Eating alone has its pros and cons, but meals after a sad event are a struggle to get through, like when all your friends bail on your birthday dinner at the last minute. Or when you can't afford milk for cereal. Or eating your deceased spouse's leftovers.
Devastatedboy asked Reddit: What's the most depressing meal you've eaten?
Submissions have been edited for clarity, context, and profanity.
Seems negligent, but okay.
Our parents would get so caught up in work sometimes that they wouldn't buy groceries for an inordinately long time, leaving us to forage for whatever scraps were in the kitchen. The worst it ever got was when we could find nothing to eat except a couple bags of bread in the freezer that only had a couple of endpieces left that were badly freezer burned and a block of cheddar that was so old it was dark orange and cracking. We used it to make the most disgusting cheese sandwiches we ever ate in our lives though.
Wow, hard same. Parents both worked doubles for awhile, and my great-aunt would drop off weird industrial sized food items from her church pantry for us. Three gallons of cottage cheese and 5lbs of black olives? Figure something out, kid.
When you realize that you may have an issue.
Pieces of an earlier meal that I carefully pulled back out of the trash.
I was struggling with an eating disorder, and threw away most of my meal thinking that it being in the trash would turn me away from it. I was strong enough to stay away for an hour or two, then decided I didn't give a F-- that it had been in the trash can. (It was my own, the one under my desk, so mostly just paper anyway.) I don't know if I've ever felt so low and disgusting in my life, knowing that it was my own fault and I was a spoiled bitch who chose to live like this.
Similar story here. My lowest point was standing in front of my parents' fridge, feeling hungry and light-headed, but being unable to eat any of the (completely normal) foods.
I know I might do the trashcan thing too, so when I throw any food away, I always crush it and mix it with trash.
Not so lucky.
Lucky Charms with water, because we didnt have milk, I didn't realize that it was depressing at the time but now that I'm older its sad af.
Just told my dad about this post and he said he also did this once as a kid, looks as if it's being passed down the family tree.
When I was fourteen, I poured myself a bowl of cocoa pebbles, realized were out of milk, and just filled the bowl with whipped cream instead.
Disgusting? Yes.
Delicious? Yes.
Sad Thai.
At a local Thai place me and my then girlfriend would always go, the owner always greeted us and was super friendly. Anyway after we broke up I went in as I fancied a green curry. He asked where she was and I explained. He looked sad and and said "oh..." I sat and had my green curry by myself. It felt sad, I just get take out from them now.
Maybe I'd be a terrible business owner, but I'd have given you that one on the house.
This is a lot.
I once had Thanksgiving dinner alone at a truck stop Denny's in Great Falls, Montana.
Great falls, Montana
You win.
Hey, f*ck you. I like it here.
Really? Why?
... I'm from Lethbridge I suppose it's not all that much better. We're relatively close to Glacier and Waterton though that has to count for something.
Because it has the right amount of nothing, I can walk in a bar and they know my name and drink, great fishing all year round, 15 minute drive gets you out to unruined nature. People aren't up their own butt, friendliest weird town I've ever lived in... I can make a modest wage and live like a millionaire compared to those making the same in any large city.
Came over from Belfast, Northern Ireland, I have been in busy, and I have been in nothing... I like the nothing.
Good for you. I grew up out in Montana/Dakotas and have lived in NYC for the past 19 years. I'm definitely retiring in Montana or Vermont someday. I miss the quiet sometimes.
Well, at least you were fed.
My grandmother died and we were over at her house cleaning stuff out, and mom put me in charge of cleaning out the refrigerator.
My grandmother was always someone who hated to waste things. To such an extent that if she opened a can of soda but didn't finish it, she'd put the open can back in the fridge and finish it later, even though it would be flat by that point.
So as I'm cleaning out the refrigerator, I'm crying and taking bites of all the cold leftover food in there. I was thinking that at least some of her food isn't going to waste, and thinking how sad it is that we'll never have one of her home-cooked meals again.
I gather it's a generation thing. Anyone who grew up during the early 20th century has "don't waste food" tattooed on the inside of their skull with a picture of a ration-card next to it.
