Somethings still make us feel like the stone ages. As far as we've come, is as far as we still have to go.
Sealed. Delivered.
Hungry Lucky Charms GIF by Dark IglooGiphy"Cereal bags that aren't re-sealable."
Brewer1056
"Bacon would also like to join this conversation."
CannonFTW
Hang Up
"Scam calls. Please make them stop."
Agitated_Pin_6145
"My job requires my coworkers calling ahead when they're 5 minutes away from the customer's house, and like 50% of people just don't pick up because of scam calls. The worker often has to call back into the office and have a call made from the landline that shows our business, even though we prep customers that they'll get a call from a local cellphone around X time."
boxjohn
Music Hell
"Ticketmaster. How in the living hell have they not had a decent competitor that charges lower rates yet?"
Taynt42
"Ticketmaster pressures artists to avoid venues that don't use Ticketmaster to starve out venues that try to go around them."
HanabiraAsashi
"John Oliver did a bit on this a few weeks ago. Long story short, TM forces the venues to use them, contractually (among other shady practices). Very hard for a well-meaning competitor to break in."
AdRevolutionary5298
"mark as read"
"Email attachment file size limits."
A-D-A-M-
"Back in the early days on dial up Compuserve, a girl sent me an email attachment of an .avi of the dancing baby, uncompressed. It was over 110MB."
"The email program wouldn't let you 'mark as read' until it finished downloading the message and attachments (this is like 1994). It took my entire month's allotment of internet hours to download the freaking thing. My point is that size limits help prevent stupidity, like Agnes in accounting accidentally emailing you their entire financial database."
wintremute
Bad Pop
Comedy Central Advertising GIF by South ParkGiphy"Pop up adds. Like who still falls for that?"
DoggyMcDogDog
I hate you Ticketmaster! Why are they still a thing? ARGHH!
Live Forever
jimmy fallon celebs GIFGiphy"Keith Richards."
jayzedandconfused
"We need to start really thinking about what kind of world we want to leave behind for Keith Richards."
loopring1984
Poison
"McAfee 'antivirus.' That crap is malware, and has been malware for years...yet it comes preinstalled on almost every PC."
iLikeTorturls
"It offers little to no protection over Windows built-in security, while having a very very noticeable performance hit to everything. Plus, they increasingly use shady tactics to force their way in as bloatware and scare people into keeping it. Not as bad as Norton, though. McAfee is a giant waste, but Norton is horrific. McAfee had a place back when windows defender was weak, but Norton was never good."
cpMetis
A what machine?
"Fax machines."
eh_pinkachou
"I had to fax something recently for my son's surgery (Ontario, Canada). I couldn't mail it or email it, it had to be faxed. I don't own a fax machine or know anyone who does. I had to go to Staples and use an ancient fax machine there."
pui-puni
"At my workplace we still fax a good amount of stuff. It's 'more secure' than email in that is passes through less stuff because it's point-to-point, and not being stored/saved/copied by email providers, servers, anti-virus, or firewalls."
Nagohsemaj
paperwork...
"1040 forms. They know what I earned. A lot of people are not aware that the US tax code is the most byzantine and intentionally convoluted of all industrial nations. It doesn’t have to be this way."
Bullyoncube
"That’s because of Intuit’s (TurboTax) and H&R Block’s millions of dollars in congressional bribes - oops I mean Citizens United “ money is protected speech” bullcrap."
Practical-Artist-915
"Just think of all the people it would put out of work if we could do our own taxes??? People who provide no material value to anything. But paying to do your taxes creates more tax revenue!"
Reasonable_doubt_59
The Cult
crazy tom cruise GIFGiphy"Scientology is still a tax free 'religion' and people are still involved in cults. Even Tom Cruise is kinda distant from it now. Its pretty bad. It could be crushed now if there was a will."
gleep23
Edges
"Flat earth society."
CheerfulFlame
"They're hard to get rid of since they are all around the globe."
Cryogenic_Monster
"Falling off the edge is their biggest sphere."
grilldcheese2
SHARON!!
"Ozzy Osbourne."
UsernameTyper
"The general consensus among him and all his doctors is that it’s a legitimate medical mystery, bordering on impossibility, that the amount of drugs he’s done hasn’t killed him. He agreed to donate his body to science after he dies."
Lilpu55yberekt69
"I love the fact that he just accepted it and is gonna let them take his body for science. I wonder how accepting they are of people donating though. Like I have epilepsy so would I be able to donate my brain to further research on epilepsy?"
LePanda47
DC never ends
"Lifetime career politicians."
