy memories. 

That being said, inflation is starting to ease off in many places, so perhaps eggs won’t be a gourmet ingredient like truffles and lobster for long. But, as this article mentions, there are still some things that refuse to get cheaper and have gotten so expensive over the years that most people have given up ever buying them. Yes, we’re talking about housing. The simple answer is that supply hardly meets demand at all, as homeowners aren’t selling and interest rates are pretty brutal for the average worker. 

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#7

Someone Asked, “What Was Normal 20-30 Years Ago, But Is Considered A Luxury Now?” And Here Are 50 Of The Best Answers getting things repaired instead of buying new.

einRoboter , Kilian Seiler Report

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Mavis
Community Member
10 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Or doing your own repairs. My dad did repairs on our appliances himself. Nowdays a lot of stuff is made in such a way that repairing it yourself is physically impossible even if you wanted to.

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#8

Someone Asked, “What Was Normal 20-30 Years Ago, But Is Considered A Luxury Now?” And Here Are 50 Of The Best Answers Not being expected to be reachable 24/7

Siukslinis_acc , Andrew Neel Report

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Tamás Racskó
Community Member
10 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

You cannot be expected to be reachable 24/7. If someone says otherwise they are not your friends or not the right fit for work.

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#9

Someone Asked, “What Was Normal 20-30 Years Ago, But Is Considered A Luxury Now?” And Here Are 50 Of The Best Answers Ads only on TV or the newspaper or radio. Now it's ads EVERY-F*****G-WHERE. YouTube: 1 minute video. Two 15 second ads. Unskippable. Streaming service you pay for: watch promos for shows we want you to watch before you watch the show you want to watch. Music service: pay premium for no ads. Random website: ads + tracking cookies FOR ads. Social media: ad every 3-4 posts + collecting data to show you MORE ads + targeted ads. Amazon: here are some sponsored products you might like.

I'm so tired of everything revolving around ads and collecting data to show you ads that are catered to you. It's like a freaking hell loop.

attempt5001 , freestocks.org Report

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Ken Beattie
Community Member
10 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Sadly that's how free services work. They need to be monetized somehow. The issue for me is when do the ads become excessive. And with ads on mobile, forcing you to click through to the purchase page by dodgy close button tricks.

aidenrobertson avatar
Aiden Robertson
Community Member
10 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

As it turns out, this can actually become affordable with a beauty called the adblocker. with it, you'll just about never see ads again!

michaellargey avatar
Michael Largey
Community Member
10 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Some sites whine if they can tell you're using it. This adds to the enjoyment.

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Shyla Bouche
Community Member
10 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I saw a post, probably here, about someone wanting a video of the Heimlich maneuver. There were 30 seconds of ads first. The person trying to watch the video sent feedback that the choking person had died. YouTube suggested that to avoid similar problems, the person might want to buy a subscription. I don't know if it were real or a joke post. I hope the latter, but you never know.

sprite420 avatar
Jeremy James
Community Member
10 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I think that was a hypothetical joke-tweet. The response from YouTube's social media team may have been real.

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LillieMean
Community Member
10 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I was deeply shocked when I was listening to a non-commercial (?!) classical music radio channel recently and to my horror I heard commercials. Something is irrevocably ruined when a flood of irritation ruined my soft and fluffy bubble and the last ad-free safe haven was taken away from me.

cboddyz avatar
Craig Boddys
Community Member
10 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Love the fact that theres an ad immediately after this post, just to prove the point.

leannehailes avatar
Leanne Hailes
Community Member
10 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I gave up watching "regular tv". A 1 hour show has 25 mins of Adds. YouTube is full of Adds too & Surveys. No such thing as a continuous music play list unless you want to listen to 500 mins of Adds between every single song. North American living at it's finest; pathetic isn't it 😕

sprite420 avatar
Jeremy James
Community Member
10 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I just miss when the ads were about cool stuff, like toys or breakfast cereals or Pepsi. Now, it's almost all about insurance companies, cellular plans, and pharmaceuticals.

linden avatar
Linden
Community Member
10 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

There are adblocker browser add-ons that get rid of most of them.

m_l_dew avatar
M. L. Dew
Community Member
10 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Wanna escape ads, buy a book (or borrow one from a library).

ingmarsweep avatar
Ingmar Sweep
Community Member
10 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I never have ads on Youtube. Using Linux, Firefox, Adguard.

sprite420 avatar
Jeremy James
Community Member
10 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

One of my favorite things about being a Linux user is the ability to download videos from sites with youtube-dl. Also, getting root access to my partner's MacBook over wifi and using text-to-speach to scare him.

