If you were a lucky kid on your birthday, you received that one special toy you really wanted.
But not every kid had that privilege of getting whatever their hearts desired.
Sometimes, they got what they needed – like clothes. Lots and lots of clothes.
I remember frowning upon a knitted sweater I got for Christmas and a pair of olive-colored corduroy pants when all I really wanted was an Atari gaming console.
Curious to know what strangers missed out on getting as kids, Redditor Notworththinknabout asked:
"What's that one present you wanted to get as a kid but never actually got?"
ASIMO Is Not For Sale
"I really wanted a Honda robot. I found out Honda had built a robot and I asked for one for Christmas because I assumed they were mass produced."
– smalldogcough
The Day The Music Died
"An electric guitar and one day I found one hidden in the back of my fathers wardrobe. I was so excited and then Xmas day comes around and I got, well I can't even remember what I got but it wasn't an electric guitar. Turns out it was a present for our neighbours kid and my parents were hiding it away so the kid didn't find it prior to Xmas day. I can feel the sadness again writing this."
– crikcet37
A Worthy Substitute
"A doodle bear."
"So I just used my brother instead- took ages for mum to get the sharpie off him."
– Lethal_bizzle94
Scanning Thingy
"I really, really wanted something called a Barcode Battler. You could scan the barcode on any item and it would give it a sort of 'top trumps' style score which I presume you could then battle with your friends over?"
"I was obsessed with getting one. I would never shut up about it. Whenever an amount of money was discussed I would chip in with stuff like 'that's the same as 3 Barcode battlers'."
"None of my friends had one, so I don't even know what I intended to do with it, looking back. I'd just seen an advert on Saturday morning TV and decided I must have it."
"My mum never got me one, I think I ended up with a SuperSoaker. My friends DID have those, and we had great fun with them. If I'd had my way, I'd have been sitting in the corner scanning random items with my Barcode Battler while they partook in giant SuperSoaker wars."
"Cheers mum, for saving me from myself."
– Nw5gooner
Egon Spengler Action Figure
"Egon from Ghostbusters. The Ghostbusters toys were the only toys I had as a kid that weren't hand-me-downs or cheap knock-offs, so they were always special to me. I had Peter, Ray and Winston, I had the Fright Features figures, I had the Ghostbusters tower, I had the Ecto 2 helicopter, and the kid who lived next door had Ecto 1 and the proton pack which I could play with all the time, but I never had Egon. Even when I specifically asked my mum to buy Egon for me, she came back with another Winston. I had two Winstons."
"Years later (we're talking late 2000s here), my sister was in some charity shop and she found an Egon figure in a bucket of random action figures. She remebered that I never had him as a kid and bought it for me. It was such a silly thing, but it meant so much to me."
– TommViolence
GIF by Ghostbusters
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When Daddy Forgot
"When I was really young I wanted this mermaid Barbi my father even promised to buy it but forgot which one it was and he brought me a fairy doll instead when he went to buy the mermaid doll they said they were out of stock and I never saw it again after that."
– DuckMcass
The Toy That Taught You Responsibility
"A Tamagotchi. I've put it on every Christmas and birthday presents lists for years, never got any. My parents didn't even discuss it with me or asked what it was."
– picotipicota1
commercial 90s GIF
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Never Too Old To Doodle
"The 64 Crayola crayon pack."
"And yes, I bought it for myself at age 34."
– RockyDify
The Legendary Defender
"Voltron. Always got Voltron related stuff but never the actual robot."
– GeraldoFubar
Christmas Wish Unfulfilled
"I was 15 all I wanted was a Macklemore hoodie. I told my parents if that's all I got for Christmas I would be happy. Never happened."
– Fia__
This One Didn't Workout
"There used to be this Superman muscle blow up shirt that you could press a button and inflate fake muscles on yourself. Always wanted that, had to settle for a regular superman costume."