My grandma is much the same.
My grandpa is the same, despite being halfway across the world. Grew up under japanese occupation in Singapore and would not let the tiniest scrap of meat on a fish's head go into the trash.
Mickey Dees, always there when you need it.
Mom ended up in the hospital just in time for my sisters b-day.
All my sister wanted to do was go see mom and see if she was okay. I said I would take her as I wanted to see mom myself.
Dad ended up screaming that we didn't have the gas to drive to the hospital she was at and that we could do something "Later."
I got pissed, raided my dads coin jar on his bureau, hauled my sister into the car, put $5 into the gas tank, and drove through McDonalds where my sister and I had a hamburger, shared a small fry and a drink and ate in relative silence.
THAT was a depressing meal.
What happened after that, if you don't mind me asking? And is your mom okay?
She's ok. Dad was upset with me for a bit.
Rest is history almost.
Depressing.
A leftover casserole my 2nd wife had made. I ate it when I came home from her funeral.
I have christmas dinner leftovers in my freezer that my mom made. Not sure if I'm going to eat them...but I also don't know if I'll ever be able to recreate her cooking.
Look at it this way, she made it for you. Would she want you to eat it or toss it? You could look at it as a way of honoring her memory.
Exactly, it's either going to be eaten and enjoyed or it's going to linger in the bottom of the freezer almost totally forgotten about for god knows how long, then chucked in the bin like any other piece of rubbish because you either really need the freezer space, the freezer died or you're moving house.
You may as well put it to good use and appreciate the effort and care that went into making it, rather than that person having spent some of their very last days making a weird frozen food shrine to themselves.
Times is tough and we're tired. And yes, I have.
You ever have sleep for dinner?
I have. The worst feeling is waking up not knowing what you're going to eat that day because you have nothing.
Are you doing better now?
Oh yes. Thankfully. Everything got better once I was able to leave home and support myself. Shitty family even took my hard earned money and used it to buy cigarettes instead of food
If you're going through a similar situation just know you'll be okay. It might not be tomorrow, it might hurt and be very hard for a little longer, but you will be fine and not hungry someday. I wish I could hug you and make everything okay.
When your friends had one job, and failed.
I invited some friends to a sushi restaurant for my birthday. I arrived a little early and sat down at the table for 6 I'd reserved, then one by one the texts came in canceling, and not a single person showed up. Even worse, the waitress noticed it was my birthday when she took my ID, so I knew the waitstaff could tell what was going on and felt sorry for me.
To everyone asking, yes, of course I just ditched all those friends and made a completely new set of friends in my mid 20s. And then everyone in the restaurant stood up and clapped. Those friends' names? Albert Einstein, all of them. Either that, or I learned a valuable lesson that if your birthday falls on a weekday and you're an adult, just celebrate it on the nearest weekend instead of asking people to schlep all the way downtown on a Wednesday and being shocked when they bail.
This sh*t right here is why I try and never cancel, even if I legit have a cold or something or I realize I can't stay the whole time.
You never know, you could be the one friend who came through for someone.
I wish I could go back in time and show up to eat all your sushi, friend.
Could be worse...
Some random snacks from 7-11, eaten for Christmas dinner with my father after my mother kicked him out. My father is a piece of sh*t, but I felt like it was still my job to try to hold the family together (and I was kind of afraid that he was planning to kill himself).
This was very close to a situation I was in 5 years ago except I didn't answer my dads calls. He must of thought we all didn't love him or wanna see him anymore cause he did it. It will always eat me up of how different it could have been if I answered and went to see him.
CAAAAAARBS.
Bread sandwich.
Buy a bag of potatoes with that bread. boiler the potato, mash it, fry, stick inbetween bread. nom nom nom.
And there are people who think carbs are the enemy...
No. Never again.
I once microwaved undercooked noodles with leftover meatballs and poured a bunch of ranch on it because it was the closest thing I could find to a pasta sauce. It 'twas a dark time in history.
How'd it taste?
Like sadness with ranch.
Welcome to Sadness Ranch, the home of the failed rodeo clown.