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Stacy s
Community Member
10 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I don't wartch any ads on youtube, I pay for it monthly. I couldn't stand watching adds, so to me the money is well worth it.

rosie_7 avatar
Rosie
Community Member
10 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

God forbid if you actually click on an ad! Especially on YouTube. The level of hell that sends you is ridiculous. It's exactly the same response you get if you fall for an online scam. That explains things, no?

hatcherrr avatar
Raccoon Queen
Community Member
10 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Ads because that’s how people make money if you’re not paying for it. I hate it too, but keep complaining and we’ll have to pay for everything

homen303 avatar
Renee H.
Community Member
10 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Finally someone who feels my pain! So so tired of ads, especially on streaming apps that I pay for.

sueuser avatar
Sue User
Community Member
10 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

When cabel tv first came out, the pitch was " pay us to watch and no ads". Now they get money from the advertisers and from the consumers.

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oktopus
Community Member
10 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

And there's not even any easy way of telling the ad people "I am not interested in this and hate the repetitive ads and will never buy it", or "I just bought one of these and am not likely to buy another one within the next 10 years or so".

edwarddwyer avatar
Edward Dwyer
Community Member
10 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Ads are so s**t, you cannot convince me that people buy X item because they saw an ad. Doubly so for drug commercials.

coyoteosborne avatar
Coyote Osborne
Community Member
10 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

It's always been vexing when stealing something is less aggravating and complicated than being a paying customer.

ipanda0031 avatar
Sir Panda
Community Member
8 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

ONly way to put an end to that though is to stop using the products. WHo’s willing to do that? lol. Unless mainstream demands buying a service and not being serviced ads and putting their foot down to stop it. IT’s just going to keep on going so long as you want to keep using a service or product for “free” paid for by advertisers.

tim02 avatar
Tim Douglass
Community Member
9 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

The only realistic alternative is pay to view. Click on the site and enter your CC number in order to see the content. Sorry, but it's all got to be paid for somehow.

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Mer☕️🧭☕️
Community Member
10 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I remember hearing that cable tv was first invented so that subscribers wouldn't have to watch ANY ads - that's the service they paid for. I also remember laughing hysterically when mom told me that.

oberlinmom1 avatar
Stymied Egan
Community Member
10 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Ever notice a two hour movie is scheduled for three hours? There's an hour of ads. Some old programs and movies are so cut up with ads it seems like there are more ads than program.

zhhhvvmbfdcotuiqig avatar
Tim Nicebutdim
Community Member
10 months ago (edited) DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Use Firefox, install cookie/tracking/ad blockers. If the website won't work because of them they lose your business, simple.

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OtterGold Mistwalker
Community Member
10 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

My peeve isn't ads but ads that come up from the bottom blocking text, down from the top blocking text, popping up in the middle to block text, ads too big for the space allotted blocking text, or changing size at random intervals jerking text up and down the page. Stay put, da*mit, so I can ignore you!

kim_st3 avatar
Kim St
Community Member
10 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

welcome back to the 1970's. when ads where on every tv. with no way to stop them.

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Cynical, Burnt And Jaded
Community Member
10 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Even sports stadiums weren't tagged full of ads AND they didn't have some companies name on it!

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Kraneia The Dancing Dryad
Community Member
10 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

And right about now, someone will chime in "GeT YoUtUbE PrEmiUm 🤪" f-off we don't want IT!!!

fmc avatar
Niall Mac Iomera
Community Member
10 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I don't think paying for no ads on a music streaming service is unreasonable.

janjaapkamp avatar
TooTall
Community Member
10 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

BRAVE browser blocks ALL ads without loosing functionality. YouTube, for example, plays perfectly without without any ads.

7000305 avatar
Mysteria
Community Member
10 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I can get by ads on like Bored Panda and stuff because it’s only a small block of the ad and you can just scroll by

brier avatar
Brier Random
Community Member
10 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

But years ago, there only WAS tv, newspapers, and radio. So basically back then, ads were everywhere too. And on busses, subways, billboards. Ads have ALWAYS been everywhere.

cevans4980 avatar
Pickles, Pennies, & Ponies
Community Member
10 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Even when you pause something on Hulu, there is an ad. One in particular is a Charmin ad.