BubbaBass63
"My solution would be to have every one who goes to DC (executive branch, Supreme Court and Congress) surrender all their assets to the Treasury department. They can hold on to a single home, single car and $100,000 in household goods. All stocks and other assets will be liquidated and put in a managed fund account."
"When the Senators and Congress people are in DC, they can live in a dormitory and they can take their meals in a cafeteria where it's provided at taxpayer expense. We'll put a maximum age of 72 to be elected and they must leave office on their 76th birthday."
Catlenfell
Scammed...
mae whitman GIF by OperatorGiphy"Resort fees, especially at hotels that aren’t resorts. What a scam."
rr90013
"It kills me that some hotels say if you prove you live in the city you can get it waved. So it’s only a resort if you aren’t from there?"
United_Function_9211
Hey Liz
"Queen Elizabeth II."
WinstonChurchillin
"If Queen Elizabeth dies, the throne should die with her. The family is already in shambles, Liz has been queen longer than any of us and some of our parents have been alive, what's the point of going on after this? The 1000 year monarchy should end with the longest-reigning monarch. God save the queen."
WhyAmIFullOfTrouble1
WHY?
"Tables full of asbestos in schools. I understand removing asbestos from walls is difficult but it's a fucking table, it can't be that difficult to buy new tables and store the asbestos ones elsewhere until they can safely get rid of them. Why do you even need asbestos in a table to begin with?
JojoIsGayAndSoAmI
Not them...
"The Kardashians having a show."
MelloMejo
"The Kardashians are the worst role models. Their crappy guidance has caused a lot of mental health issues for my sister. Disney is freaking stupid for putting them on their network. Forget the Kardashians."
Schaufensterpuppe
"I'm of the opinion that the show is basically rigged to be as ridiculous as it is just to keep viewership, and while they're all plastic/fake, that's not how they are in real life. Then again, I recall reading Kim's mom leaked her sex tape or encouraged it."
stormhunter2
Going Forever
Happy The Simpsons GIF by FOX International ChannelsGiphy"The Simpsons."
ZanderRan286
"At 33 seasons I think there are a fair number of writers who are not old enough to remember when the show started, if they were even alive at the time. I was Bart's age when the show started and now I'm older than Homer."
AlsoIHaveAGroupon
The Worst Scam of All
"Health insurance tied to your employment."
perfect_square
"Universal health care may or may not be the answer, but let's just make it affordable at least. I payed out of pocket, 1k a month for good insurance. Got blood work, got billed by the office, and then another separate lab bill for more. You have to pay a ridiculous amount per month, to pay mediocre copays, pay even more to meet deductibles/minimums, and then more for medications, blood work, or anything outside of getting your bp checked."
ChiknBreast
Let's hope 2023 makes some of these obsolete.
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Redditor ShadowOfAphelionwanted to stroll down memory lane and discuss obsolete items from a certain era.
They asked:
"What is something from the early 2000s that no longer exists?"
DVDs, CDs... who would've thought we'd never need them again? I still do, but I'm a grumpy old man.
Clipped Away
"Clippy the paperclip."
anxietygotmelike
"RIP, Clippy. You were always there for me, even when I didn't want you to be."
wickedcricket2187
word everyone GIFGiphyFlash
"Weird flash cartoons."
borninamsterdamzoo
"I randomly get Trogdor stuck in my head. It’s glorious. “In their THATCH ROOF COTTAGES!!!!! THATCH ROOF COTTAGES!!!!!!”
sturgeon11
"And flash games. Ebaumsworld! I don't want to check if it's still a thing but that was the crap back in middle school for me."
violet_hunter339
Minutes & Tones
"Calling people after 9 because they had free minutes. Also, ring back tones."
UndergroundFlaws
"Or buying those ring tones from commercials where you'd text in the number of the ring tone you wanted... yikes that unlocked a memory I didn't know I had."
kortani
"Are ring back tones, the music the caller hears while calling? If so, I have that, and pay extra to be able to assign specific music to specific contacts 😅."
madsd12
I need Sour
"The fruity Altoids RIP."
THAFTRPRTY
"There's an old timey candy store in Florida called Public Displays of Confection that has a youtube channel that shows off making different hard candies. The owner of the shop spend about a year working on the recipe for Tangerine Sours and I think they are now available for preorder on occasion. I got some a few months ago. I think it needed a bit more sour, but over all I think he got the closest to anything else I have tasted."
YourWormGuy
Let's Chat
"AIM."
workingdonttell
"I loved AIM! Many a night I spent just chatting away with people. I remember spending about three hours talking to some rando, who claimed they were Mel B from the Spice Girls. I loved AOL chatrooms."
poohfan
america online email GIFGiphyAIM and AOL. They were obsolete from the beginning. LOL But I remember them fondly.