I've had to eat peanuts for dinner.
When I was scraping by living paycheck to paycheck and I had an unexpected car repair that took away all my spending money, I went to the grocery store and bought a few packages of ramen, a bag of rice and a 12-pack of eggs for like $4-$5 in change and can returns that I scrapped together. Ate a ramen/rice/egg bowl for breakfast and dinner for two weeks.
I'm there right now. In college, switched my major late, ended up going a 5th year so financial aid isn't paying the same. I fry my rice with eggs in the morning and just dump sriracha on it. For dinner I eat ramen with more eggs, or if I'm able to afford chicken breast I eat that.
Went from a bodybuilder to hardly being able to keep muscle o due to lack of calories and protein.
Dark.
Food pulled from dumpsters. The expired food still sealed was ok. Half eaten burgers from McDs? Not so much.
During a short time, my family was homeless (my mother took us in the middle of the night to some distant city via bus). My siblings and I would pretty much hang out at this McDonald's up the road from the shelter we lived in. We would watch people eat and take what was left over, digging through the trash cans when employees were too busy.
My little sister still had the habit after we moved back in with my dad. She would randomly appear with a McDonald's cup or half a burger before we even ordered. I tend to leave my cups on the top of the trash cans when I leave any fast food place, and I'm always looking to see if someone needs something. If someone had paid us more than a moment of attention they would have realized we needed far more help than we were receiving.
"If someone had paid us more than a moment of attention they would have realized we needed far more help than we were receiving"
right in the feels
Winner.
When I was in college I was a typical broke teenager and I relied on Subway a lot, mainly for their daily deals which was usually a 6 inch and chips/drink for $4 or something cheap like that. This was also back when they had the rewards points card, so the more purchases you made the more points you got.
Anyway I had enough points on my card for a free foot long and decided to save that until I was really pressed for food.
Most of the time I would get the daily deal and split it over lunch and dinner. Besides that I would have top ramen and whatever soup was on sale.
So anyway, I had a pretty light week of work and my only food for the week had been 2 packets of top ramen and an orange so I was STARVING and I decided to cash in those points for the foot long.
In my mind, I could split it into 4 or 5 meals which would last me another week until I got paid.
Then I got home and started eating while watching tv and before I knew it half the sandwhich was gone and I was eating the 2nd half. In my mind I told myself I needed to save my food since it was all I had but my bodily instincts kept pushing me to eat.
It was a delicious sandwich but those last few bites I had, I did it with tears in my eyes because I knew I wouldn't be eating for a few days.
So yea, sobbing while eating a meatball sub from Subway
EDIT: This was over 10 years ago, I was fresh out of highschool, my first time on my own with no real concept of money or cooking for myself aside from hamburger helper/Rice-a-roni/boxed mac-n-cheese (if you can call those cooking). I did not eat only Subway but as I said it consisted of most of my diet since I could spend $4 and get 2 meals out of it. In my mind it was better than ramen because I could get veggies and meats. I am a lot better off now in terms of making money stretch and using it in the proper ways. I am also very familiar with cooking cheap meals. TLDR: I was young and dumb.
People Divulge If They'd Still Use Social Media If They Had To Share Their Real Identity
Reddit user pretty_monotonous asked: 'Would you still use reddit if it had the anonymity aspect taken away? Why or why not?'
Social media platforms like Reddit allow users to comment on strangers' posts under the convenience of anonymity.
While a majority of the comments people leave can be insightful or encouraging, there are unfortunately many trolls who recklessly leave hurtful comments and do so while being cognizant that there are no real consequences for such bullish behavior.
This led Redditor pretty_monotonous to ask an interesting hypothetical about what would happen if a certain Reddit feature became obsolete.
They asked:
"Would you still use reddit if it had the anonymity aspect taken away? Why or why not?"
Some come to be entertained.
The Wallflower
"I'd lurk and read, but I wouldn't post."
– Not_a_werecat
"Basically how I've been using reddit for years! I have a hard time even making the simplest comments without thinking somehow this sh*ts gonna backfire on me somehow."