"I remember being pretty upset it didn't blow up, but in retrospect my parents were really struggling as immigrants. And i'm eternally grateful for what they did for me as a kid to the best that they could have. Love you Mom and Dad <3"
– Federal-Reindeer
It's A Liability
"I've always wanted roller skates since I was little. They never bought them because I could break a bone or something."
– koahro945
Revved Up And Nowhere To Go
"A motorcycle, my dad promised me one for my 16th birthday. We'll in my thirties now, still waiting..."
– U_cabrao
The Problem With Foam Balls
"NERF made something called the Ballzooka. It was a multi chambered gun that shot foam balls. I wanted one so bad but when my birthday and then Christmas rolled around, my parents claimed they could never find one and that they were out of stock. When I was in my 20s, my dad revealed that they didn't want to spend the money because they figured I'd lose the foam balls in a few days and stop playing with it. Honestly, they're probably right."
Rule number one for living a healthy and productive life... "AVOID ALL POLITICS FROM THIS MOMENT ON!!" I swear that is killing us all, swiftly! Turn off CNN, FOX, MSNBC... all of it! Stop!
MOVE!
Tired Good Morning GIF by FreeformGiphy"Sitting too much. Our bodies are not built for the insanely sedentary lives we live. Even many of us who are relatively active spend most of the day sitting at a desk at the office and then sitting on a couch/gaming chair/whatever all night."
Good Night
"Screw up their sleep schedule."
"Some of us can't help it. I remember being as young as 10 years old and constantly waking up several times in the night, seemingly for no reason (and it still happens 5 out of 7 night these days, in my late 30s)."
"Then I read a few years back that severe PTSD can disrupt your ability to sleep through the night, sometimes for the rest of your life, and suddenly everything made sense. As such I'm lucky if I spend two straight weeks on a "normal" sleep schedule. Right now, I'm a 5AM -1:30PM sleeper."
Control
"Tension caused by worrying about things beyond our control."
"I'm stressing because my kid just started school and is having a hard time. Whenever I started a new year of school, I'd get sick with a cold. Now I'm sick with a cold because I'm worried about my kid."
"That which is beyond my control causes most of the pain in my life, so it's hard to avoid."
Down Time
"Work is killing us. We need to figure out for ourselves what we need to do to offset out jobs. I had a standing job for over a decade. It is only slightly better. Standing in one place is terrible for the circulation into your legs. It's also really hard on your feet, ankles, knees and lower back. Fatigue mats, better shoes, etc only go so far in helping. Throw in a couple repetitive motion injuries from the job itself and even after 5 years in an office job later I still have pain."
I definitely need to put my phone down. Especially when I drive. It's like an addiction. Also, my sleep is a mess. I doing my best. And someone teach me meditation.
Active
Working Out Lifting Weights GIF by Chance The RapperGiphy"Being stationary too much and not enough movement and activity. So many problems slowly creep up on you."
Rays...
"Go outside without a hat or sunscreen."
"People have been using some form of sun screen for hundreds of years. Whether it be plants, mud, etc. Plus, the UV index is ridiculous in comparison to what it used to be due to the climate crisis so the risk is actually much greater."
"If you live in the UK/Northern Ireland... not a big worry. We get proper scorching days a few weeks out of the whole year. Not all at once either."
- ElishaGG
In Public
"Not building deep relationships. Doesn't matter if friendships or romantic relationships, deeply connected human beings live longer than people who isolate themselves or have rather shallow relationships. So, just so you know: THAT'S what friends are for. ;-) "
"Being severely anti-social is all I know. I am slowly developing a minor case of agoraphobia. I don't have any friends, and every time I meet someone new I freak out and don't talk to them ever again."
"I need therapy but I can't afford it. Online options aren't really options, because most of them are either extremely impersonal, expensive, or other various issues. Also I generally have a very bad history with therapists and don't like doing it because I usually come out feeling worse."
Call Erin Brokovich
"Living near steel mills. The area I live in thrives off of these and the air pollution from them has caused SCARY high cancer rates, lung problems, and thyroid issues."