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Alex Bull
Community Member
10 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

To everyone, there is a way to skip youtube ads by pressing stop seeing this ad

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Martin Martinovič
Community Member
10 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

The AdBlock is mankind's greatest invention along with fire and the wheel.

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Stormifyed
Community Member
10 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Let me ad that to my list of things I can relate to here

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m.w.
Community Member
10 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Haven't seen an ad in YT video for years. Even their paid services suck, so why bother?

295304664 avatar
真壁まつり
Community Member
10 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I am now using lyrics from music apps to block bored panda’s Ad

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Griffy
Community Member
10 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I use an adblocker that blocks ads on youtube. Come to think of it, I have 3.

cheesecakedeath1 avatar
bennu
Community Member
10 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I know right, I'm atheist and every time I watch YouTube I get recommended almost nothing but Jesus ads

annadrever avatar
Anna Drever
Community Member
10 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I paid for the ad free MetService app (weather app) and now there’s an ad at the top you have to click before you get to the actual weather. 😡

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Apatheist Account2
Community Member
10 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Particularly annoying and pointless is when it's the same ad twice. I wasn't going to buy it the first time.

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PurpleUnicorn
Community Member
10 months ago (edited) DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Get an ad blocker and use the website rather than the app, works for most things but can be a bit annoying if the website isn't mobile friendly. Example: I always use BP website not the app, so no ads at all!

ohnmat1 avatar
Johnnee
Community Member
10 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I always say ads are a waste of money. Advertising "experts" say otherwise.. wonder why

rdennis avatar
R Dennis
Community Member
10 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

The whole thing about cable is that it started as "pay to have no commercials"...

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DadManBlues
Community Member
10 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I hate it but understand: as the TV and radio channels, online content providers work from the incomes after ads. But the amount of advertisements in content is disgusting. What I do not understand is that the companies who pay for advertising are not aware of how fed up consumers are with the amount of advertising and reflexively ignore it? My Fb feed now has 4 ads out of 10 posts. I've been looking at them for five minutes and I already have no idea what they were about. My situation is even worse here in Hungary, where the relatively small number of Hungarian advertisers means that 90% of the ads have nothing to do with my life.

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René Sauer
Community Member
10 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

What I hate most are the ads in mobile games that just don´t take hint if I click on the `X` once. No, they just have to have you clicking three times on different screens to finally get back to your game.

lested-barbara-a avatar
devotedtodreams
Community Member
10 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Unskippable YouTube Ads? Nah, an adblocker (perhaps also an adblocking browser) does wonders in this regard :) I only wish I could make that work on my TV as well, alas... What really pisses me off is every single website asking you about the blasted cookies and preferences and such!

richardross avatar
Richard Ross
Community Member
10 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I’ve stopped using YouTube because of the infestation of ads on it now.

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Oh Gosh
Community Member
10 months ago (edited) DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I pay extra to have as few ads as possible. Even have an ad blocker for websites like this. And I don't really go on social media. But, yes, I despise ads. When someone says "did you see that commercial?" No I did not because I avoid them in any way possible.

johnpowers_1 avatar
John Powers
Community Member
10 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I have seen YouTube forced ads that are like 2.5 hours long. What the h**l ad needs to be that long?

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Pernille.
Community Member
10 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Use a VPN and choose an EU country. I've never seen an unskippable ad that was longer than 20 sec.

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hea_c avatar
StrangeOne
Community Member
10 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I never see ads catered to me LOL. Idk what my cookies or Google thinks I do or who I am, but all I get are ones for cars, babies, skip, um.... can't really remember the others cos I don't pay attention to them. I don't have a baby, don't even have a driver's license and I never really use skip much.

lemuelh avatar
L hill
Community Member
10 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Horrible pharmaceutical ads where.people are happy and dancing while being warned of side affects. A**l bleeding Stroke.etc

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Solidhog
Community Member
10 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

People in the comments are right. Ads are what help these services function. Even here on Bored Panda. But as the saying goes "where there is a will there is a way." Firefox has an extension that blocks ads, even on YouTube. And the Brave browser has it built in already.

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Will Cable
Community Member
10 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Those who do this should be forced to watch hundreds of ads before doing anything...including being able to use the toilet

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Noyfb noyfb
Community Member
10 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Why I hate going to the movies. Preview-trailers are just loud, incoherent ads.

