Things Made For Kids That Got Hijacked By Adults
Reddit user opposeThem asked: 'What was meant for kids but adult consumers hijacked it and ruined it?'
It's not uncommon for certain products to end up being used for purposes different than their initial intention.
Cotton swabs, or Q-tips, are the prime example, as nearly all who buy them use them to clean earwax from their ears despite the box expressly warning customers not to.
Then there are the products made for specific customers but whose clientele proves to be quite different from their initial target market.
Specifically, things or experiences intended for children but primarily enjoyed by adults, ruining any excitement the young folk may have had about them.
Redditor opposeThem was curious to hear about all the things magic grown-ups stole away from children, leading them to ask:
"What was meant for kids but adult consumers hijacked it and ruined it?"
Who Doesn't Need Something Soft And Cuddly Every Now And Then...
"Squishmallows."
"People trying to resell these literal stuffies 3x the price online."- sighcommagroan
Seems Like They Were Looking For The Wrong Kind Of Bears...
"Build A Bear."
"As a former employee I don't care if you came in and bought some stuff animals."
"Hell, there's some cool ones like Pokémon."
"HOWEVER, just cuz I worked there doesn't mean I have a whole collection myself and watch every show and movie that's partnered with the company."
"Yes I was an adult man working at a stuffed animal store."
"Yes I bought a couple Pokémon for myself."
"'No I don't wanna hear another grown man passionately talk to me about My Little Pony and PLEASE I DON'T WANT TO SEE A CUTIE MARK TATTOO YOU HAVE ON YOUR A** CHEEK EVEN IF THERE'S NO KIDS IN THE STORE CURRENTLY."- That_Guy_Pen
Fun Can't Be Forced
"After school hobbies!"
"Around the age of 47, I decided to pick up guitar again."
"So I went to a local school and enrolled as an adult."
"I would see parents harassing their kids and berating them for not being better."
"I think the majority of them have lost the idea that extracurricular activities are too help your child out of their shell and also to have fun."
"Not to make them a professional of any sort or the best of the best of the best."- BisquickNinja
I Mean, They Are Pretty Cute
"Minions."- aprairiehocompanion
"I remain baffled as to how and why minions, of all things, became the thing of choice for unfunny boomer memes."- moonbunnychan
Collect Them All... To Sell Them Later...
"Every card hobby."
"It’s literally just about prices now."- lol022
"Pokémon Cards."
"Scalpers were so down horrendous they were raiding McDonald's during the pandemic."- Sol-Blackguy
ash ketchum pokemon GIFGiphySilly Rabbit...
"Trix."- Dont-ask-me-ever
"When I was a kid I felt so bad for that rabbit."
"I still don’t understand the idea behind that marketing campaign."
"Was it- being greedy and mean is hilarious."
"Buy our cereal?
"Just give the bunny some cereal you sadistic little sh*ts."
"They ran an ad for a little while that was a campaign that allowed you to vote on whether or not the rabbit would get some Trix."
"I think you had to mail in a box top with your vote or something."
"I voted 'share' with all of my sensitive little heart."
“'Greed' won by a landslide."
"That’s when I first became disillusioned with voting and people in general."- Iamtevya
You Can Keep The House, But You Can't Take My Babies...
"Beanie Baby collectors."- bigredthesnorer
" [A] photo of a divorcing couple dividing their beanie baby collection in court always makes me laugh."
"So ridiculous that people thought they were like stocks."- Delores_Herbig
Beanie Babies GIF by HBO MaxGiphyInfluencer Culture...
"Childhood."
"Parents who film their kid’s lives for likes and subs are sh*tty."- da_predditor
The Edward Vs. Jacob Fued Will Never End...
"YA books."
"I'm an adult that reads them."
"But the characters are TEENAGERS."
"People get upset that teenagers act like teenagers, in books targeted at... you guessed it, teenagers."- PumpkinPieIsGreat
So Much For Love Of The Game...
"Youth sports."
"When I was a kid 30 years ago, you’d have a practice or 2 a week plus a game on Saturday."
