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Someone Asked, “What Was Normal 20-30 Years Ago, But Is Considered A Luxury Now?” And Here Are 50 Of The Best Answers

Interview With Author

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Despite the fact that our parents love to talk about just how hard they used to have it when we stop and think, it becomes depressingly clear that a lot of commonplace things have fallen into the luxury category without almost anyone noticing.

So one internet user wanted to hear others' thoughts, so people from all over the net shared the items and experiences that used to be downright regular and are now seen as extravagant. We also got in touch with zombiem00se, who made the original post. So read through and prepare a tissue after you weep for better times, and be sure to upvote your favorites. And don’t forget to comment your own thoughts and examples below.

This post may include affiliate links.

#1

Someone Asked, “What Was Normal 20-30 Years Ago, But Is Considered A Luxury Now?” And Here Are 50 Of The Best Answers Being left the f**k alone.

Buying something and just like, owning it.

Playing a video game without an internet connection.

*Not* having to provide your email address for every single f*****g thing you do.

El_Mariachi_Vive , JESHOOTS.COM Report

Final score:

408points

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#2

Someone Asked, “What Was Normal 20-30 Years Ago, But Is Considered A Luxury Now?” And Here Are 50 Of The Best Answers Good quality fabric in clothing. I have clothes from the 90s (and 80s from my mother) that still hold up today. These days, I'm lucky if my shirt isn't saggy and misshapen within a year.

TheMadLaboratorian , Cristine Enero Report

Final score:

381points

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#3

Calling a company and getting a *person* on the other end of the phone.

*edit: Thanks for the awards kind people! I really didn't expect this to blow up like this.*

AnnieAcely199 Report

Final score:

371points

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Bored Panda got in touch with zombiem00se and they were kind enough to answer some of our questions. We wanted to know what prompted them to make the thread in the first place. "What inspired the question was at the gas pump, and I had gotten a small bonus from work of about $50 so I knew I'd be able to just let the pump go without having to watch the meter. Then it struck me that people used to be able to do that all the time, just fill their gas tank without worry, and nowadays the normal thing to do is watch it like a hawk so you could also afford groceries for the week and wondered what else could this same mentality be applied to."

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We also wanted to hear their thoughts on what was ultimately causing so many things to become unaffordable. "I think the cause is due to the same thing that's been said many times over now, the cost of living has not kept up with the rate of inflation. The rich get richer by keeping the poor poor. We were told to pull ourselves up by the bootstraps, but those saying that were given boots made of nice Italian leather that was custom fit for them, while the rest of us were given bricks of lead...and the straps are rattlesnakes....very angry rattlesnakes. I'm a millennial, and with millennials, there's of course the same tired participation trophy joke, but the ones complaining about it are the ones who gave the trophies out in the first place and then blamed us for them, all the while they have everything handed to them."

#4

Someone Asked, “What Was Normal 20-30 Years Ago, But Is Considered A Luxury Now?” And Here Are 50 Of The Best Answers Single income families buying a home

THESSIS , Oleksandr Pidvalnyi Report

Final score:

364points

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#5

Someone Asked, “What Was Normal 20-30 Years Ago, But Is Considered A Luxury Now?” And Here Are 50 Of The Best Answers New furniture made out of real wood

Juls7243 , Vlada Karpovich Report

Final score:

361points

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#6

Someone Asked, “What Was Normal 20-30 Years Ago, But Is Considered A Luxury Now?” And Here Are 50 Of The Best Answers Items not requiring a subscription each month

few29er , Ashley Byrd Report

Final score:

359points

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In general, when people stop and ask “Why are things so damned expensive now?” Current events tend to dominate the discussion. The global supply chain was hit by a jump in fuel costs, as a result of the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine. This pushed the price of most things up because most things are not made within walking distance of your home or nearest store. And thank goodness for that, living next to a factory or manufacturing plant seems more hassle than it would be worth.

Regardless, the effect is that the cost of transportation went up. And since everything needs transportation, everything got more costly. And just to hit us when we are down, droughts and disease hit food supplies around the world, limiting supply. Since most of us still need to eat, a reduction in supply without a change in demand tends to mean an increase in cost. Hope this revisiting of econ 101 didn’t trigger any unhappy memories.

That being said, inflation is starting to ease off in many places, so perhaps eggs won’t be a gourmet ingredient like truffles and lobster for long. But, as this article mentions, there are still some things that refuse to get cheaper and have gotten so expensive over the years that most people have given up ever buying them. Yes, we’re talking about housing. The simple answer is that supply hardly meets demand at all, as homeowners aren’t selling and interest rates are pretty brutal for the average worker.