– archeryfreak93
Not Alone
"I love this ! I’m currently on a social media detox and I thought I was stupid for still using Reddit but I need some exposure to social media I can’t just completely cut it out, but this made me feel better thanks stranger."
– KylieJennerHusband
Fully Transparent
"Same for me. When I come here I can be fully transparent, and read others stories without making comparisons and going down the rabbit hole that usually leaves me feeling anxious and not good enough."
– crayshesay
It's a hard no.
Mental Health
"Nope. I removed myself from every platform that had that because I was constantly comparing myself to other real people, wishing I had what they had, and it was not healthy for me. Here, I have no clue who any of you are, and it's been an incredibly healthy shift while still allowing some exposure to social media."
– dj92wa
Permission To Be Rude
"No. Not because anonymity gives me the opportunity to be rude to people (I try to be as polite here as in real life), but because anonymity gives me the opportunity to talk about things freely that I wouldn't talk about if my actual name was attached to it."
"I have no desire for family members or employers to search my name and stumble across me sharing an embarrassing story, or having a not-so-mainstream opinion, or fangirling over my favorite tv character or whatever other niche interests I might have. Not to mention the risk of being stalked by people you try to avoid."
– onesmilematters
Giving Up On The Internet
"Hell no, I'd immediately stop using nearly every website I frequent if the anonymity was gone."
– AGlitchedNPC
Unemployment Risk
"One reason amongst the multitude of reasons, is that I don’t want the sh*t I say on the internet interfering with my job. I don’t want to get fired over a controversial opinion or over the language I use, such as simple words like f'k or sh*t. I’d have to overly censor myself, and the point of being anonymous is that I don’t have to do that."
– falaladoo
Security Reasons
"Probably not. I don't want to broadcast my identity for security reasons. I think that is often forgotten about when people go rabid over online anonymity."
"If a criminal/hostile state actor can make connections of when/where/what you post, it opens up a lot of scary possibilities."
– Substantial_Double32
For some, it's just a space for casual interaction.
Difference With Facebook
"This is one of the things that I really enjoy reddit for vs. Facebook. I can have indepth discussions, arguments, and debates with people who have no clue who I am, nor do I know them. I've really limited what I'll comment on Facebook out of the realization that any one I'm friends with could see that."
– ronaldreaganlive
Some Limits
"I might possibly still use it."
"But I won't express myself honestly anymore."
"Anonymity is one of absolutely essential things to assure honest and open debate. When you can be hounded and publicly punished for having an opinion different than that of the majority, you can not have free and fair debate."
– dittybopper_05H
Staying Private
"The same reason I don't post or comment on FB or Insta etc, I don't want people I know to read my opinions on anything. I'm a private person and It's none of their business."
"I like to be argumentative and have various opinions on topics that many people on my 'friends list' wouldn't necessarily appreciate."
"I'm also dead against the 'look at me' type of posting you see on other platforms; e.g. 'okay this time I'm done' without any explanation."
"In closing: I don't want to live my online life under the lense of people I know IRL."
– Rab1227
I would have no problem continuing to use any social media platform to comment on a topic with my authentic take on the subject at hand.
Because why on earth would anyone willfully make the original poster feel bad while they know exactly who is making negative remarks?
Many say, "If you don't have anything nice to say, then don't say it."
Yet, that doesn't seem to stop people who have nothing better to do but elevate themselves by taking total strangers down.
Life's short, people. Let's be kind. It's not that hard.
When intending to show a woman how much she means to you, giving her flowers is a fairly common solution.
When trying to do the same for men, however, what to give them is a bit more challenging.
True, plenty of men will be overjoyed to get a bouquet of bright red roses or pink and yellow tulips.
Unfortunately, there are still far too many men who are too insecure with their masculinity to be caught dead holding a single rose, let alone a bouquet.
Leaving one to wonder, what is an appropriate substitution?
"What’s the gifting equivalent of flowers for a dude?"
Nothing Says Love Like Home-Baked Goods...
"Fresh baked cookies or brownies."- zazzlekdazzle
"It's a traditional romantic gift from the opposite sex that can also be given as condolence or congratulation."