"Then if you loved sports, you’d get together with buddies in your ample free time and mess around playing super fun pick up games."
"Now, many kids are having full weekend tournaments like every weekend."
"And tons of practices.'
"They rarely have the free time to just play with their friends for the fun of it."
'Sure they are better athletes than we were, but are they better off?"- omgphilgalfond
homer simpson pitcher GIFGiphyCan You Say "Re-Sale?"...
"Pretty much any kids' toy."
"The scalpers are working harder than ever to f*ck it up."
"Video games?'
"Check."
"Pokémon/whatever is popular cards?"
"Check."
"Lego sets?"
"Check as f*ck."
"Fuzzy egg furby like critters?"
"Check check."
"If scalpers can leech money out of people with it, they'll do it."- chris14020
Car Salespeople Can Be Ruthless...
"Hot wheels."- Snow-Dog2121
"Worst memory I have of comic con."
"An exhibitor gave a kid what must’ve been an exclusive at their booth."
"Grown men rushing and crowding the kid pressuring him to sell his toy."
"His parents moved him away promptly but I imagine he was shaken up by the experience."
"Went from a cool moment of unexpectedly getting a toy to grown weirdos getting in his face."- Dwike2
Where To Even Begin?
"Harry Potter vibrating broomstick."- PursuitTravel
"I have one found at Goodwill about 11 years ago."
"I'm a big HP fan, and I was excited to buy it."
'I realized it turned on, and I was hoping for cool sound effects, I was disappointed it only vibrated."
"I remember looking it up online just to check out info on it and found out why it was discontinued shortly after its release, thought never occurred to me until then."- Necranissa
Harry Potter Halloween GIFGiphyOne has to wonder how the manufacturers or marketing departments feel about these alternative uses?
Sadly, one can only guess that as long as they are turning a profit, they couldn't care less...
Men Break Down Which Wholesome Things They Don't Think Guys Should Be Judged For
Reddit user Few-Strength5065 asked: 'Men of Reddit, what shouldn't men be judged for doing?'
There's no denying that men have it easier than women do in just about everything.
With this in mind, it's hard not to join in with those who judge men who display stereotypical, chauvinistic behavior.
However, some would argue, or more specifically some MEN would argue, that they are judged for too many things.
And indeed, everyone would agree that far too many men are judged for displaying behavior that doesn't exactly scream "masculinity."
Redditor Few-Strength5065 reached out to the men of Reddit, asking them what they think men should be able to partake in or enjoy without judgment from others, leading them to ask:
Happiness Is In The Eye Of The Beholder
"Being content with enough."- Zenshin26
The Definition Of Antiquated
"Being the one who takes care of kids in a relationship or making less money than their partner."- HartoCD
Everyone Has The Right To Decompress
"Playing."
"I bust my a** at work and save money so I can then play."
"That might be video games, might be a sport, might be building random shit in a workshop, but whatever it is, let a bro have his hobbies/playtime."
"See a 30 year old playing Pokémon?"
"Good, leave him alone and let him have his fun."- Link9454
Adam Driver Snl GIF by Saturday Night LiveGiphyHead Out Of Gutters People...
"Eating bananas."
"Just tryna get the potassium bro."- MightyKing19
Father's Spending Time With Their Children? The Very Thought!
"Taking kids to the park/walmart/etc."
"Too many horror stories of some Karen taking issue with this as if it's wrong for men to be fathers."
"Also, just being a dad in general."
"There was that phase in the media where the father was played off as some idiot that couldn't even without the help of the wife.'
"Our culture seemed to buy this idea wholesale, and we're still reeling from the effects."- ridicalis
"Being a parent."
"Any time a dad is out alone with his kids other people always ask if he's on babysitting duty."
"It's not called babysitting it's called being a parent."- Elementus94
Fathers Day Dad GIF by America's Funniest Home VideosGiphyPeace And Quiet Can Be Hard To Come By
"Wanting to be left the hell alone."
"It’s not that we don’t want to spend time with our partners, but for f*ck sake alone time is valuable."