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#7

Someone Asked, “What Was Normal 20-30 Years Ago, But Is Considered A Luxury Now?” And Here Are 50 Of The Best Answers getting things repaired instead of buying new.

einRoboter , Kilian Seiler Report

Final score:

327points

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#8

Someone Asked, “What Was Normal 20-30 Years Ago, But Is Considered A Luxury Now?” And Here Are 50 Of The Best Answers Not being expected to be reachable 24/7

Siukslinis_acc , Andrew Neel Report

Final score:

305points

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#9

Someone Asked, “What Was Normal 20-30 Years Ago, But Is Considered A Luxury Now?” And Here Are 50 Of The Best Answers Ads only on TV or the newspaper or radio. Now it's ads EVERY-F*****G-WHERE. YouTube: 1 minute video. Two 15 second ads. Unskippable. Streaming service you pay for: watch promos for shows we want you to watch before you watch the show you want to watch. Music service: pay premium for no ads. Random website: ads + tracking cookies FOR ads. Social media: ad every 3-4 posts + collecting data to show you MORE ads + targeted ads. Amazon: here are some sponsored products you might like.

I'm so tired of everything revolving around ads and collecting data to show you ads that are catered to you. It's like a freaking hell loop.

attempt5001 , freestocks.org Report

Final score:

305points

Andrea Aguilar 1 year ago

Me too. Really hate them!

47points

Ken Beattie 1 year ago

Sadly that's how free services work. They need to be monetized somehow. The issue for me is when do the ads become excessive. And with ads on mobile, forcing you to click through to the purchase page by dodgy close button tricks.

15points

Aiden Robertson 1 year ago

As it turns out, this can actually become affordable with a beauty called the adblocker. with it, you'll just about never see ads again!

13points

Michael Largey 1 year ago

Some sites whine if they can tell you're using it. This adds to the enjoyment.

4points

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Shyla Bouche 1 year ago

I saw a post, probably here, about someone wanting a video of the Heimlich maneuver. There were 30 seconds of ads first. The person trying to watch the video sent feedback that the choking person had died. YouTube suggested that to avoid similar problems, the person might want to buy a subscription. I don't know if it were real or a joke post. I hope the latter, but you never know.

13points

Jeremy James 1 year ago

I think that was a hypothetical joke-tweet. The response from YouTube's social media team may have been real.

8points

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LillieMean 1 year ago

I was deeply shocked when I was listening to a non-commercial (?!) classical music radio channel recently and to my horror I heard commercials. Something is irrevocably ruined when a flood of irritation ruined my soft and fluffy bubble and the last ad-free safe haven was taken away from me.

9points

Logan Chipman 1 year ago

Like the fact that ads are on a gas pump like wtf

7points

Craig Boddys 1 year ago

Love the fact that theres an ad immediately after this post, just to prove the point.

4points

Leanne Hailes 1 year ago

I gave up watching "regular tv". A 1 hour show has 25 mins of Adds. YouTube is full of Adds too & Surveys. No such thing as a continuous music play list unless you want to listen to 500 mins of Adds between every single song. North American living at it's finest; pathetic isn't it 😕

4points

Tim Douglass 1 year ago

*ads

0points

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Jeremy James 1 year ago

I just miss when the ads were about cool stuff, like toys or breakfast cereals or Pepsi. Now, it's almost all about insurance companies, cellular plans, and pharmaceuticals.

3points

Linden 1 year ago

There are adblocker browser add-ons that get rid of most of them.

3points

M. L. Dew 1 year ago

Wanna escape ads, buy a book (or borrow one from a library).

3points

Ingmar Sweep 1 year ago

I never have ads on Youtube. Using Linux, Firefox, Adguard.

2points

Jeremy James 1 year ago

One of my favorite things about being a Linux user is the ability to download videos from sites with youtube-dl. Also, getting root access to my partner's MacBook over wifi and using text-to-speach to scare him.

0points

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Stacy s 1 year ago

I don't wartch any ads on youtube, I pay for it monthly. I couldn't stand watching adds, so to me the money is well worth it.

1point

Rosie 1 year ago

God forbid if you actually click on an ad! Especially on YouTube. The level of hell that sends you is ridiculous. It's exactly the same response you get if you fall for an online scam. That explains things, no?

1point

Raccoon Queen 1 year ago

Ads because that’s how people make money if you’re not paying for it. I hate it too, but keep complaining and we’ll have to pay for everything

1point

Renee H. 1 year ago

Finally someone who feels my pain! So so tired of ads, especially on streaming apps that I pay for.

1point

Sue User 1 year ago

When cabel tv first came out, the pitch was " pay us to watch and no ads". Now they get money from the advertisers and from the consumers.