Tomato Colors
Anyone else remember the Heinz EZ Squirt Ketchup that came in funky colors like green or purple?"
Shoddy-Mastodon-6465
Pixel Burger GIF by haydiroketGiphyThe Bios...
"Bionicles, or at least any new ones."
Ranger176
"My younger brother (25) posted a picture on Instagram of some Bionicles he put together. He was obsessed as a kid and I guess he’s gotten back into them."
Mjb06
"I have like 20 original Bionicle comics that I’ve had forever that I can’t get myself to donate. If you want to pay for shipping, I’ll send them to him lol."
AFlockofLizards
Drenched
"Real super soakers. You cant find a 30 pound minigun that connects to your water hose to win the water war anymore and i feel like my daughter will miss out on the combat experience."
LowLightComment
"You’re right, they are not the same, and it’s a bummer. Now, if relatively harmless assault weapons are what you’re looking for, I’m not sure if you’re familiar with what Nerf is up to these days, but holy shit, my 7 year old and I will go hard, so much fun."
PossiblyUnhinged
"gate pass"
"Friends waiting for you to deplane at your gate."
BFdog
"You can still do this, by the way. Go to the appropriate airline counter and ask for a 'gate pass' to the arriving plane's gate. You'll have to go through security just like you're getting on a plane, but you can waltz right up to the gate and meet them there. Useful for if you're meeting someone with a wheelchair, or a child."
What_is_a_reddot
Way Back When...
"Video rental stores."
"I know we have I think one within a 50 mile radius. Those rental kiosk's are horrible, nothing like walking through the video store and picking out a couple of movies. We would go to our local pizza place and that was one Hell of a date night. Those were the days."
Shelbysouth43
GiphyI miss you Blockbuster Video.
"Wow, what a difference!"
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Oftentimes, however, we realize the things we took for granted have already slipped away from our grasp.
"What is slowly dying off or disappearing?"
Habitat loss and poaching sadly contributes to these rapidly decreasing species.
Terrestrial Residents
"Amphibians. It's a worldwide phenomenon."
"[Due to] Habitat fragmentation, pollution, decrease in mosquito populations, drought & climate change, pesticides, chrytid fungi...take your pick."
Too Much Poaching
"Giraffes - they've become an endangered species."
– nyle2
"I was looking for this comment. I work with two giraffes: a Masai giraffe & a Reticulated giraffe. Both subspecies are endangered. I love them so much, & it's so sad seeing what's happening."
"They have unique personalities and are generally fun animals to be with. They never fail to make me laugh and/or smile when I'm working with them. I really hope I don't end up in a world without them, or where they're extinct in the wild."
– andret14
Winged Points Of Light
"Fireflies."
"They mostly rely on the bioluminescence of their fellow species in order to attract for mating. However, due to increasing urbanization which is also increasing use of artificial lighting (street lamps), their presence are dwindling."
Our slowly changing environment is slowly taking a toll on our existence.
A "Necessary Nutrient"
"Iodine in Salt. Seriously, go to the grocery store and see how many brands of salt show 'this salt does not provide Iodine, a necessary nutrient.'"
The Importance Of Iodine
"Northeast Ohio here, I had to explain to my kids what iodine was and why we need it, and then I showed them old times pictures of goiters. It was a good day."
Submerged Wonderland
"Coral reefs."
"This is a huge problem and this comment needs to be higher. I went snorkeling 5 years ago and the coral was abundant with life. Went back 2 years later (3 years ago) and it was like half dead. This was in Puerto Rico."
– funkyyo
Upon reflection of their daily lives, these Redditors were disappointed after noticing the following have begun to fade from reality.
Alone Time
"Privacy."
"It's funny that there are so much laws n sh*t that say they 'value' our privacy while in reality some sh*t ass Facebook will still steal your data even though that's against your privacy."
Vanishing Perk
"Free parking. Even the smaller suburbs in their town center started charging for parking."
– mbbzzz
Dying Tradition
"Family Reunions."
"I was born in '83 and I can remember going to one every year for both sides of my pop's family and just one side of my mom's."
"It's definitely a dying tradition since now you can keep up with everyone online."
A Favorite Pasttime
"Arcades, but more specifically, arcade games. Now in arcades it's just rigged claw games which only drops a plush if you put enough money in, sad to see really."
The passionate audiophile in me has been grieving for a while now over vanishing media.
Vinyl albums are retro and cool, which is why they made a comeback to satiate a niche audience.