"Sometimes your man just wants a little time to himself and there’s nothing wrong with that or anything to read into about it."-Jollybritishchap
Smart, Smart Boy...
"Maybe a minor one, not talked about a lot but: watching certain movies."
"Growing up I was always taught that certain things were just for girls."
"I’m 29, just watched Charlie’s Angels for the first time a month ago and I’m honestly mad at what could’ve been a pretty formative movie."
'When I was 14 or so, my uncle was trying to ask me and my cousin which movie we wanted to rent for the evening."
"It came down to Catwoman or Scorpion King, and my cousin chose Catwoman only for my uncle to say 'that’s gay' to which my cousin replied: 'how is you wanting to watch The Rock all shirtless and oiled up not gay, but me wanting to watch Halle Berry in a skintight leather cat suit is?'"- CinnaSol
All That Matters Is How They Taste
"Liking 'girly' cocktails."
"Let me have a margarita."
"Generally, anything deemed 'girly'."- Panal-Lleno
Jimmy Fallon Drinking GIFGiphyNO MEANS NO!!!
"Telling a woman no."- AFLYINGDINGUS
Minimalism Is Popular
"Having empty apartments."
"As much as it’s nice to have decorations in a house, I don’t give a sh*t about it."
"As long as my house is clean and I am comfortable in it then I have the essentials."
"My girlfriend is the only reason our house is decorated."- Grundle_Gripper_
Dancing Alone GIF by Aaron AyeGiphyEmotions Are A Sign Of Strength
"Opening up their emotions."
"Being a man can be so lonely."
"if your struggling don't be afraid."- JillHardenerOfficial
Interest Can't Be Forced
"Not being interested in sports."- Klutzy_Growth1945
Major League Soccer No GIF by Sporting KCGiphyMany people have their opinions of what a "real man" should do and be.
Without any justification for that opinion whatsoever.
After all, it seems safe to agree that a "real man" couldn't care less what others think about their interests and hobbies, as long as they aren't bringing any harm to others.
Ideally, they might even be bringing others joy.
We can all agree that we need a healthy dose of fun in our lives, and one sure way of keeping the fun around is to have a hobby we revisit regularly.
But while we can all agree about the importance of having a hobby, we certainly will not all agree about the financial investment involved in many of our options.
Redditor IAmTheQ asked:
"What are your expensive hobbies?"
Traveling
"I love to travel, which can be expensive. That's why I don't travel that often because I have to save up between trips. But I love traveling to new places and learning about the culture and history. If I was independently wealthy, I'd be traveling constantly."
- _Hir0sh1ma
"I hope you become independently wealthy."
- IAmTheQ
Fixing Cars
"Fixing cars."
"Simply, I don't get to enjoy it."
- NotYourAverageFox
Oil Painting
"Oil painting. I pay for a studio and sometimes paint is $30 for a small tube. Same with brushes. I can spend a cool $200 on like a couple of tubes of paint and a few paintbrushes once a month easily."
- Eatmysmalla**666
Astrophotography
"Astrophotography."
- Hopeful_Ad_9610
"That sounds out of this world."
- IAmTheQ
"It is indeed astronomically expensive."
- Hopeful_Ad_9610
Going to Concerts
"Going to concerts."
- ReeG
"Live music is the best way to spend money, I love concerts and shows."
- I_DRINK_ANARCHY
Raising Horses
"Horses."
- ExperienceSwimming57
"So much money!"
- Apprehensive-Air8917
"Came here to say that. And sometimes it isn't even my horse (I say as I look at a horse in our facility who bowed a tendon and the owner didn't properly start the medical process properly, and I said 'screw it,' and as of today [when I found out about the poor baby], I am now attempting to give this horse a proper shot at healing)."
- Hestias-Servant
Collecting Vinyl
"Vinyl records."
"I had to stop. It was causing major issues in my marriage. I unfollowed all the record-buying subreddits and started a savings account. I still look, but don't buy. It helps that the prices are stupid now."
- Subhumanoid
"I think you meant to say your marriage was causing major issues in your vinyl collecting."
