We all had that same speckled roasting pan, right?
Not long ago, a friends kid was visiting. I, of course, cooked dinner—in this case a roast pork shoulder.
When I pulled the pan out, my friends kid made a comment that her grandma in Maine had the same roasting pan. Kiddo had a distinct memory of learning to cook chicken in it.
So did mom, but with a completely different maternal figure who happened to have the pan. That started a conversation with everyone about that specific speckled roasting ... and it turns out all of us had it in Grandma's house growing up.
The conversation ended up on Facebook, where friends commented and now I'm convinced there were only like two roasting pans actually made in the last century.
Reddit user fengmalo asked:
"What’s a childhood memory that almost all of us have?"
Roasting pans, wrapping paper tubes and that game with the light in your fridge—it's all here on this walk down memory lane.
After Hours
"How the school seemed a different world when you stayed late, or had to be there on a weekend."
- 971365
"Imagine a middle school on the weekend during the summer."
"My uncle was a head janitor at one in Colorado, he'd always let the entire family in and we'd have dodgeball tournaments in the gym. But as a 9 year old wandering dead middle school halls in the summer was such a haunting feeling."
- SeVIIenth
"Also how it struck me, going back to my school as an adult was how small it seemed. In my memories it was really big and intimidating."
- ilikespookystories
GiphyThe Balloon Game
"The balloon game where it can't touch the floor."
- -Black_Guardian-
"Some seriously impressive dives and kicks came out of this game."
- amazingphrasing
"Lmao my daughter calls it 'keepy uppy' she’s 5 so it’s played often."
- mysuckyusername
"A few weeks ago our restaurant was completely dead for about 2 hours so we blew up some latex gloves and played this in the dining room."
- VitaAeterna
"My Kung-Fu instructor came up with a version of this where you’re allowed to punch and kick each other while trying to get the balloon through a goal at either end of the room."
"We played it once and never again, but it was talked about for months after."
- funkyibis
GiphyThe Wiggles
"Having a wiggly tooth"
- annasassin007
"And when it's super wiggly, pushing it out with your tongue and then returning it back to its place, still attached."
- Nyruel
"I really loved having wiggly teeth. They were so satisfying to play with and push on."
- ClassicMustang67
GiphyWorld's Oldest Toy
"Finding a really cool stick and imagining it as any object we wanted - a sword, lightsaber, wand, laser gun etc."
"Fun fact: the stick was recognized as an iconic part of childhood, so it was introduced into the Toy Hall of Fame being referred to as 'the world’s oldest toy.' "
- El_Quetzal
"At one point I had a branch that I found on a walk that looked like Jack Frost’s staff from Rise of the Guardians."
"That was the ultimate stick - aside from this even bigger one that was affectionately named 'Ol’ Conniption' after my mom’s reaction to me dragging it in the house."
- BrittneyofHyrule
GiphyRichie Rich
"Being gifted a small amount of money and thinking you were rich"
- Fair_Border4142
"20 dollars was a world of possibilities"
- Spielburger_witFries
"I grew up in a third world country. I vacationed in the States for the first time when I was a fifth grader in 2009."
"Since the trip coincided with my birthday, I was given a birthday card and in it was $25 given by my cousins who migrated there. Instead of spending it on vacation I held onto it."
"When we flew back home, I converted it with Dad to the local currency and I used it to buy 3 litres of Mountain Dew and a ton of junk food for my friends and I."
"Hung out by the river and consumed it throughout the afternoon lol."
"Good times."
- jethroo23
GiphyThat Field Trip Air
"How different the air felt on the morning of field trips"
- RockNRollTrollDoll
"God everything was different that morning wasn’t it?"
"The teacher was suddenly wearing different 'outside' clothes, there were a bunch of new adult chaperones, the bus, being able to listen to music on the way (depending on the grade). Field trips were the bestest."
- LA_all_day
"One of the rare times you actually enjoyed getting up for school. The air felt like Christmas morning."
- ishyaboy
"God, I closed my eyes and felt this in my soul lol"
- andinshawn
GiphyNew Room, New Me
"The feeling of triumph rearranging your room; new room, new me"
- andy_james_78
"This never goes away, though. But now its the entire house."
- ThaRealEverlost
"OMG, the days I came home and my mom had rearranged my bedroom were the best days ever."
"I have no idea why it was so exciting but I always just spent a few minutes just laying in bed being amazed by the new angles."