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When it comes to finding a place to live, it’s really the worst of both worlds. Housing is expensive, and renters are feeling a similar pain as landlords and ladies raise rent to offset the cost of living increases. Which, you guessed it, increases the cost of living for tenets. On average, renters can expect a 15% jump in rent costs, though this will vary aggressively from building to building and area to area. 

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#10

Being able to dance and have a good time and not have a chance it will end up recorded and put on social media.

allbright1111 Report

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Tams21
Community Member
10 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

This is what I miss about living in Germany. If someone posts a video or photo of you online without your consent you can press charges. As a result, it just isn't done there.

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#11

Someone Asked, “What Was Normal 20-30 Years Ago, But Is Considered A Luxury Now?” And Here Are 50 Of The Best Answers Farmer's markets. You used to be able to go down and get fruit and vegetables cheaper than the grocery store. Now it seems like they charge 3x more than stores do.

jrhawk42 , Peter Wendt Report

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Caro Caro
Community Member
10 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I would rather pay the same or a little bit more towards the farmer than to a huge company.

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#12

Someone Asked, “What Was Normal 20-30 Years Ago, But Is Considered A Luxury Now?” And Here Are 50 Of The Best Answers Owning the software you purchased.

FinnofLocke , Studio Republic Report

And of course, if you are paying more for rent (and eggs) you probably have less to save to make a down payment on a home. This has not stopped prices from continuing to rise. In 2021, the median US house was $369,800, a pretty penny. In 2022? $423,600, which is an entire 53.8 thousand more, for those curious about the math. Of course, wages have generally not risen to match inflation, so the buying power is running in the opposite direction of prices, making it harder and harder for millennials and Gen Z to ever picture owning a home. 

#13

Someone Asked, “What Was Normal 20-30 Years Ago, But Is Considered A Luxury Now?” And Here Are 50 Of The Best Answers Legroom on an airplane

anachronistika , reisetopia Report

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#14

Someone Asked, “What Was Normal 20-30 Years Ago, But Is Considered A Luxury Now?” And Here Are 50 Of The Best Answers household products that didn't break within the first few years of use. My grandma had the same fridge from 1993 for a good while before deciding to swtich to a newer, bigger one 2 years ago, yes, it broke within those 2 years; my mom's wedding cookware is still going strong 25 years later, but whenever she needs new pans they start flaking teflon into the food within a few months

parangolecomuna , Janaya Dasiuk Report

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Andy C
Community Member
10 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Yup, bought a house that was built in 95 and giant built in fridge freezer in kitchen. Refrigerant leak caused it to start to fail, cheapest replacement for same dimensions was 9k+ USD. Did some research and found that R12 refrigerant was outlawed around the same time, so guessing contractors who built house got this massive unit on the cheap. Ended up hiring a commercial firm to do a full sealed system replacement for about $2500. Best decision I could have made I think.

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#15

paying no more than 30% of your income in rent

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Laura Lett
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10 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

And the mortgage company just raised amount I have to pay. Because of an shortage of escrow from last year.

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And while we are on the topic of annoying expenses, many of the items here boil down to the incredibly annoying modern trend of “services and subscriptions.” Remember paying for things once? Unlike mortgages and inflation rates, in many ways, consumers only have themselves to blame for companies charging us monthly. Over the last ten years, subscription services have grown by roughly 300%, meaning that no matter how much we might dislike them, enough people will happily pay month to month.  

#16

Someone Asked, “What Was Normal 20-30 Years Ago, But Is Considered A Luxury Now?” And Here Are 50 Of The Best Answers Retirement plan built-in to your job.

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Bobby
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10 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I was just reading that the inventor of the 401k regrets it. He wanted it to be a supplement to a pension, not a replacement.

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#17

Someone Asked, “What Was Normal 20-30 Years Ago, But Is Considered A Luxury Now?” And Here Are 50 Of The Best Answers Being able to afford having only one person working in a relationship

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Laura Lett
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10 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Even with two people ,we are barely making it, from paycheck to paycheck.

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#18

Someone Asked, “What Was Normal 20-30 Years Ago, But Is Considered A Luxury Now?” And Here Are 50 Of The Best Answers Getting a hand written letter

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Firstname Lastname
Community Member
10 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I used to have penpals so that I'd still get handwritten mail instead of all bills/spam. They all either fizzled out or wanted to email instead of writing because they had no patience for the post.