"In every scenario where a girl might get given flowers, a guy might get given baked goods."- Efficient_Star_1336
Please Their Ego, And You'll Be Fine...
"Maaaan, just some appreciation and maybe a compliment."- Far_Kangaroo_8111
"I’m a simple man and don’t usually like being gifted anything."
"But a hug and heartfelt compliment or kiss from a SO goes a long way."- Fenix_Fire66
White Lotus Flirting GIF by HBOGiphyNo Need To Shop, Just Look At The Ground
"A cool rock."- simonearth
"My best mate would be over the moon if I found a cool rock and gave it to him."- NotoriousJAM
More Precious Than You Think...
"A 10mm socket."- speedyhemi
"There are only 1000 10mm sockets in the world and they move around, so if you can’t find yours it means that someone else is using it right now."- unbearablebastard
Nothing Better Than A Warm Embrace
"Hug works for me."- randymysteries
Season 9 Hug GIF by The OfficeGiphySomething To Eat, Not Just See And Smell
"Lots of guys on here saying flowers."
"Sure, some guys might want flowers, but don’t let this convince you that all guys secretly want someone to give them flowers."
"I’m a 38 year old guy."
"I don’t want flowers."
"I don’t want to find a vase for them."
"I don’t want to clean up when they wilt and the petals fall off."
"I don’t want you to waste your money on them."
"Don’t get me flowers."
"Get me something I can eat or drink instead."
"Beef jerky."
"Nice coffee."
"Nice booze."
"Dessert."- gilded-perineum
"Hot meal?"- kurainikuraini
"A home cooked meal!"- Popular-Ad2193
Korean Drama Cooking GIF by The SwoonGiphy"Everything Is Awesome"...
"A Lego set."- dysFUNctional_kitty
"Yes!"
"I don’t drink alcohol or like flowers, but there is always room for one more Lego set on my shelf."- DelusionalPianist
And NOT Well-Done...
"A pack of ribeyes."- fishstock
"I have rarely loved my wife as much as when she came home with a barbecue kit."
"She told me I didn’t treat myself often enough."
"So she got a couple of beers."
"Went to the butcher for a couple of burgers and a steak."
"All I had to do was turn on the grill and sit back."- mirage2101
Still In The Botanical Family...
"Potted plant."
"I love flowers, but like, bring me the whole plant."
"The flowers will die in a few days."- PVDeviant-
Little Shop Of Horrors GIF by MauditGiphySeems Fairly Obvious
"Beer."
"A six-pack is always a nice gesture."- Excellent-Practice·
Just Make Sure You Get The Right Kind And Sauces!
"Chicken wings"- wm_destroy
"Plus Ranch or Blue Cheese (depending on preference)."- RatherDashingf11
Just Don't Expect To Ever Hear From Him Again...
"RTX 4090."- Jetzve
"The only right answer."- _Revlak_
Video Games Gamer GIFGiphyIt should perhaps be mentioned that not all women love getting flowers either.
Pollen is a notoriously bad allergy.
However, no matter the gender of the recipient, any gift to show how much you appreciate them should be met with gratitude.
After all, it's the gesture that counts.
Though, it shouldn't come as a surprise that some people will be even more visibly grateful to receive a gorgeous Wagyu rib-eye than they would a bouquet of daffodils...
CW: Assault and abuse.
Everyone loves a good true crime mystery.
The number of documentaries and podcasts reporting on murder and mass madness has tripled over the years.
People still make Dateline NBC, 20/20, and 48 Hours must-see TV.
Some cases should be too brutal to watch.
Yet we can't help ourselves.
We just can't seem to get enough.
Redditor Electrical-Lemon187 wanted to discuss the true-life horror stories that keep us all awake at night, so they asked:
"What crime was so brutal you get chills just thinking about it?"
The following piece may be too much for some people.
The details are definitely NC-17.
Disgusting
"The murder of James Bulger, an English 2-year-old abducted, tortured, and murdered in 1993 by two 10-year-old boys. I can't get that sh*t out of my head."
