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When something is awesome, it is only natural to be interested in it. It is even more amazing to do something before it was cool and then be able to brag about it. You get that sense of accomplishment since you were the first to do it. A lot of unique hobbies people partake in have the potential to become popular and cool. Indoors or outdoors, there are a lot of factors that indicate if something is going to be cool or not.
Something dull on the surface could be more fun than it seems. Everything depends on the ease of getting into it. Plenty of outdoor activities that we think are cool now might have been boring before. Snowboarding might be popular and easily accessible now, but before its golden days, it was a niche sport that only a few people could afford. Indoor activities, on the other hand, are at risk of being labeled monotonous. Listening to Radiohead and playing chess — things that had the "uncool" all over them, but something that everybody does at this point.
There are a lot of cool activities to choose from and do. LarleneLumpkin asked on Askreddit — “What is your ‘I was into X before it was cool’ thing?” Since there were a lot of answers to choose from, we have compiled some of the best ones below. If any of the popular activities seem cool to you, upvote them. Otherwise, if you already partook in them and maybe got some reactions from people, share it with a comment below.
This post may include affiliate links.
#1
"I deleted Facebook before it was cool to hate it."
Nicole Weymann 2 years ago
I was so far behind on that trend I was way ahead: I never started 😄
RELATED:
#2
"I was out for the night back when I was 17/18/19. A friend and I went to a good pub in Oxfordshire where we thought we’d have a chance to pick up some girls.
Ended up getting drunk and listening to the band who were pretty good.
Turned out that the band was an unknown indie/rock group called 'Radiohead'. A couple of weeks later 'Creep' went international.
Been a fan ever since."
#4
"I first saw 'The Simpsons' when it was a sketch on 'The Tracy Ullman Show', and I thought it was the funniest thing I'd ever seen. I was ecstatic when I learned they were making a full cartoon of it. I watched it religiously up until about season fifteen or sixteen before I finally switched to every once in a while like we all eventually did."
Marilyn Russell 2 years ago
Me too - I remember watching that show and seeing The Simpson’s. Love love love Tracy Ullman!
#5
"I washed my hands for 20 seconds and used a paper towel for the sink and door handles way before Corona."
Theoretical Empiricist 2 years ago
If you work in healthcare, this has long been the expectation.
#6
"I went to a bar a long time ago (illegally- I was below drinking age) to see this neo-punk band play. I liked it enough that I shelled out for one of their cassettes (pre-CD). The band was 'Green Day.'"
#8
"Hulu in 2008. It used to be completely free, browser-based, with no ads. It was the only way for me to watch new episodes of 'Heroes' every week."
Todd Schwier 2 years ago
Yep 2008 I would use it to watch "It's always sunny in Philadelphia" during my lunch breaks.
#9
"Seeing a therapist regularly."
#10
"I feel like nowadays being an introvert is glorified. I’ve been an introvert my whole life, and now I see these posts from obvious extroverts calling themselves the opposite."
the flame Demon 2 years ago
i am sadly an introvert i only have 2 friends and i don't hang out with them that much, i also perfer to be alone in my room while playing animal crossing
#11
"Sent an ‘electronic mail’ message from my car using a HP48G calculator and a ham radio in 1993. That feat got published in a technical magazine. Nothing about that first sentence sounds cool, but I know the G is for gangster."
To answer the common questions: I wrote a terminal emulator for the 48G. That talked to a terminal node controller which is like a modem to interface between the calculator and radio. The message (don’t remember the exact details but I was 16 so it probably went to my mom’s prodigy account to say 'hi mom') went through the ham radio packet network until it hit a node with an internet bridge. The car was my POS 88 Mustang that I bought for $1800. Lastly, the source for G is for gangster as it relates to HP-48G comes from the incredible Nerdrap Entertainment System album by YTCracker."
#12
"My old IT teacher was pushing us onto this unknown player called Google when everyone was using Ask Jeeves. He predicted that one day they would be huge."
Fabian Bernard 2 years ago
Same here, our school librarian made us using it in 2001, on a Netscape navigator
#13
"Skateboards. 1964 or so."
Itavan replied: "My husband is 62 and still skating bowls. A picture of him holding a board is in Wes Humpston's book."