- Nackles
"And when you got a new poster and finding the perfect spot to hang it up, feeling so proud of your kid self that you just added something new."
- Adventurous_Yak_9234
GiphyThe Fridge Light
"Trying to see how the refrigerator light turns on and off."
- Ambitious_Athlete216
"I was watching my two and a half year old trying to figure this out a few days ago."
"Peers into the fridge while slowly closing the door, then standing 'inside the fridge' (don't worry, the shelves don't allow him to fit or close the door) trying to close the door with him inside, and finally discovering the little button."
"He was so happy, pushing that button over and over grinning like a weirdo."
- Eviljim1
GiphyTeenagers
"Thinking that teenagers are really cool"
- StudentofChemistry
"I work with kids, mostly under five, but sometimes older kids as well. Any time I work with the teenagers, even the ones who are 17-18, I realize how young and inexperienced they are."
"When we were little, we looked up to the teens. When I was a teen, we all thought we were the coolest and smartest people in society."
"I left home for school a little younger than average and I look at these kids now and think 'I was doing all that at this age? They’re babies!' ”
- hereforthemystery
"Those skaters filming each other at the park were gods among men to me…"
- wheatable
GiphyBwoomp
"Playing swordfight with the cardboard tubes of wrapping paper"
- hummusdapug
"I could hear this comment. 'Bwoomp!' "
- alamosakid
"I work at a Fabric Store, and I can confirm that the THICK cardboard tube for upholstery fabric make the BEST 'BWOOMP.' "
"100/10 recommend."
- BohemianWhatsername
"My dad collects all the empty tubes for him and the grandkids to have a a Battle Royale on Christmas Eve."
- HowAreYaNow
GiphyDid we uncover any core memories for you?
Let us know if the comments!
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Redditor Frozen_yoghurt123 asked:
"Who is the 'black sheep' of your family?"
I'm the black sheep or at least I'd like to think so.
Join me...
Scandal
"Probably my dad's cousin, who went to prison for murdering his lover's husband."
DW_555
Oh My Wow GIFGiphy"biggest disappointment"
"My Dad. He is the only one of 6 siblings who wasn't a huge f**k up. And yet, before my Grandma died she stated that he was her 'biggest disappointment.' He is estranged from his surviving siblings... not by his choice. It honestly blows my mind."
Unfair_Biscotti2828
"Toxicity is often a group mindset thing; people don't want you to leave because they are dysfunctionally co-dependent on each other and need each other to justify their own shortcomings in life. A lot of the 'family loyalty' stuff is typically shouted loudest by those who are the least good idea to stay loyal towards."
Creative_Recover
The Dead
"My great uncle who stole my great grandfathers identity, stole a couple million dollars, and ran off. No one even knew he was alive until my great grandfathers funeral in 2009. No one has seen him since. My grandma started to cry because she honestly thought he was dead."
"Everyone else just kind of nodded on his direction and went on with the rest of the funeral. I just remember being very confused because I was 9 and I had never met this guy who my dad pulled me aside and told me he was my great uncle. It was a few years later that I got the full story."
valkyrieonaunicorn
"matriarch"
"According to my mean aunt, the 'matriarch' in her own mind, it's my twin brother because "he doesn't care about family now that he's a doctor." (He's a resident. Chief resident. He works ridiculous hours and spends the rest of the time recovering from work.)"
"According to my ex-MIL (who still counts because she's Son's grandma), it's me, for divorcing her son."
"According to everyone else, it's Mean Aunt. The rest of us are warm and caring and compassionate. We have our moments; all of us have been accidentally thoughtless or done something selfish once in a while, but we're not deliberately mean and snarky all the time."
insertcaffeine
Everybody
"My immediate family are the black sheep of the entire family."
DarthDregan
John Stamos Cheers GIF by GrandfatheredGiphySounds like everyone has a little black sheep in them.
People Issues
"By now, my brother for cutting off everyone because he prefers his rude, selfish, paranoid, narcissist wife over all of us."
"My wife is the black sheep of her family in the sense that she's the only one who isn't a rude, selfish, paranoid narcissist."
Lvcivs2311
Joe Dirt Brother GIFGiphySo Dumb
"Me. My granddaddy told me 'I’ve only had the sheriff knock on my door two times in my 80 years, and both times he was looking for you! 'I did some dumb sh*t, caused a little trouble, burned a few bridges but always managed to stay out of jail. Partly because my sister has kept an attorney on retainer for me since I was 16."