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At the same time, people still hate it and what it stands for. Owning things, from houses to music, feels like a concept from the past. Enticed by a quick buck, or a high share price, to be accurate, many companies have dabbled with offering a subscription over a one-time fee. The result is that many actually fail and fall apart. Even the current giants, like Netflix, once a huge industry disruptor, are struggling. So maybe consider looking through your active subscriptions and cutting the ones you don’t need. 

#19

Being a stay at home mom.

I’m all for women having the option to work a career and be a mom, but I’ve met so many who hate having to drop off their babies or small children with grandma or at a daycare because it takes 2 incomes to survive because wages haven’t kept up work productivity for the last 50 years.

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Penny Fan
Community Member
10 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

It would be great if one income would suffice - it should be a choice within the family who wants to work and who wants to stay at home. I know a few men who would be the most amazing SAHD given the chance. Unfortunately 1. That's still looked down on and 2. Until the pay gap is erased most women's salaries are still not enough to pay the bills alone.

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#20

A pension you could retire on

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David Wambold
Community Member
10 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

How about having holidays off. And stores being closed on holidays. If you didn't fill up or get the ingredients for your recipe before the holiday- you were out of luck.

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#21

Word used to be just installed with your microsoft software. Now you have to pay each month/year.

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#22

Leaving your family behind to start your life at 18 or even younger.

Now, folks be livin' with their parents until they're 45, saving up for 100 sq. ft. closet that costs $2000 a month in what barely passes as not a slum.

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Frances M
Community Member
10 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Mostly USA. Rest of the world always had the kids living at home until they left with new partner… very rare (but not unheard of) to move out on your own.

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#23

Attention spans lasting longer than a lightning bolt.

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#24

Privacy

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Caroline Nagel
Community Member
10 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I can still hear Zuckerberg say that 'privacy is a thing of the past'. What was that guy thinking?

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#25

Being able to pay your bills without being charged to make a payment, you want it on paper $2, pay at post office $3, pay using debit card 70c. It's ridiculous that we have to pay to pay.

Also getting away with doing some really dumb or embarrassing s**t, no phones anywhere to capture and upload the moment you slip on dog s**t or walk into the most beautifully cleaned glass doors that are so clean you don't see them, it's just you and those who witnessed the painfully embarrassing moment, not millions of people around the world seeing it.

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Shane S
Community Member
10 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

My internet company charged me $1 for a paper bill in the mail and wanted me to “go green”. I finally cancelled with them for other reasons and now they send me ad mailers at least once every two weeks- usually once a week. Infuriating.

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#26

Clothing and shoes that last more than a year with regular wear

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The Redhead
Community Member
10 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Shoe-wise I always buy skechers. They are comfortable, I still have 2 pairs from 2016, they look beatup however they're still comfortabe. Just for the record I work in a warehouse I'm on my feet all day.

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#27

Getting prescribed opioids when you need them for pain.

'War on drugs' zealotry has created a landscape where even terminally ill patients on hospice are routinely denied the mercy of pain management because of 'addiction risk'. Acute pain patients are being told to take OTCs for severe injuries and major surgeries, and chronic pain patients are being tortured to death. Those precious few doctors with enough compassion to provide quality pain care are persecuted by drug cops at the DEA who know nothing about practicing medicine whatsoever.

It's all sickening and depressing. Every year I think it couldn't get worse, and every year I'm proven wildly wrong. And there is zero upside - the addicts who can't get scrips just switched to fentanyl and are dying in record numbers.

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David Paterson
Community Member
10 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

This needs to be higher. Opioids have been completely taken off the market here, even codeine.

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#28

Affordable Healthcare

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Lorraine Novelle
Community Member
10 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Australia, free healthcare in emergencies and other problems. Private healthcare though is needed, but costs are significantly reduced.

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#29

Someone Asked, “What Was Normal 20-30 Years Ago, But Is Considered A Luxury Now?” And Here Are 50 Of The Best Answers Family vacations.

I remember going on road trips regularly and even flying once or twice as a kid. Now that I have kids there's no way I can afford a week-long trip to the Badlands, Grand Canyon, Disney/Universal Studios etc. Best I can do is a day trip to the Dells maybe once a year.

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#30

Being able to buy a decent standard home on one modest salary.

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Beck
Community Member
10 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

When minimum wage was created, it was meant for a man to support his family in a home with 2 cars 2.5 kids and a white picket fence. It no longer does this.

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#31

Avoiding people by simply not answering the landline phone, this would make the person calling assume you are just not home. We introverts no longer have this luxury with cell phones, texting, "online" status when logged into a PC so co-workers can IM you, etc.