AdmiralBofa
"I remember this popping up on Reddit again some point after I had my little boy. He was almost 3 at the time, and I couldn’t sleep that night imagining that happening to my little guy. That and Albert fish, I was so f**ked after hearing the full morbid podcast on it I hugged my son an obscene amount of times that day."
dawn855
Who are they?
"Really, really upset me more than a lot of others for some reason."
IgnorethisIamstupid
"Although it is almost certain that the murderer(s) can no longer be identified, all authors of the report [2007, very detailed] independently agreed on who the main suspect in the case was. However, his name was not mentioned out of consideration for his descendants. I don’t know how I feel about that choice."
maof97
On Tape
"The David Parker Ray's murders. The transcript of the tape he played for his victims was one of the hardest things I've ever read."
idreaminwords
"The worst part (in my opinion) is that on the FBI’s website, they have pages and pages of pictures of his trophies. Hundreds of photos of items that they believe belonged to women he tortured."
"None of the photos are of gore just items like pins and earrings. FBI’s photos It pains me that each of those items belong to someone who suffered the unimaginable. There is a large amount of Native American-made jewelry, Harley Davidson memorabilia, and even a medical alert bracelet."
Intrepid_Remote_6129
In Pennsylvania...
"Not the most brutal I've heard of, but one that affected my parents heavily. In Pennsylvania 20ish years ago, a man had his head blown off on live TV. 2 bank robbers put an explosive collar on a friend's neck, then made him rob a bank or they'd blow him up."
"Police catch and begin to arrest him, but he warns police about the bomb. Police wait for a bomb squad/orders on what to do, and reporters show up and start recording. Then the 2 robbers see their 'friend' on the news, and hit the detonator before he gives them away."
Spinerflame
One Dark Night
"Susan Powell and her children destroy me. Her husband axed the two boys and set the house on fire and they all died. Susan had gone missing a year(s?) earlier and it’s just figured at this point the husband did it but her body was never found. Horrific."
Broadway_is_Burning
"Agreed. This makes me sick to my stomach."
"Physically ill. We all know what he did to his wife and kids but I get sick when I think about the fact they dated. They had everyday interactions. They spent years together. Years of conversations, jokes, intimacy, etc… and for him to brutally murder them all one night? Especially because people knew him as this passive guy. Really f**ks me up."
rootea
What is wrong with the world?
How do some people become such monsters?
The Infamous
"Everything surrounding Jonestown. Once as a kid I caught a documentary about it on PBS, just straight over the antennae TV at maybe 8 pm and it was one of the most graphic things I've ever seen on TV."
AlanMorlock
"I listened to most of the tapes and they are a hard listen. I go wrong with trying to put myself in that place during the whole ordeal of living in Jonestown. The sad, climatic end to life there, as told through the death tape... it's very horrific. What's crazy is that there are still questions surrounding that awful day in November."
"The death tape was edited, notice that it goes from killing the children to Jim Jones announcing that they performed a mass suicide. Morbid curiosity would want me to know what happened during the whole ordeal. Then there's the day after tape, where it sounds like a man and a woman are watching a news report on the murders. Where did that come from and who recorded it? It's very strange and we may never know the answers or the full story."
BoxTalk17
Mandalay Bay
"The Vegas shooting. It's hard to imagine being in a killing field, I wouldn't know where to hide or run. Stuff like that creeps me the f**k out because nutbags seem to be everywhere."
LightningTF2
"I was just in Vegas in March. I smoked some weed for the first time in years because hey it's Vegas and it's legal. I sat in the chair that looked out of my hotel window and could NOT imagine what that would be like."
"When we walked towards Mandalay Bay later on that evening the feeling of dread hit me so hard that my wife and I turned around. Being a little high didn't help but either way, it felt like Vegas was acting like it didn't even happen. So wild."
iscreamconey
Take the Bus
"As a New Yorker, I get chills every time I see a story about some crazy person just shoving a random person onto the subway tracks, for no apparent reason. I've seen footage and security camera video, and the person is just standing there, minding their own business, and some psycho just jumps up and shoves them onto the tracks for no reason at all."