2points

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oktopus 1 year ago

And there's not even any easy way of telling the ad people "I am not interested in this and hate the repetitive ads and will never buy it", or "I just bought one of these and am not likely to buy another one within the next 10 years or so".

1point

Edward Dwyer 1 year ago

Ads are so s**t, you cannot convince me that people buy X item because they saw an ad. Doubly so for drug commercials.

1point

Coyote Osborne 1 year ago

It's always been vexing when stealing something is less aggravating and complicated than being a paying customer.

1point

Sir Panda 1 year ago

ONly way to put an end to that though is to stop using the products. WHo’s willing to do that? lol. Unless mainstream demands buying a service and not being serviced ads and putting their foot down to stop it. IT’s just going to keep on going so long as you want to keep using a service or product for “free” paid for by advertisers.

0points

Tim Douglass 1 year ago

The only realistic alternative is pay to view. Click on the site and enter your CC number in order to see the content. Sorry, but it's all got to be paid for somehow.

0points

Mer☕️🧭☕️ 1 year ago

I remember hearing that cable tv was first invented so that subscribers wouldn't have to watch ANY ads - that's the service they paid for. I also remember laughing hysterically when mom told me that.

0points

Stymied Egan 1 year ago

Ever notice a two hour movie is scheduled for three hours? There's an hour of ads. Some old programs and movies are so cut up with ads it seems like there are more ads than program.

0points

Joy 1 year ago

I'd like to think more ads = less revenue

0points

Tim Nicebutdim 1 year ago (edited)

Use Firefox, install cookie/tracking/ad blockers. If the website won't work because of them they lose your business, simple.

0points

OtterGold Mistwalker 1 year ago

My peeve isn't ads but ads that come up from the bottom blocking text, down from the top blocking text, popping up in the middle to block text, ads too big for the space allotted blocking text, or changing size at random intervals jerking text up and down the page. Stay put, da*mit, so I can ignore you!

0points

Julius Zuke 1 year ago

Even the floors of some food stores have ads on them.

0points

Kim St 1 year ago

welcome back to the 1970's. when ads where on every tv. with no way to stop them.

0points

Cynical, Burnt And Jaded 1 year ago

Even sports stadiums weren't tagged full of ads AND they didn't have some companies name on it!

0points

Kevin Sutton 1 year ago

Meh, targeted ads literally got me a new job!!

0points

Violet Bunny 1 year ago

Use an adblocker on your computer!

0points

Kraneia The Dancing Dryad 1 year ago

And right about now, someone will chime in "GeT YoUtUbE PrEmiUm 🤪" f-off we don't want IT!!!

0points

Niall Mac Iomera 1 year ago

I don't think paying for no ads on a music streaming service is unreasonable.

0points

TooTall 1 year ago

BRAVE browser blocks ALL ads without loosing functionality. YouTube, for example, plays perfectly without without any ads.

0points

Mysteria 1 year ago

I can get by ads on like Bored Panda and stuff because it’s only a small block of the ad and you can just scroll by

0points

Brier Random 1 year ago

But years ago, there only WAS tv, newspapers, and radio. So basically back then, ads were everywhere too. And on busses, subways, billboards. Ads have ALWAYS been everywhere.

0points

Pickles, Pennies, & Ponies 1 year ago

Even when you pause something on Hulu, there is an ad. One in particular is a Charmin ad.

0points

Alex Bull 1 year ago

To everyone, there is a way to skip youtube ads by pressing stop seeing this ad

0points

Martin Martinovič 1 year ago

The AdBlock is mankind's greatest invention along with fire and the wheel.

0points

Stormifyed 1 year ago

Let me ad that to my list of things I can relate to here

0points

m.w. 1 year ago

Haven't seen an ad in YT video for years. Even their paid services suck, so why bother?

0points

真壁まつり 1 year ago

I am now using lyrics from music apps to block bored panda’s Ad

0points

Joe Blowe 1 year ago

youtube revanced - youtube without the ads

0points

Griffy 1 year ago

I use an adblocker that blocks ads on youtube. Come to think of it, I have 3.

0points

Bryan W. 1 year ago

Ummm... This is nothing new. No free lunch chumps.

0points

Justin Thyme 1 year ago

OPT OUT

0points

bennu 1 year ago

I know right, I'm atheist and every time I watch YouTube I get recommended almost nothing but Jesus ads

0points

Anna Drever 1 year ago

I paid for the ad free MetService app (weather app) and now there’s an ad at the top you have to click before you get to the actual weather. 😡

0points

Apatheist Account2 1 year ago

Particularly annoying and pointless is when it's the same ad twice. I wasn't going to buy it the first time.