- -Z-3-R-O-
Mountain Biking
"Mountain biking."
- hugeshanus
"Don’t tell non-mountain bikers how much a good dropper seat post costs, much less the complete bikes."
- Visdelupe
Growing Plants
"I grow plants. At first, sure, it was a simple hobby, and cheap. Just a seed and some dirt."
"Then you start doing hydro, experimental techniques, CO2 enrichment, high powered LED lights, and PPFD meters. Then comes the sub-400 wavelength light and light over 700 nm, various sprays, PPM, and pH meters."
"AH, you went cheap before, now you gotta get blue (an expensive brand). Oh, you got some o2 decencies in your water, need an O2 meter. The list goes on and on."
- Bojangles315
Making Cheese
"Cheese making. Why buy a reasonably-sized hunk of fancy cheese at the store when you can spend hundreds of dollars on milk, a couple grand on supplies and equipment, and months of your time on a slightly larger, but not as good tiny wheel of your own?"
- thegreatfartrocket
Playing Guitar
"Guitar lessons, guitars, and other guitar-related equipment."
- PatienceAndFortitude
"Teach a man to fish and he eats for a day, but teach a man to play guitar and he never eats again."
- TheLurkingMenace
Painting in Miniature
"Miniature painting."
"My pile of shame is currently in a massive military surplus duffle bag under my bed."
"I am around 5 feet 10 inches, and can lay down flat in the bag."
"It weighs so much I can't lift it."
- Blankly-Staring
Pinball Machine Restoration
"Pinball machines. I have over 100 of them."
"I accidentally fell into the hobby when I bought a pinball machine and was told it just needed to be 'reset' to work. That was a lie and I realized very few people knew how to repair/restore these things."
"Once I learned how I started saving old pinball machines from being destroyed and started a collection. Now the hobby is a lot more popular than it used to be. It's fun to learn and share what I know about the games and the industry. And they're tons of fun to play."
"I created a youtube channel where I post videos of my pinball restorations. Over 500 videos to date."
- PinballHelp
Building with LEGO
"LEGO. Plastic crack."
- havefunSVO
"I’ve had $200 worth of sets sitting in my cart on Lego.com just waiting for me to get high or drunk enough to pull the trigger."
"Amazon is like $600… and that doesn’t include wishlists."
"I wish I could afford to invest in the actual company, haha!"
- GlasseyeMV
Skiing
"Skiing. If you ignore the cost of equipment, the cost of season passes, and travel, it's not too bad."
- Eron-The-Relentless
It's so important for us to have an activity that is just ours that brings us incredible joy. But at a certain point, we might need to ask ourselves, "At what cost?"
Too many of us were told to grow up or that it would be wrong to continue to enjoy the things that made our childhoods worth remembering.
But now as adults, some have figured out that there's nothing wrong with enjoying a nice bowl of sugary cereal while watching those Saturday morning cartoons. Quite frankly, it feeds the soul.
Redditor iStoleurvalor asked:
"What is 'for kids' that you continue to thoroughly enjoy as an adult?"
Outdoor Playtime
"Playgrounds in general. Since becoming a dad, I can bring my kids to the playground and have fun with them on the slides, swings, monkey bars; most things."
"I wish there were public/free adult-sized playgrounds. It'd probably encourage us to get out a lot more. It feels like everything geared for adults nowadays charges admission, and it's not cheap."
- densetsu23
The All-Fours Climb
"Going up the stairs on all fours will always be fun."
- Curious-Kaylee
"I’m a huge advocate for climbing stairs on all fours, but I’m now imagining how horrifying it would be to see that in a public setting, lol (laughing out loud)."
- metallic_buttcheeks
"'LOOK OUT, KIDS! SHE'S COMING!'"
"*kids screaming*"
- KeepCalmSayRightOn
"I need to try this. But the only steps I regularly take are at work, lol (laughing out loud)."
- tittilizing
"I race up the stairs at work on all fours to assert dominance."