"There's a city near where I live that is nicknamed Steel City because of the amount of steel mills and other metal working facilities that exist there. I started visiting friends that lived there on a regular basis when i got my license many years ago."
"Almost every young adult at the time had this random twitch that happened every few minutes. They all acted like it was completely normal. "No, that's not normal at all, wtf is in your tap water?" I said. Most of those facilities are shut down now, and I don't see the same issue anymore."
Scared 30 Rock GIF by HULUWater. I always forget water. It's so vital. Does ice count? I put ice in everything. You gotta start somewhere. Let's get healthy people.
Reread all of this.
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Compromise is important in a relationship. Everybody has to do it. But there are just some traits or actions that a big no-go when it comes to compromise. And you shouldn't feel bad about it.
Sorry
Sorry I Love Lucy GIF by Paramount+Giphy"Not being able to apologize. Everybody makes mistakes, doesn't matter. Own up to it and I respect you even more. Seek excuses? Bye!"
Own It!
"No accountability. In fact, having absolutely no sense of accountability for their actions. Believe me it is more common than you think."
"My ex was just like this- I found myself apologizing for her mistakes, and she expected me to grovel when I made any minor error. And the gaslighting, mind games and guilt trips... holy crap. When I called her out, I was "lecturing her." I thank my lucky stars that I had the sense to get out when I did."
Cheer Up!
"Complaining about everything."
"My ex too. It was unbelievably draining. I could handle it most of the time, but the worst was when in a situation where everyone is miserable (e.g. getting stuck outside in the rain). It's like, hey, everyone here is having a bad time right now, but by complaining constantly you're just dumping more misery on top of it for everyone."
The Menu
"Kind of a subset of this for me is being a picky eater. I dated a girls for over two years who ate nothing but macaroni and cheese and chicken tenders. Never freaking again. I've broken it off with two otherwise very nice and attractive girls over this. I'm not spending my life restricted to restaurants that sell chicken tenders and having to grocery shop for two different dinners every single night."
- username deleted
Fibs...
Lying Simon Rex GIF by Simon Rex / Dirt NastyGiphy"Lying, saying stuff about you behind your back, being mean to people for no reason, being fake."
Ladies, ladies, ladies... listen up. Now don't think men aren't just as culpable.
Failed
fail black and white GIFGiphy"No "test" behaviour. Be straightforward or I'll assume you're likely to instigate dumb crap drama. Honesty for honesty."
"red flag"
"Doesn't let you have time to yourself/ heir entire life revolves around you to the point that they suffocate you."
- jalo12
"To add on - if a partner is controlling of your relationships with friends and family, and generally won't let you exist as your own person, "red flag" is understating it. You should be able to at least occasionally do things without your partner."
"You should be able to have private spaces and private thoughts. You should be able to maintain existing relationships and create new ones. I dated someone once who was insistent as to how I slept, and didn't like it if I tried to get into a more comfortable position. Surprise surprise, also came with a side of emotional abuse and manipulation."
- Kradget
Basics
"Zero effort put into simple maintenance actions. Simply picking up after yourself is deferred repeatedly when it can be done and over in ten seconds. Inflexible mind, or unwilling to learn new things or see other perspectives. Seeing the fault in others, but inability to perceive such in themselves."
Counting Ability
"If they are terrible with finances."
"Money is cited in the top 3 reasons for divorce, always. And money affects every facet of life. My BIL married a gal who was always a next thing away from getting her financial sh*t together. Anyway, he's living with us now, after his 2-year marriage ended, because, it turns out, people who are bad with money and have no real interest in saving, likely will not change."
- abqkat
try to be fun...
John C Mcginley Reaction GIFGiphy"No sense of humor. Either a lack of sense of humor or incompatible sense of humor. I want to be able to laugh at the same stuff together."
It's not hard to be yourself in a relationship. In a potential love match, you should be as much yourself as possible. So stay honest and own up to your flaws and your partner will do the same. And if not, you can write a thread about the men.
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