0points

PurpleUnicorn 1 year ago (edited)

Get an ad blocker and use the website rather than the app, works for most things but can be a bit annoying if the website isn't mobile friendly. Example: I always use BP website not the app, so no ads at all!

0points

Andrea Careless 1 year ago

Ads on Bored Panda…

0points

Duck Syone 1 year ago

And at the gas station

0points

Johnnee 1 year ago

I always say ads are a waste of money. Advertising "experts" say otherwise.. wonder why

0points

R Dennis 1 year ago

The whole thing about cable is that it started as "pay to have no commercials"...

0points

DadManBlues 1 year ago

I hate it but understand: as the TV and radio channels, online content providers work from the incomes after ads. But the amount of advertisements in content is disgusting. What I do not understand is that the companies who pay for advertising are not aware of how fed up consumers are with the amount of advertising and reflexively ignore it? My Fb feed now has 4 ads out of 10 posts. I've been looking at them for five minutes and I already have no idea what they were about. My situation is even worse here in Hungary, where the relatively small number of Hungarian advertisers means that 90% of the ads have nothing to do with my life.

0points

René Sauer 1 year ago

What I hate most are the ads in mobile games that just don´t take hint if I click on the `X` once. No, they just have to have you clicking three times on different screens to finally get back to your game.

0points

devotedtodreams 1 year ago

Unskippable YouTube Ads? Nah, an adblocker (perhaps also an adblocking browser) does wonders in this regard :) I only wish I could make that work on my TV as well, alas... What really pisses me off is every single website asking you about the blasted cookies and preferences and such!

0points

Suzy Creamcheese 1 year ago

You know, there are these really neat things called "ad blockers..."

0points

Sue User 1 year ago

How do you install adblocker for youtube on chromecast ?

0points

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any rei 1 year ago

AdBlocker ftw

0points

Richard Ross 1 year ago

I’ve stopped using YouTube because of the infestation of ads on it now.

0points

Jared Robinson 1 year ago

pretty sure Ads are americs number one produce

0points

Oh Gosh 1 year ago (edited)

I pay extra to have as few ads as possible. Even have an ad blocker for websites like this. And I don't really go on social media. But, yes, I despise ads. When someone says "did you see that commercial?" No I did not because I avoid them in any way possible.

0points

John Powers 1 year ago

I have seen YouTube forced ads that are like 2.5 hours long. What the h**l ad needs to be that long?

0points

StrangeOne 1 year ago

I never see ads catered to me LOL. Idk what my cookies or Google thinks I do or who I am, but all I get are ones for cars, babies, skip, um.... can't really remember the others cos I don't pay attention to them. I don't have a baby, don't even have a driver's license and I never really use skip much.

0points

L hill 1 year ago

Horrible pharmaceutical ads where.people are happy and dancing while being warned of side affects. A**l bleeding Stroke.etc

0points

RavenTheCat 1 year ago

When you miss the intro to a Livestream because of ads.

0points

Solidhog 1 year ago

People in the comments are right. Ads are what help these services function. Even here on Bored Panda. But as the saying goes "where there is a will there is a way." Firefox has an extension that blocks ads, even on YouTube. And the Brave browser has it built in already.

-1point

Will Cable 1 year ago

Those who do this should be forced to watch hundreds of ads before doing anything...including being able to use the toilet

-1point

Vermonta 1 year ago

We are so spoiled

-2points

Noyfb noyfb 1 year ago

Why I hate going to the movies. Preview-trailers are just loud, incoherent ads.

-2points

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When it comes to finding a place to live, it’s really the worst of both worlds. Housing is expensive, and renters are feeling a similar pain as landlords and ladies raise rent to offset the cost of living increases. Which, you guessed it, increases the cost of living for tenets. On average, renters can expect a 15% jump in rent costs, though this will vary aggressively from building to building and area to area.

#10

Being able to dance and have a good time and not have a chance it will end up recorded and put on social media.

allbright1111 Report

Final score:

296points

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#11

Someone Asked, “What Was Normal 20-30 Years Ago, But Is Considered A Luxury Now?” And Here Are 50 Of The Best Answers Farmer's markets. You used to be able to go down and get fruit and vegetables cheaper than the grocery store. Now it seems like they charge 3x more than stores do.

jrhawk42 , Peter Wendt Report

Final score:

270points

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#12

Someone Asked, “What Was Normal 20-30 Years Ago, But Is Considered A Luxury Now?” And Here Are 50 Of The Best Answers Owning the software you purchased.