This_Personality3731
Liar Liar
"My younger brother (2nd of 4) is a compulsive liar and it got him in a lot of little trouble as a teen, then he told his wife he graduated a big college when we're not even sure if he got his GED because he failed to graduate HS, went to some GED school and eventually just stopped going."
"IF he graduated college, he never mentioned he was going in the 4+ years it takes nor mention graduation or have a diploma. He's not a bad dude, but now family time is super awkward when he and his wife are talking about 'their' college team."
UniqueUsername82D
The NOT good girl...
"My aunt's daughter. She’s been in jail for drugs, stolen money from my aunt and other family members to use on drugs and physically abused my aunt. My aunt has tried getting her help, but nothing has worked. She’s just not a good person, and everyone in my family, except my aunt, doesn’t want anything to do with her. I haven’t seen her in 8 years now, and I’m happy about that."
Hello_Im_the_world
Maria?
"A former nun - my great aunt - left the religious life and got married. She called herself 'the black sheep of the family' because her habit was black."
Back2Bach
Excited Julie Andrews GIF by The Rodgers & Hammerstein OrganizationGiphyWell the black sheep sound like the most interesting family members.
Redditor OldAboba asked:
"What is the best non-sexual physical feeling you’ve ever felt?"
Adele. Adele live. She sends me.
Floating
Relaxed Exit Strategy GIF by Hannah Bronfman Giphy"I got a professional full body (everything but my man parts) massage a few years back for the first and so far only time at a spa after the recommendation from a coworker. I felt like I was floating on a cloud for the next few days."
gil_beard
Through your nose...
"Sneezing when you're sick. Then you get that about 20 second feeling of breathing through your nose again and you like ahh that's what I aspire to at the moment."
Sanguiniutron
"Or the very last sneeze of your illness. During a fire drill in high school, I was ambling out after fighting a head old for a few days. The alarm was killing my head which was already throbbing from the sinus pressure."
"I was nearing the field, well away from my classmates, when I cough/sneezed out a huge, green loogie - cleared it about three feet, no icky trail - and by the time I was walking back to the building I was feeling pretty much back to normal. No more head cold after that. Never had something like that ever happen again where there was such an abrupt end to the head cold."
NnyIsSpooky
'migraine cocktail'
"Right after a migraine goes away. It's almost a spiritual experience."
LarryLong*alls_
"This was going to be my answer. I was in the ER one time for a really bad migraine. They gave me what they called a 'migraine cocktail.' When they pushed it through the IV I could feel the cold liquid make its way through my body, up to my head. Once it hit my brain, the migraine was gone. It was pure ecstasy. Even better was that cocktail had Benadryl in it so I fell asleep not long after and slept so good."
master_baitor12
Shake It
"That stretch til you shake when you wake up."
Quanisha8472
"I once stretched too hard in the morning and got the worst calf cramp ever... it looked like a prune and I thought I would die from the pain. Couldn't stretch in bed for months afterwards out of fear it would happen again."
tevelis
"When you move over 50, it turns into that stretch til you put your back into a muscle spasm that lasts days."
wrichards12
The Itch
Scratching Feel Good GIF by 60 Second DocsGiphy"I had a cast and splint on both my legs for 2 months. When they cut it off, they scratched my legs for me and the itch was just top notch! Yeah."
Existing-Seat5962
Itching an itch can change a life.
YUM!
Emma Stone High Quality GIFGiphy"When you're starving all day and devour a bomb a** meal."
Lime_Rose
Sleep for Life
"When you’ve been up for 20 hours+ and finally get into bed and you just know it’ll be the best sleep of your life."
Ok_Sprinkles_8777
"But man, after 36+ hours, the body sort of aches and it's hard to fall asleep despite being completely exhausted. Then the restless legs kick in... ugh. I do agree that a 20hr-ish stint is amazing to cuddle into, especially if you don't have to get up at any specific time the next day."
curlyfat
"Makes it better when you’ve been sleep deprived for weeks and know you have NO PLANS tomorrow and can sleep as much as you need."
Batcraft10
That Feeling
"When you're absolutely busting for a pee and you can finally go!"
Apprehensive_Pen_793
"Apparently there’s a thing called a 'pee-gasm' that people (usually women) have that causes an orgasmic feeling when you pee after holding it for a while! I’ve definitely experienced this and I’ve intentionally waited a while so I could have that good feeling... lol."
cocoawhirl
I Can Hear!!
"The feeling of water leaving your ear after being there all day."