#14
"Avocado toast. It was one of my favorite foods growing up (born in 1985) - just avocado on sourdough with salt and pepper. When I saw it becoming trendy I was like, 'Wait, were we all not doing this?'"
#15
"Gmail. 2004. When it is invited only. My friend had a small amount of invites."
Space20021 replied: "And the counter for free storage space would keep going up."
#16
"Was using Netflix since 2001."
#17
"My mom did yoga back in the 1970s when it was considered a hippy thing.'"
Marilyn Russell 2 years ago
Yes I remember a friend’s “weird” European mother who ate yogurt when yogurt wasn’t cool.
#18
"I was attending 'ComiCon' before most people knew it existed. Show up the day you want, buy a ticket, and go in and shop. I have some incredible collectible movie memorabilia from back then. Never thought it would turn into the enormous event it has become."
matt adore 2 years ago
Started going to SDCC in 1989 ( I was 13yo). Went religiously for years. Definitely crowded but NOTHING like now. Haven't been in 20 years due to that. Back then you could meet creators with no hassle or lines... Met some pretty big names and they were ALL super awesome and happy to meet their humble fans 😁
#19
"I was into vinyl before it made a comeback. And since nobody in the 90s or early 2000s wanted their records anymore, I basically got 500+ records for free or nearly free."
Fabian Bernard 2 years ago
Got all my parents collection when they switched to CD in 1989, plus the hifi system who was very good ( Pioneer) .Very cool stuffs to listen
#20
"I still remember being made fun of in school for playing video games and being a nerd. How times have changed."
Mari Hanssen 2 years ago
Me too. Now it's mainstream to be nerdy. Which is actually way better. More people to connect with and no one bullies me anymore!
#21
"I was reading 'A Song of Ice and Fire' series (better known as Game of Thrones) before the show was made. Sadly, I'm pretty sure we'll never get the last two books."
#22
"I used to record myself playing video games when I was like 5 or 6 when my parents gave me the VCR they replaced in the living room. Because of this early hobby, me and a friend did videogame playthroughs on YouTube in 2007. We were certainly not the first but we were damn early.
We also used a cap card straight out of the gate rather than doing the old recording the screen crap that looked terrible."
Cassi Lyris 2 years ago
Oh lordy, back in the 90's if my friends got stuck in a game I'd record myself playing through that part and send it to them. Usually they'd send the tape back and I did this for a solid 10 years or so. It's so much easier now. 😂
#24
"Snowboarding, you couldn't even bring them to resorts. 1983."
hazimrahim__ replied: "This is before it was too hot."
#25
"Mine was Twitter when flip phones were king and you had to text Twitter to update your status."
#26
"Spotify. I remember I had to use a VPN to use it in my country."
jazzyjenna20 replied: "Omg, I forgot about this one! I distinctly remember telling people about it when I was in sixth grade (2011) and my teacher telling me something like, 'there’s no way that’s legal/legit.'"
TheNightOwl 2 years ago
I think it’s like Facebook in the sense that you have to manually delete it from your new phone, while being threatened that doing so could damage your phone. I could be thinking of some other music app. I don’t know. I don’t care. I’m the guy that would remove the radio from my own car to create a little extra space.
#27
"Adult coloring. I never liked drawing but loved coloring, so as I grew up I would seek out all kinds of coloring books. I loved how calming it was, and I would often color with my grandparents so I created a lot of fond memories there. I got made fun of a lot for my hobby until it suddenly became cool in the last few years."
#28
"Veganism. Went vegan in 1992, and back then you didn't tell anybody outside of your close friend group, no one knew what it was. You would get comments like, 'Why don't you go back to your home planet Vega.'"
#29
"This is gonna be super stupid, but I guess I am still salty at myself for letting other people influence me that much back then.
I was making YouTube videos back in 2011 and had a decent amount of following for someone like that back in the day, videos were reaching about 1,000 views. Stopped because people started making fun of me and now I wonder what could've been."
#30
"Flannel shirts were popular in the 90s. I never stopped wearing them. It’s kinda 'my thing' among my friends. I’m always wearing flannel. I wore them so long they came back in style."