FinnofLocke , Studio Republic Report

Final score:

268points

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And of course, if you are paying more for rent (and eggs) you probably have less to save to make a down payment on a home. This has not stopped prices from continuing to rise. In 2021, the median US house was $369,800, a pretty penny. In 2022? $423,600, which is an entire 53.8 thousand more, for those curious about the math. Of course, wages have generally not risen to match inflation, so the buying power is running in the opposite direction of prices, making it harder and harder for millennials and Gen Z to ever picture owning a home.

#13

Someone Asked, “What Was Normal 20-30 Years Ago, But Is Considered A Luxury Now?” And Here Are 50 Of The Best Answers Legroom on an airplane

anachronistika , reisetopia Report

Final score:

243points

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#14

Someone Asked, “What Was Normal 20-30 Years Ago, But Is Considered A Luxury Now?” And Here Are 50 Of The Best Answers household products that didn't break within the first few years of use. My grandma had the same fridge from 1993 for a good while before deciding to swtich to a newer, bigger one 2 years ago, yes, it broke within those 2 years; my mom's wedding cookware is still going strong 25 years later, but whenever she needs new pans they start flaking teflon into the food within a few months

parangolecomuna , Janaya Dasiuk Report

Final score:

241points

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#15

paying no more than 30% of your income in rent

newsaggregateftw Report

Final score:

216points

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And while we are on the topic of annoying expenses, many of the items here boil down to the incredibly annoying modern trend of “services and subscriptions.” Remember paying for things once? Unlike mortgages and inflation rates, in many ways, consumers only have themselves to blame for companies charging us monthly. Over the last ten years, subscription services have grown by roughly 300%, meaning that no matter how much we might dislike them, enough people will happily pay month to month.

#16

Someone Asked, “What Was Normal 20-30 Years Ago, But Is Considered A Luxury Now?” And Here Are 50 Of The Best Answers Retirement plan built-in to your job.

SuvenPan , Anna Shvets Report

Final score:

210points

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#17

Someone Asked, “What Was Normal 20-30 Years Ago, But Is Considered A Luxury Now?” And Here Are 50 Of The Best Answers Being able to afford having only one person working in a relationship

depressedhousewifee , cottonbrostudio Report

Final score:

203points

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#18

Someone Asked, “What Was Normal 20-30 Years Ago, But Is Considered A Luxury Now?” And Here Are 50 Of The Best Answers Getting a hand written letter

riphitter , Álvaro Serrano Report

Final score:

201points

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At the same time, people still hate it and what it stands for. Owning things, from houses to music, feels like a concept from the past. Enticed by a quick buck, or a high share price, to be accurate, many companies have dabbled with offering a subscription over a one-time fee. The result is that many actually fail and fall apart. Even the current giants, like Netflix, once a huge industry disruptor, are struggling. So maybe consider looking through your active subscriptions and cutting the ones you don’t need.

#19

Being a stay at home mom.

I’m all for women having the option to work a career and be a mom, but I’ve met so many who hate having to drop off their babies or small children with grandma or at a daycare because it takes 2 incomes to survive because wages haven’t kept up work productivity for the last 50 years.

Final score:

182points

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#20

A pension you could retire on

chalk_passion Report

Final score:

175points

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#21

Word used to be just installed with your microsoft software. Now you have to pay each month/year.

OrganizationRare587 Report

Final score:

174points

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#22

Leaving your family behind to start your life at 18 or even younger.

Now, folks be livin' with their parents until they're 45, saving up for 100 sq. ft. closet that costs $2000 a month in what barely passes as not a slum.

Lking4goodargs Report

Final score:

172points

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#23

Attention spans lasting longer than a lightning bolt.

nwrighteous Report

Final score:

171points

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#24

Privacy

Final score:

170points

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#25

Being able to pay your bills without being charged to make a payment, you want it on paper $2, pay at post office $3, pay using debit card 70c. It's ridiculous that we have to pay to pay.

Also getting away with doing some really dumb or embarrassing s**t, no phones anywhere to capture and upload the moment you slip on dog s**t or walk into the most beautifully cleaned glass doors that are so clean you don't see them, it's just you and those who witnessed the painfully embarrassing moment, not millions of people around the world seeing it.

islippedonmybeans Report

Final score:

163points

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#26

Clothing and shoes that last more than a year with regular wear

SpacePirateFromEarth Report

Final score:

156points

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#27

Getting prescribed opioids when you need them for pain.

'War on drugs' zealotry has created a landscape where even terminally ill patients on hospice are routinely denied the mercy of pain management because of 'addiction risk'. Acute pain patients are being told to take OTCs for severe injuries and major surgeries, and chronic pain patients are being tortured to death. Those precious few doctors with enough compassion to provide quality pain care are persecuted by drug cops at the DEA who know nothing about practicing medicine whatsoever.