Apprehensive_Bet_438
"I had some impacted earwax for a week in one ear, and when it finally got removed it was the best feeling in the world. Initially it was like having a tv or radio in my ear that only had static, but then I could hear. Good god, I could hear. It was amazing."
doodwhatsrsly
"Oh man, and it’s WARM from being in your head, and the warmth makes the sensation of leaving even better."
AngiesPhalanges
A Good Rest
dog puppy GIFGiphy"Sleeping in a warm blanket in winters."
Puitzza
"Or sleeping in a cold blanket in summer."
pitypuruty
I am enthralled by all of those things.
Redditor Gold-Ad-2827 asked:
"People with mental disorders: What do you hate being told the most?"
I hated being told to just smile. You smile and go away.
Duh
seth meyers GIF by Late Night with Seth MeyersGiphy"It's all in your head. Where else would it?! My colon?"
glorified_throwaway
Don't Minimize
"Everybody goes through that."
rukasu83
"This saying makes my blood boil. Or the 'I was that age once too ya know' yeah no sh*t you were that age once. And just because you were that age once doesn’t mean we have the same experience."
MasterOfRNoSleep
"They try to minimize it."
Previous_Ad7725
Stellar Advice
"You're worried? Just stop."
"You're sad? Just don't be."
"You're compulsively binge eating? Eat less."
"Thanks for that stellar advice."
CrayolaSocks
"Or even better, 'Just do it!' As if ADHD paralysis can be stopped with a can-do attitude."
HumanityIsACesspool
"physical health"
"I get so frustrated when people treat the idea of 'holistic medicine' as some kind of woo. How does it escape so many people that the body works holistically? Even a lot of doctors seem to ignore this. It's very frustrating when you have 2 or 3 or 4 illnesses that are all affecting each other, and your 'physical health' is held distinct from your mental health, and nothing anyone is doing to treat you works because no one's looking at the whole system."
"I just got a lecture from a psychiatrist I am seeing about nutrition, and he apologized to me for doing so but I told him, 'No, I appreciate it. Do it for all your patients.' because it told me he's trying to look at the whole picture and actually fix what's wrong. It gave me faith in him."
TheLastKirin
Relax
Calm Down Golden Girls GIF by TV LandGiphy"You need to calm down."
sorceress__stoned
"Never is the history of calm down has calm down ever caused anyone to calm down."
LBIdockrat
Calm down. I hate that one. You calm down.
Tips
Season 23 Reaction GIF by Law & OrderGiphy"When they try to give me tips on what to do, like bruh as if I didn't already try that."
Mediocre_Ad8282
The Standard
"You don't look sad. No crap... that's so I can avoid having this conversation. Also depression isn't 'being sad' like people think."
allgamerprogram
"God, I hate this. It's because saying 'I'm depressed' has been standard for people expressing that they're slightly unhappy about something dumb like not getting enough croutons on their salad or some crap. Now that's just what everyone assumes you mean when you say you have depression."
NilPill
Be Faster
"'Stop being lazy.'"
LadyBirdLadyBirdLady
“'Lazy' is when you don’t want to do anything at all. 'Executive disfunction' is when you can do everything at all, but that one easy quick thing that you do want to do just makes you and your brain freeze completely days ahead. I’m tired of people not understand that even when I explain and look at me like I’m bullshitting instead."
_Varien_
Ways to Cope
"Maybe you should try praying harder. I did, He prescribed medication."
Ms_Schuesher
"Praying is a way to cope for a lot of people, I think. That's totally fine, but insisting on praying in lieu of getting real help or actually addressing the issue is when it is not only unhelpful, but dangerously detrimental."
TheFrustrated
"Religious people will bypass everyone’s cultures, identity, views, and feelings just to be right and make a point. it’s disgusting. I read somewhere that real so called Christianity is all wrong. The real faith is from the Aramaic history and all the meanings were misinterpreted and the stories and all were made up by Catholics wanting to control their people. Yuck."
RisingPhoenix5271
'contamination'
Disgusted Season 6 GIF by Brooklyn Nine-NineGiphy"As someone with OCD with a lot of attention to 'contamination', having someone try to explain contradictions in why I'm doing something that is technically unclean when I wouldn't do something that is technically clean due to OCD. There are a few doorknobs that I will not touch no matter how much you clean them in front of me and I know it makes no sense, if it made sense I wouldn't have OCD i'd just be cleanly."
Zoooples
Stop trying to be an armchair therapist. Be empathetic to people first.