"Kids too. and if not for fast-acting well-meaning strangers, these people would have been killed instantly. In one video, the little girl was saved by a whisker. Gives me the creeps that there are psycho's out there that do these sorts of things."
The_REAL_McWeasel
The OG Evil
"I know this is bland, but Ted Bundy, how the hell did he manage to get away with 99% of the murders he committed."
gaydumba**3
"Just imagine being around back then. He escaped during one of his trials and during the manhunt to find him he murders people. It must've been such a crazy time."
due_the_drew
"Absolutely, and the fact he was charming made people think no more of him, and that was one his best perks, the fact he could lure you so easily is what made him such an effective killer."
gaydumbass3
Ted Bundy will never not be a part of the conversations surrounding the worst of the worst.
This list will kill my sweet dreams forever.
As quickly as the internet and social media came onto the scene, many people can still remember what it was like before the internet was so prevalent, or at least when people were first getting acclimated to it.
Thinking back, they entertained the idea of the internet going away again, and the results were eye-opening.
Redditor Samuelwankenobi_ asked:
"If the internet shut down tomorrow, what do you do?"
Looking for Work
"I would probably have to look for a job."
- alwaysworks
"Almost all business now depends on the internet, including payment networks, infrastructure, etc..."
- trancecircuit
Be Kind; Rewind
"Step 1. Make some phone calls."
"Step 2. Open a new form of Blockbuster. People are going to want their movies and shows that they can't stream anymore."
"Step 3. Profit."
- ooglieguy0211
Office Environments
"Be f**king p**sed because I have to work in an office again."
- FredChocula
Honestly, A Dream
"It would be time to actually 'quit' and get to that plant mom career I’ve been wanting."
- skdubbs
Mental Health Quality
"I'd probably see an improvement in my mental health."
- Pale_Currency_134
Back to Reading
"I'd get a library card."
- Virgin_algerian
Reconnect with Nature
"Go outside."
- CertifiedLurker5
"For a nice long bike ride."
- nutellatubby
Internet Addiction
"I am 20 and the internet is all I have known. I would be so annoyed, frustrated, and depressed all at the same time but I do think with time my mental health would improve and I would start doing the things I actually want to do."
- officialjeasuschrist2
"I am 50 and miss my internet-free life quite often. Tech and the internet have done a number on my ability to focus, productivity, and social interactions. But I also lack the willpower to simply shut it off."
- Taminella_Grinderfal
Options Aplenty
"Clean my house and do the garden. No wait, my current fixation is an offline game, I'd probably play that and watch some of my 12Tb of shows and movies instead..."
- LordOafsALot
Sounds About Right
"Run like a headless chicken for about three hours and then go clean my room."
- RavenWitch13
We Can Certainly Hope So
"Go back to enjoying life as it's supposed to be."
- Starforce1616
Practical Choice
"Well, I’d try unplugging and it plugging it back in. Will probably fix it."
- DisappointingPanda
Apocalypse Now
"There would be no card payments (how do you buy food, gas, medicine,…). Landlines run over the internet where I live so no basic telephones. Communication as we know it would be gone. Would ATMs even work anymore? Things would get really ugly, really fast."
- alwaysaprairiegirl
"Nothing would work, some major infrastructures have backups, but for the most part our entire way of life is run through the internet."
"We’d be f**ked if it was out longer than three to five days."
- Mundane_Tour_3215
Avoid the Panic
"Hunker down for the next 48 hours. Stay away from public places and try to avoid being killed over a can of soup as the panic spreads. If it comes back on immediately, start using the brief calm to stockpile as much as I can. Within a week the cost of living will skyrocket as companies try to bleed people dry to recoup their losses and pay for the new redundancy systems they are putting into place. If it doesn't come back on after 48 hours; well kiss your @ss goodbye."
- westernteryaki
Ready to Go
"I am a child of the 80s. I trained for this."
- Subliminal_Image
Though being without the internet being gone would be incredibly jarring, those who were old enough to remember a time without such a prominent internet actually welcomed the idea.