#31
"Listening to Nirvana's 'Blew' song on student radio (NZ) in 1989 and thinking, 'these guys are good.'"
#32
"I am a big 'The Lord of the Rings' fan and people told me I was absolutely mad to say that they’ll be better than 'Harry Potter' movies when they’re released."
#33
"I worked for a movie theater chain in 1996, and my boss got a VHS copy of 'Jesus vs Santa Claus' at some industry event. We watched that video a dozen times and laughed. About 6 months later 'South Park' debuted on 'Comedy Central' and we were very excited to see it had been picked up."
gixer24 replied: "Oh man, just made me realize I’m getting old."
#34
"I was watching YouTube in 2005 back when 'Naruto' episodes were allowed and split into 3 parts."
AndThenICommented 2 years ago (edited)
I remember using it in college for an online class presentation (around 2005 or 2006) I couldn’t get to school fast enough to turn in my presentation on a CD so I uploaded and sent the link to my teacher. She was very dubious but it worked
#35
"Fun colored hair. I got absolutely ridiculed when I had hot pink streaks in 2008."
#36
"'Death Note' before it was released in English. I used to download translated chapters and burn the series onto CDs for people who didn't have reliable internet or enough computer time to download it themselves."
Cassi Lyris 2 years ago
Yup. Remember everyone in America assuming it was going to be about music at the time?! 😂😂 Boy, were they surprised. 😂😂😂
#37
"Crocs, all of a sudden. Post Malone wears them and bam, now they have jewelry with fancy colors and followers."
#38
"Got my nose pierced in 1974."
Bernice Gray 2 years ago
Nose piercing has been in fir centurues in Indian curtires, all my friends had them from about q0 years upwards. O my became cool when white mainstream cultures found hippie culture and made this a hippie phenomenon
#39
"Unicorns. I was obsessed with them after seeing the movie legend in the 1980s. Now every second toy or anything for that matter is plastered in it."
Benita Valdez 2 years ago
This movie made me fall in love with Tim Curry. That voice of his mesmerized me
#40
"I remember going around to stores trying to find all 6 issues of 'Infinity Gauntlet.' I had read one while waiting on my mom to finish grocery shopping and I was hooked. That made me a dork in the early 90s... but now it's a billion-dollar worldwide phenomenon."
K W 2 years ago
I was reading a ton of comics in the early 90's and watching what we used to call Japanation with the most awful subtitles. I got made fun of all the time by my peers. Apparently the comic book shops I visited never had girls/women come in because they would make a huge deal out of me showing up.
#41
"Bitcoin. All coins didn’t exist when I got started with it."
Gémeaux jumeaux 2 years ago
Lucky you! Even in the face of crypto mayhem, Bitcoin is holding steady
#42
"Elmo when he was just a minor 'Sesame Street' character.
We used to watch 'Sesame Street' at my shared house full of college kids. Was a way to unwind. Sounds silly but it was a thing. I liked Elmo. He was pretty chill."
Shark Lady 2 years ago
I was in primary school in the 80s and every now and then we would be taken to the staff room to watch Sesame Street. It wasn't on that often in the UK so it was a big treat. Looking back I think it was because our teacher wanted a quiet afternoon.
#44
"Saw 'Metallica' for my first concert in 1985. If I remember the other bands that night they were some local bands, W.A.S.P., and 'Armored Saint.'"
#45
"I've been gluten-free (due to celiac) for almost 30 years."
K W 2 years ago
It's only been 15 for me but I quit wheat when the limited gluten free options mostly tasted like cardboard. I also figured out I had dairy issues (casein intolerance) and had been off milk since the 80's due to constant raging sinus infections when I drank it. There were zero milk alternatives where I lived. So I'm grateful both of these dietary restrictions are more common and really appreciate all the alternative options.
#46
"Techno. It was frowned upon to listen to computer music. Now EDM is a billion-dollar industry."
#48
"Snapchat. I downloaded it when it was in its early stages... and then deleted the app shortly after because none of my friends were on it.
I still have people asking me how I got my username @ohsnapyo."