It's all sickening and depressing. Every year I think it couldn't get worse, and every year I'm proven wildly wrong. And there is zero upside - the addicts who can't get scrips just switched to fentanyl and are dying in record numbers.

babarbaby Report

Final score:

155points

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#28

Affordable Healthcare

RNGezzus Report

Final score:

153points

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#29

Someone Asked, “What Was Normal 20-30 Years Ago, But Is Considered A Luxury Now?” And Here Are 50 Of The Best Answers Family vacations.

I remember going on road trips regularly and even flying once or twice as a kid. Now that I have kids there's no way I can afford a week-long trip to the Badlands, Grand Canyon, Disney/Universal Studios etc. Best I can do is a day trip to the Dells maybe once a year.

M5606 , Sergey Makashin Report

Final score:

151points

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#30

Being able to buy a decent standard home on one modest salary.

LucyVialli Report

Final score:

151points

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#31

Avoiding people by simply not answering the landline phone, this would make the person calling assume you are just not home. We introverts no longer have this luxury with cell phones, texting, "online" status when logged into a PC so co-workers can IM you, etc.

Battery6512 Report

Final score:

144points

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#32

Concert Ticket prices

Quality_Street_1 Report

Final score:

140points

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#33

Right now, I'm struggling just to own a dog.

Decent dog food is insanely expensive right now. Dog parks are not for every dog, but they're the only space to let your dog play if you don't have a yard or can't walk due to the pavement being too hot (providing the park has shaded areas and water access, which is hit or miss). Vets keep raising their prices to keep up with inflation, which is making it so much harder to keep up with basic care. Same with licensing. Quality dog toys are at least $20 and often don't last as long as I would like (except MonsterK9 and King Chew, very well worth it) for my heavy chewer. Grooming is costly, flea and tick protection is costly, treats are costly, everything about owning a dog is so much more than it used to be, even though canine care wasn't as quality as it is now. Heck, my first dog didn't cost this much to care for and he was a frequent flyer at the vet for his health issues

magicrowantree Report

Final score:

140points

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#34

Electronics coming with free headphones and chargers

Final score:

136points

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#35

People making friends with one another purely because they enjoy their companionship and not because of networking

butthenhor Report

Final score:

130points

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#36

Boredom.

There's always something to take your attention nowadays. There's literal lifetimes of entertainment on a single streaming service. Phones. There's tons of free and cheap games that can just eat hours of your time. Social media. YouTube, etc etc etc.

20-30 years ago, if there was nothing you wanted to watch on TV, you either sat through it or found something else to do. Games had to be bought in stores, so it was more of a process buying them. Once you had them, you committed to it or bought a new game. Sometimes there was just legitimately nothing to do.

You had to get creative with your downtime. Make your own fun.

CommercialSkirt2311 Report

Final score:

126points

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#37

House ownership and being debt free.
Everyone has accepted debt as parts of their lives.

Final score:

121points

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#38

Someone Asked, “What Was Normal 20-30 Years Ago, But Is Considered A Luxury Now?” And Here Are 50 Of The Best Answers Free driver’s education classes taught in all high schools.

Working-Finger3500 , Ron Lach Report

Final score:

119points

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#39

Doctor coming to visit you at home when you were sick

DreamsAroundTheWorld Report

Final score:

114points

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#40

$1.15 average per gallon gas prices in the 90s

TrailerParkPrepper Report

Final score:

108points

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#41

Groceries to last you the week, like nothing fancy or bougie, just enough food to just permit grocery shopping once a week

Seer77887 Report

Final score:

101points

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#42

Working hard to put yourself through college, buy a house, and a truck.

Surviving on entry level wages

EmployeeRadiant Report

Final score:

95points

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Woman Put A Water Fountain With A Camera In Her Yard, Here Are 24 Photos Of Regular Visitors (New Pics)

Woman Put A Water Fountain With A Camera In Her Yard, Here Are 24 Photos Of Regular Visitors (New Pics)

Woman Put A Water Fountain With A Camera In Her Yard, Here Are 24 Photos Of Regular Visitors (New Pics)

“Ma’am I Live Here”: Woman Refuses To Back Out Of Driveway, Learns A Lesson The Hard Way

“Ma’am I Live Here”: Woman Refuses To Back Out Of Driveway, Learns A Lesson The Hard Way

“Ma’am I Live Here”: Woman Refuses To Back Out Of Driveway, Learns A Lesson The Hard Way

#43

Being able to go out every Friday after work and being able to afford it

M-the-music-guy Report

Final score:

93points

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#44

Someone Asked, “What Was Normal 20-30 Years Ago, But Is Considered A Luxury Now?” And Here Are 50 Of The Best Answers I remember as a kid, where I live they would allow people to just visit an area of the airport from where they could see the runway and flights take off - they didn’t have to pay anything for it - people would spend hours just looking at flights take off and land ❤️

EDIT: To everyone saying this is still doable in many parts of the world - that’s great, I haven’t been to those parts of the world yet and where I come from one would still need to pay a certain amount to get in and watch from a glass cabin or so. Back in the day, there would just be a gate on the airport ground, a small barricade where you could just stand for hours and nobody would bother.

homie93 , Stephan Saloth Report

Final score:

92points

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50 Of The Most Incredible Shots That Were Submitted To The Comedy Wildlife Photography Awards

50 Of The Most Incredible Shots That Were Submitted To The Comedy Wildlife Photography Awards

50 Of The Most Incredible Shots That Were Submitted To The Comedy Wildlife Photography Awards

French Diver’s “Jewels” In Tight Swimming Trunks Become Talk Of The Town At Olympics

French Diver’s “Jewels” In Tight Swimming Trunks Become Talk Of The Town At Olympics

French Diver’s “Jewels” In Tight Swimming Trunks Become Talk Of The Town At Olympics

#45

Someone Asked, “What Was Normal 20-30 Years Ago, But Is Considered A Luxury Now?” And Here Are 50 Of The Best Answers Pork Belly. Used to be a bad cut of meat that was disposed of or given to the poor for dirt cheap prices. Then rich people realized that the poor made it delicious, which then caused prices to skyrocket.

PhreedomPhighter , Lucas Vinicius Peixoto Report

Final score:

91points

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#46

Meals on domestic flights

Acceptable_Stop2361 Report

Final score:

89points

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#47

Apartments. I could get a one bedroom apartment in the state if Wisconsin back in 1997 for under $500. Now that same apartment $1800.

Icy-Supermarket-6932 Report

Final score:

88points

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#48

PC games coming with physical media, manuals, and "swag" as standard.

The maps, trinkets, toys, and sometimes even novels came with games. It made the game an event. Now people just download games and they sit unplayed in a digital library until the urge to try them comes along.

Fritzo2162 Report

Final score:

88points

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Woman Moves Out Of Parents' Home After They Asked Her To Give Her Space To Brother, They Freak Out

Woman Moves Out Of Parents' Home After They Asked Her To Give Her Space To Brother, They Freak Out

Woman Moves Out Of Parents' Home After They Asked Her To Give Her Space To Brother, They Freak Out

Mom Leaves $250k Inheritance To Son, Throws A Fit When Daughter Stops Looking After Her

Mom Leaves $250k Inheritance To Son, Throws A Fit When Daughter Stops Looking After Her

Mom Leaves $250k Inheritance To Son, Throws A Fit When Daughter Stops Looking After Her

#49

Photographs on actual photographic paper. I know its still possible but oh so rare.

audiofankk Report

Final score:

81points

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#50

Ooh I love this game!

* Having a hot tub
* Having a boat
* Also: having one boat for lake fishing and another for sea fishing
* Having one working parent and one parent staying home with the kids
* A four bedroom house on a lake in the countryside
* Having a ‘game room’ or ‘play room’ in your house
* Having a bar with a pool table in your basement
* A home cooked meal every night
* Also, getting most of your veggies from the garden because one of your parents has enough free time to spend most of the day gardening
* Situations where the parents take random classes in geology or calligraphy or whatever, just to get out of the house because they’re bored and have too much time
* Every adult in the family has their own car, and sometimes one adult has a ‘project car’
* Having “shopping” or “home improvement” as a hobby. Just buying a bunch of new stuff because you can’t think of anything else to do

I grew up lower-middle class in the 90s, and we had all of these things. My dad made $28-32k depending on the year, and my mom stayed home.

The biggest difference was the sheer amount of free time everyone had.

Edit: The biggest thing I personally miss from that era was the culture of taking classes or going to school just because you want to learn something cool. One time my mom took a six month course on how to make those glass signs with neon gas, for no reason other than “because they’re cool”. Another time she learned how to weld, and there was a solid two year period where she and a bunch of her friends from the PTA took finance/economics courses at a community college just for fun. My aunt got a Masters from RISD when she was in her 60s just because she wanted to.

About a year ago I signed up for a course in auto mechanics just because I think cars are cool and wanted to know more about how they work, and the guy teaching the class was *really* weirded out and didn’t let me join because I didn’t want a career as a mechanic. This whole “education is for a job only” thing is really weird to me.