But when CDs have slowly disappeared from the aisles at Best Buy and Target, I was a little sad.
The amateur listener wouldn't be able to distinguish between the sound quality of streamed music compared to the rich, full sound from a good CD sound system, and that's fine.
For me, it's a bummer because I can tell the difference, and I miss the tangible paraphernalia that comes along with a packaged CD.
Cue the violins, I suppose.
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"What are some of the professions that are slowly dying?"
What used to be ubiquitous at one time has turned into niche industries, which doesn't bode well for their futures.
Cobblers
"Up until a couple years ago I was a cobbler. It was my favorite job I ever had."
"When I left they shut it down(they also sell shoes and boots there) because it takes quite a long time to teach someone the skills."
– Jcavin86
Bound To Go
"Printing press repair. One of my friends travels the country repairing presses and is one of only a handful in the industry."
– jbach220
Sew, Now What?
"Sewing machine technicians."
"The two older gents that service mine are amazing, been doing it most of their lives. They're lovely people and extraordinarily knowledgeable but they're wanting to retire and there's no one to take on they business."
"They've tried to find apprentices but no one is interested despite them being in pretty high demand."
"The precision engineering in my industrial and domestic machines is extraordinary and it makes me so sad that if they go wrong I might never find anyone to fix them."
The media industry is taking a hit as streaming music and digital photography is becoming far more accessible.
The Digital Age Killed It
"Photo Lab Technician. I've worked in a few different photo labs and with the move to digital there really isn't a need for people who work with film."
"Edit: I should have clarified I was talking about wet labs specifically. I personally haven't seen any new places pop up for developing film and I've lived in big and small cities over the years. I definitely agree with the people saying its a niche market. I can't see it ever being has popular as it once was and I definitely do see it completely dying out as technology continues to advance at such a fast rate. That being said, I do hope I'm wrong."
– OxidanSG
A Self-Destructive Demise
"The thing is radio kinda further killed itself by basically being a playlist on repeat. Most people I know stopped listening cause it was super annoying to hear the same songs 10 times a day. They should go back to the days of having an actual person that is knowledgeable about music and curates what they are playing."
When VCRs Roamed The Earth
"Video player repair people."
"Any kind of electronic repairs really. No-one repairs anything any more."
– zsaleeba
The following, very specific professions are unfortunately too specific, and therefore, are apparently becoming less in demand.
Waning Artistry
"Artisans of various type."
"I'm Italian and my country is full of artisans and artist that can't just survive with the income of their product selling. The only few that are surviving are guided by young entrepreneurs that use internet and social media to export abroad."
"In this way we're losing a lot of traditional workers and works and here in Italy it's actually a problem."
– SirDoc90
Reportedly On A Path To Extinction
"Journalist."
"That's not a sarcastic, edgy comment. They are legitimately being replaced by content creators. The advertisements don't even read 'Journalist' or 'Reporter' 60% of the time."
"The distinction is important too, because the job of a Journalist is to report the truth, whereas a Content Creator simply matches a brief suited to the publications biases, alignments and interests."
They Were Going Places
"We are wildly short of truck drivers. The media is talking about it now, a little, but I learned the job a little over two years ago and in training we were shown a map of the US where we had more freight to move than drivers who could move it."
"The entire map was solid red, not a spec of white on it."
"The driver shortage predates Covid. Best I can figure is people: A) don't want to be gone all the time, B) Don't know you can drive locally and be home daily while still making good money, C) share in the negative stigma that exists around truckers these days, D) some combination of the above."
"But there is a growing shortage, and with drivers aging out and younger people not replacing them, the problem is set to get much worse. 'Everything you own arrived on a truck,' but what happens when no one is driving the trucks?"
Reaching The End Of Their Boundaries
"Land Surveyors. In my State (USA), there were stats put out a few years ago that there were about 2,600 licensed surveyors in the State and about 40% of those were above the age of 60. It's an incredibly important field, but no one talks about it as a 'career' when you're in high school. Depending on which sector you get into, you can make the same amount as civil engineers would but with way more job security."
I'm noticing more and more photographers are becoming less in demand.
Consumers have become amateur photographers when smartphones with built-in cameras took over the world by storm.
Suddenly, photography neophytes are getting their work published and even going viral with their impressive Instagram portfolios. Professional camera equipment truly does make a difference, but the latest smartphones are becoming competitive with constantly improving camera technology.
While there still is a demand for professional photographers, many people wanting to save their money are relying on their own budding photography skills, myself included.
But when it's time for new headshots, this actor will not be relying on a selfie.