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Huddo's sister
Community Member
10 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I can still ignore my mobile if I'm not feeling like answering and at least now you can see who is calling before deciding whether to answer.

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#32

Concert Ticket prices

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alaina66
Community Member
10 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

They are ridiculous! I want to go to a concert for $50 a tix but with the all the effing fees, it comes to $150+

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#33

Right now, I'm struggling just to own a dog.

Decent dog food is insanely expensive right now. Dog parks are not for every dog, but they're the only space to let your dog play if you don't have a yard or can't walk due to the pavement being too hot (providing the park has shaded areas and water access, which is hit or miss). Vets keep raising their prices to keep up with inflation, which is making it so much harder to keep up with basic care. Same with licensing. Quality dog toys are at least $20 and often don't last as long as I would like (except MonsterK9 and King Chew, very well worth it) for my heavy chewer. Grooming is costly, flea and tick protection is costly, treats are costly, everything about owning a dog is so much more than it used to be, even though canine care wasn't as quality as it is now. Heck, my first dog didn't cost this much to care for and he was a frequent flyer at the vet for his health issues

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Historyharlot93
Community Member
10 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

We adopted a dog with our teenage son not knowing what a money pit she would be. We adore her, but Trefexis and insurance is about $90 a month, her yearly exam is about $400. She just injured her back playing with the sprinkler and that cost us over a $1000. We live paycheck to paycheck so I understand how tough it can be.

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#34

Electronics coming with free headphones and chargers

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Donkeywheel
Community Member
10 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Universal charger and universal accessories required by law. You’re free to buy whatever you want/need from whoever you want. Less waste, better prices.

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#35

People making friends with one another purely because they enjoy their companionship and not because of networking

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Kathrin Pukowsky
Community Member
10 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I'm hung up on the way perception has changed. 30 years ago *incompetent John is promoted to shift lead because he's dating the CEO's daughter* People: "That's disgraceful! Everybody knows Bill was a much better pick for that position, he knows the work and safety procedures by heart and is popular with his co-workers. This is a blatant case of nepotism!" Now *Jack has just finished his BA and is hired as factory manager because he's dating the CEO's daughter, despite never having set foot on the factory floor and having no idea what needs to be done* People: "Now, that's brilliant networking!"

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#36

Boredom.

There's always something to take your attention nowadays. There's literal lifetimes of entertainment on a single streaming service. Phones. There's tons of free and cheap games that can just eat hours of your time. Social media. YouTube, etc etc etc.

20-30 years ago, if there was nothing you wanted to watch on TV, you either sat through it or found something else to do. Games had to be bought in stores, so it was more of a process buying them. Once you had them, you committed to it or bought a new game. Sometimes there was just legitimately nothing to do.

You had to get creative with your downtime. Make your own fun.

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Shyla Bouche
Community Member
10 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I remember whining to my mom about being bored. She'd threaten to find me something to do.

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#37

House ownership and being debt free.
Everyone has accepted debt as parts of their lives.

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#38

Someone Asked, “What Was Normal 20-30 Years Ago, But Is Considered A Luxury Now?” And Here Are 50 Of The Best Answers Free driver’s education classes taught in all high schools.

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DJay
Community Member
10 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Yeah not a thing in most places outside of the US. In the UK we've had to pay for out own driving lessons. I had to stop learning 20 years ago because I couldn't afford them after my parents stopped paying. At 18 I was still in school and my wages from my part time job went on other things like food and clothes.

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#39

Doctor coming to visit you at home when you were sick

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Ken Beattie
Community Member
10 months ago (edited) DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Depends where you live I guess. Regular GPs haven't done housecalls here in decades. But there are housecall services where a doctor will come to you. It just won't be the GP you normally see. From memory it costs more too. edit: Damned typos. Why can't I spell anymore?

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#40

$1.15 average per gallon gas prices in the 90s

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#41

Groceries to last you the week, like nothing fancy or bougie, just enough food to just permit grocery shopping once a week

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#42

Working hard to put yourself through college, buy a house, and a truck.

Surviving on entry level wages

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Kathryn Baylis
Community Member
10 months ago (edited) DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Especially when you had to do an unpaid internship instead of entry level job, and after you get your education and five years of experience—which used to move you from your entry level job (which you went into fresh out of school with zero experience) to a mid level position and wage—-you still end up paid entry level wages, and have to fight tooth and nail to be paid more. Of course, once you’ve made your mark in your field and become established, then you can get the goodies. But that can be a long haul if you or your family are not already well-connected.