- JoshPlaysUltimate
Animated Movies as an Art Form
"Animated movies in general. I can still enjoy them. When I've had a rough day or if I'm just feeling down, I can put on something wholesome, funny, or nostalgic and it makes me feel better."
- catching_signals
"'Emperor's New Groove' is my favorite feel-good movie."
- Compulsive-Gremlin
Sticker Collections
"STICKERSSSSS."
- ObviouslyKatie
"F**K YES."
"Never enough stickers. I had a s**tty childhood (like most of us) but stickers always made me happy, especially the fuzzy ones. Suddenly understanding why I'm still bonkers for stickers."
- limeporcupine
Gotta Catch 'Em All
"Pokemon. Started with Red when I was five and haven't stopped since. Doubt I ever will. If anything, my enjoyment of Pokemon is becoming more childlike."
- The_Prezzy
In Cracker Form
"Goldfish. It's hard to resist when my niece is having them for a snack. I make a big show about me being a shark and eating them just so I can have some."
- Drew-
"I really thought you meant actual fish at first..."
Travelerofhighland86
"Fish are friends, not food."
- Phoneking13
A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood
"Mister Rogers' Neighborhood. Of course, it isn't solely for kids, as he made each episode with a mind towards parents watching them with their children, but he's so wholesome and kind, so deliberate and thoughtful with everything that he put on the show."
- Puddnhead_Wilson
"I’d never watched it before and my husband wanted to watch the Tom Hanks movie. But he wanted me to see the real Mister Rogers first. So there we sat, two adults over 30, watching episodes of Mister Rogers. And I loved it!"
- Ankylowright
Favorite Stuffies
"I remember a Reddit post from several years ago where this guy who was in the army or Marines or whatever gushed about his plush Magicarp. He even sent a picture of the Magicarp next to an automatic rifle."
- Mind101
"I'm almost 40 and not ashamed to say I still have my teddy bear, Wally, my mom made when I was two. His arms are lopsided, his ears are wonky, and he is made from upholstery fabric from a 70s couch cushion, but I love that dude."
"I did eight years in two branches of the Marines and Army and did three deployments, and you bet Wally was with me. Either stuffed in a pack or seabag, but he was there because I needed him."
- Jaymakk13
Gotta Love Disney
"Disney animated movies."
"I am a big, mean-looking 40-year-old man. I drove to work listening to the soundtrack to 'Moana.'"
- mkicon
"Second big, mean-looking 40-year-old man here. I may or may not have sobbed on my way to work while kind of singing the soundtrack to 'Encanto' this morning through my tears."
"I'm with you, bro."
- SHABDICE
Who Lives in a Pineapple Under the Sea?
"Not me, but my 55-year-old dad still loves SpongeBob. He'll wake up on a Saturday morning and have his juice and breakfast while watching Spongebob."
- Hwetapple
"Dude, same. Almost every time I go over there, he's always watching SpongeBob. He recently found out he gets Boomerang on his Roku, so he's just been watching 'Tom & Jerry' and 'Loony Toons.'"
"I also love those cartoons so I'm definitely not talking s**t."
- Theren_Alister_XIII
Chocolate Milk, For Sure
"Chocolate Milk."
- Toy_Guy_in_MO
"Who says chocolate milk is only for kids?"
- transformers03
"Ice cold chocolate milk is amazing."
- SigridBaginnses
Skipping Down the Sidewalk
"Skipping. If you haven't skipped in a while, do it. You'll realize how much faster it is than walking, and how much more ground you cover."
- trx0x
Coloring
"Coloring."
"Not with craft paper and high-end pencils adult coloring, either."
"Nope. With a 'Moana' coloring book and the 64-count Crayola box."
- TheSquishyPaleDuke
They'll Never Go Out of Style
"I cannot stop making summer camp-style knotted friendship bracelets out of embroidery floss."
"It keeps my hands busy while I'm working/watching TV/traveling and I don't get sucked into my phone."
"Now I just leave piles of bracelets everywhere."