#49
"Lived in Korea in the 90s and was really into DBZ comics, moved to the United States in 1995 and no one knew what it was. By the time I was in high school, it was all the rage."
#50
"Sriracha (for white people). When I met my Asian girlfriend in 1995 she had a bottle in the fridge, and loved it, since then we always had a bottle in the fridge. Suddenly it becomes this phenomenon."
#51
"Raves/massives. Festivals now are what massives used to be called, but masses weren't as massive as festivals now.
#52
"I was reading Harry Potter from like, day one. I remember how this happened so clearly. My dad's birthday landed on the same day that the book was released in the US, September 1, 1998, and we got him a gift certificate to 'Barnes & Noble', among a few other things."
#53
"I had a vape in 2006."
#54
"Fasting. Started around 2004 and never told anyone for fear they’d assume I had an eating disorder but 72 hours fasts made my body feel better."
#55
"Pokémon. I remember watching it in the morning on some random channel and some other kids teasing me about liking it."
the flame Demon 2 years ago (edited)
who makes fun of pokemon??? how do you make fun of pokemon??? I challenge them to a pokemon battle *edit* i meant the card game but i will fight them online too
#56
"I was in marching band with Markiplier. It’s weird seeing all these memes and all these famous people talking about a guy I was in high school with."
#57
"I was chugging 'Pabst Blue Ribbons' years before it became the go-to hipster brew."
#58
"I remember when the first 'Stranger Things' trailer came out. I was so unbelievably hyped and was showing all my friends the trailers, but they were always whatever about it. One person even told me it was probably going to flop. I didn’t care."
matt adore 2 years ago
Same exact thing happened for me with Lost... "Polar Bear in the jungle? Sounds stupid..."
#60
"I was into fidget spinners before the craze really hit."
#61
"Drinking Bailey's from a shoe."
#63
"I was gauging my ears back in the '90s. We didn't have any special jewelry. Just pushed more toothpicks through."
Sarah Cagley 2 years ago
I watched a guy in my home economics class push a 1/2 inch taper through his 22 Guage ear. His ear was mad, but he didn't tear his lobe because he did it over the course of the day.
#65
"I read 'Fight Club' because it was featured prominently in Borders. At the time, no one had heard of it or its amazing author."
#66
"Donald Glover. He was part of a comedy group called 'Derrick Comedy' that was absolutely hilarious."
#67
"One of mine is Minecraft, I played it when it was just bare bones nothing. Also, I was into Owl City before I believed the rest of the world was into Owl City."
#69
"Lana Del Rey. I started liking her music back in the early 2000s when she was called Lizzy Grant. Oh! And Animal Crossing."
the flame Demon 2 years ago
a fellow Animal Crosser! whos you favorite villager? mine is mira the Rabbit!
#71
"Got my Peloton bike in 2016."
#72
"I remember playing Roblox back in 2007 when it was only a few games where you shot rocket launchers at each other. Now apparently more than half of kids in the US play it."
#73
"I probably had one of the first Top 10 channels back in 2011 where I would post top 10 video stuff about games. I gave up because it was too much editing and work, but a few years later those Top 10 channels became very popular."
#74
"Kayaking. Back when I started perception had just released their first production boat, the Dancer, and you pretty much knew everyone that had a boat on their car."
#75
"I’ve followed the Joe Exotic saga for years. I’m one of, like, 20 libertarians in the state."
Unknown 2 years ago
I somehow stumbled upon his campaign video following some rabbit hole one random night in 2017.... Trying to explain that to people was pointless, but then it came out and I was so excited and everybody just treated me like somebody who says, "I listen to bands that don't even exist yet".
What do you think ?
Appalachian Panda 2 years ago
Dungeons and Dragons and other tabletop RPGs back in the early 80s when it was still a very niche hobby. And churches were literally burning D&D books because they thought it made kids into satanists. "Stranger Things" didn't just make that part up. Now fantasy role-playing has gone mainstream.
Appalachian Panda 2 years ago
Dungeons and Dragons and other tabletop RPGs back in the early 80s when it was still a very niche hobby. And churches were literally burning D&D books because they thought it made kids into satanists. "Stranger Things" didn't just make that part up. Now fantasy role-playing has gone mainstream.
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