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#43

Being able to go out every Friday after work and being able to afford it

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RavenTheCat
Community Member
10 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

If I saved all my free Cash every day till each paycheck i could do this, but i Also work for the scum called Walmart and only make what i do because they're desperate

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#44

Someone Asked, “What Was Normal 20-30 Years Ago, But Is Considered A Luxury Now?” And Here Are 50 Of The Best Answers I remember as a kid, where I live they would allow people to just visit an area of the airport from where they could see the runway and flights take off - they didn’t have to pay anything for it - people would spend hours just looking at flights take off and land ❤️

EDIT: To everyone saying this is still doable in many parts of the world - that’s great, I haven’t been to those parts of the world yet and where I come from one would still need to pay a certain amount to get in and watch from a glass cabin or so. Back in the day, there would just be a gate on the airport ground, a small barricade where you could just stand for hours and nobody would bother.

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#45

Someone Asked, “What Was Normal 20-30 Years Ago, But Is Considered A Luxury Now?” And Here Are 50 Of The Best Answers Pork Belly. Used to be a bad cut of meat that was disposed of or given to the poor for dirt cheap prices. Then rich people realized that the poor made it delicious, which then caused prices to skyrocket.

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Peter Trudell Jr
Community Member
10 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

and have you met fajitas? skirt steak is a poor cut of meat that was dirt cheap. It would get marinaded within an inch of its life and then cut thin against the grain to make it easier to chew... then Mexican food became popular and its price shot up. A lot of 'poor man's food' had this happen to it.

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#46

Meals on domestic flights

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#47

Apartments. I could get a one bedroom apartment in the state if Wisconsin back in 1997 for under $500. Now that same apartment $1800.

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#48

PC games coming with physical media, manuals, and "swag" as standard.

The maps, trinkets, toys, and sometimes even novels came with games. It made the game an event. Now people just download games and they sit unplayed in a digital library until the urge to try them comes along.

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Raphapablap
Community Member
10 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I was thinking about this the other day. My Atari STe games had manuals like books with the story of the game in it. Even on PC, SimAnt had a manual section and another part dedicated to ant facts and was really interesting to read

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#49

Photographs on actual photographic paper. I know its still possible but oh so rare.

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Donkeywheel
Community Member
10 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I disagree. It’s not just possible, it’s incredibly easy and cheap. You can order online your printed pictures, choose the size, the quality, the material, even photo albums. You just have to do it..

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#50

Ooh I love this game!

* Having a hot tub
* Having a boat
* Also: having one boat for lake fishing and another for sea fishing
* Having one working parent and one parent staying home with the kids
* A four bedroom house on a lake in the countryside
* Having a ‘game room’ or ‘play room’ in your house
* Having a bar with a pool table in your basement
* A home cooked meal every night
* Also, getting most of your veggies from the garden because one of your parents has enough free time to spend most of the day gardening
* Situations where the parents take random classes in geology or calligraphy or whatever, just to get out of the house because they’re bored and have too much time
* Every adult in the family has their own car, and sometimes one adult has a ‘project car’
* Having “shopping” or “home improvement” as a hobby. Just buying a bunch of new stuff because you can’t think of anything else to do

I grew up lower-middle class in the 90s, and we had all of these things. My dad made $28-32k depending on the year, and my mom stayed home.

The biggest difference was the sheer amount of free time everyone had.

Edit: The biggest thing I personally miss from that era was the culture of taking classes or going to school just because you want to learn something cool. One time my mom took a six month course on how to make those glass signs with neon gas, for no reason other than “because they’re cool”. Another time she learned how to weld, and there was a solid two year period where she and a bunch of her friends from the PTA took finance/economics courses at a community college just for fun. My aunt got a Masters from RISD when she was in her 60s just because she wanted to.

About a year ago I signed up for a course in auto mechanics just because I think cars are cool and wanted to know more about how they work, and the guy teaching the class was *really* weirded out and didn’t let me join because I didn’t want a career as a mechanic. This whole “education is for a job only” thing is really weird to me.

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Donkeywheel
Community Member
10 months ago (edited) DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Lol, having a 10+ room house on a beautiful lake, with 5+ cars, and not one but two fishing boats has never been lower middle class. This person is delusional. And by the way, wealth and revenues are two different things.

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