- andtheIToldYouSos
Breakfast of Champions
"Breakfast cereals... all of the fruity, sugar-filled candy-like cereals. It is totally my weekend treat. Nothing during the week."
"Fruity pebbles (Dino bites now. Post changed the recipe a while back) is totally my jam. Who doesn't like destroying the roof of their mouth on some Cap'n crunch?"
- hammerraptor
These are great reminders of some of the good things we had in our childhood, but it's an even more important lesson that there's no harm in doing something for our inner child every once in a while, maybe even every day.
Everyone has their own interests, and it's fulfilling and fun to find other people who enjoy the same things, too.
But sometimes when we don't like an activity or TV show that is super popular, it can be especially validating to find someone who doesn't "get it" just as much as we don't.
Redditor Callum_BTW asked:
"What is something you simply can't understand why people enjoy?"
Enough Said.
"Child beauty pageant events."
- SuvenPan
Reality TV
"TV shows like 'The Bachelor,' 'The Bachelorette,' or all reality shows."
- herefortheparteee
In Need of Volume Control
"Videos of people being obnoxiously loud in a pathetic attempt at being funny. Loud is not funny."
- Ivymorrigan666
Pranking Videos
"Videos of YouTubers annoying, harassing, or terrorizing random people."
"To me, pranks are supposed to have a tongue-in-cheek element to them where both people leave with mirth about what happened."
"I don’t understand the mindset of enjoying a situation that just left the victims stressed out and upset. It just makes the world worse, and more often than not the guys making these videos just seem like bullies to me."
"The comments are already 90% pointing out the fact that people are not your props and that if something happens to the YouTuber, they have it coming."
"But people still tune in. Go f**king figure."
- Ebvardh-Boss
Cave Diving
"So much claustrophobia plus a limited oxygen tank. F**k that."
- Yak-500
It's Not For Everyone
"Being pregnant. I’ve heard many women talk about how wonderful it is."
"I myself am not a fan of the experience at all. The amount of discomfort and pain I experience daily, along with the nausea, and how my entire lifestyle has had to be adjusted."
- maya_star444
Begrudging Self-Care
"Exercise. I'll do it for my health, but I never understood why people enjoy it (especially early in the morning, what the f**k) or the 'runner's high' phenomenon. It's a pain in the a** and it's never been fun."
- catching_highs
No Tea for Me, Thanks
"One word: Drama."
- theyusedthelamppost
TikTok Dances
"We've all seen the videos of people doing their dances for Tiktok in random places. Shopping malls, aisles in Costco, parking lots, on the beach, in the hotel lobby, etc."
"I do not understand who this content appeals to. Who is going online and then watching people, even their friends they know, do a random dance in a random place? What do you get from that content?"
"It isn't funny because they are being serious about the dance. It isn't creative, because it's a dance that they have memorized."
"What is the appeal? I really want to hear from somebody that watches this stuff. I mean, it clearly is one of the most popular things to do on that app. What are you doing?"
- rity5yender
Gory Movies
"I don't mind some gore when it's well done, but some things just have gore for the sake of gore and it's stupid."
- cjlutera
Second Opinions
"I can't understand why some people go to the doctor, get a diagnosis and a prescription, then decide the doctor is wrong and whine about it on Reddit. Get a proper second opinion!"
"And yes, they do seem as if they enjoy doing that."
- EspressoBooksCats
Bullying Tactics
"Bullying or being mean to others, especially unprovoked."
- NotConsistentCalc
Gossip
"Who cares what Shelia did. Or what Brad’s kids are doing. Mind your own business."
- DefinitelyNotADave
Celery
"Celery has a power of flavor that works when it's lost among much better tasting stuff, works best when you can't pick it out, but if it wasn't there you'd miss it, AKA most stocks."
"But celery on its own, f**k that s**t."
- CurvedStew
Different Dating Interests
"Casual sex. I hear a lot of stories from my coworkers, and everything about it sounds awkward and unfulfilling at best."
- MotivationalSpeaker
This discussion serves as a reminder how different all of our interests are, and even when something is really popular, there will always be someone out there who isn't a big fan of it.