NightOnFuckMountain Report

Final score:

74points

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Woman Refuses To Chip In For Babysitting Because She Doesn’t Even Have Kids, Asks If She’s A Jerk

Woman Refuses To Chip In For Babysitting Because She Doesn’t Even Have Kids, Asks If She’s A Jerk

Woman Refuses To Chip In For Babysitting Because She Doesn’t Even Have Kids, Asks If She’s A Jerk

“This Breaks My Heart”: People Stunned—And Angry—After Woman Buys Lost Luggage From Airport

“This Breaks My Heart”: People Stunned—And Angry—After Woman Buys Lost Luggage From Airport

“This Breaks My Heart”: People Stunned—And Angry—After Woman Buys Lost Luggage From Airport

#51

Living without a roommate.

Froticlias Report

Final score:

28points

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#52

8 hours of sleep per day.

SuvenPan Report

Final score:

28points

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#53

Someone Asked, “What Was Normal 20-30 Years Ago, But Is Considered A Luxury Now?” And Here Are 50 Of The Best Answers Bulls***ting your homies on the playground. Had this revelation last week when talking to my nephew. His friend told some blatant lie I guess (9 year old) and everyone pulled out their brand new iPhones to Google his lying a*s.

Remember when someone would say something and you just believed them? Even if you didn’t, you were in for an hour long argument on how it wasn’t possible for Marilyn Manson to remove his ribs to suck his own d**k.

It is a luxury because it takes either credit or popularity to just be believed these days. S**t, I doubted half my professors just because they were old.

Ramen_Beef_Baby , Norma Mortenson Report

Final score:

26points

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#54

“It takes a village” mindset. It does take a village, but unfortunately that’s all the further people will go is telling you, they aren’t actually willing to help out. It’s always “it takes a village, you’re doing great, you got this”

cindyshalfdrunk Report

Final score:

25points

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"I Didn't Start The Dryer": Karen Gets Taught A Lesson After Throwing Out Neighbor's Wet Clothes

"I Didn't Start The Dryer": Karen Gets Taught A Lesson After Throwing Out Neighbor's Wet Clothes

"I Didn't Start The Dryer": Karen Gets Taught A Lesson After Throwing Out Neighbor's Wet Clothes

Guy Divorced 3 Years Ago Drops Off 3 Y.O. With His Ex-Wife Completely Out Of The Blue

Guy Divorced 3 Years Ago Drops Off 3 Y.O. With His Ex-Wife Completely Out Of The Blue

Guy Divorced 3 Years Ago Drops Off 3 Y.O. With His Ex-Wife Completely Out Of The Blue

#55

* Games that released mostly complete (stable)
* Games that didn't have microtransactions
* Games that are not live service garbage that dies less than a year later
* Games that you unlock content/cosmetics through actually playing the game, and not by excessively grindy progression systems (to entice you to buy xp boosts - i.e. time skips) or by microtransactions

Yourname942 Report

Final score:

24points

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#56

Lots of people are saying owning a house but owning anything is at this point with how much subscription services are pushed.

Touche5963 Report

Final score:

24points

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#57

A single family detached house

thisninjaoverhere Report

Final score:

22points

#58

Drinking water from the tap without filters and softeners.

Kuzkuladaemon Report

Final score:

22points

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#59

A company-funded pension plan in the private sector.

My wife's grandmother retired from one of our local health insurance companies over 30 years ago with a full pension. She's 91 and still receives her pension, although the insurance company was acquired by a larger organization a few years back. It's a modest pension, but it allows her to live a comfortable and independent life.

Nowadays, companies only offer 401k or similar retirement plans. Outside of education/government, very few private sector companies offer pension. I'm fortunate enough to be employed by one that still does.

shaoting Report

Final score:

21points

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“All Three Shot Out Pink”: Triplets' Baby Shower Turns Sour, Pregnant Wife Wants A Divorce

“All Three Shot Out Pink”: Triplets' Baby Shower Turns Sour, Pregnant Wife Wants A Divorce

“All Three Shot Out Pink”: Triplets' Baby Shower Turns Sour, Pregnant Wife Wants A Divorce

College Student Does Exactly As Told After Roommates Demand They Keep Their Stuff In Their Room

College Student Does Exactly As Told After Roommates Demand They Keep Their Stuff In Their Room

College Student Does Exactly As Told After Roommates Demand They Keep Their Stuff In Their Room

#60

Going to the doctor. I’m 28 but even when I was a kid you could go to the doctor when you were sick or hurt. Now I won’t go to the doctor unless I’m dead.

Irrationate Report

Final score:

20points

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#61

Canned soup. It used to be super cheap but now it’s $5/6 a can.

RandomGrownUpKid Report

Final score:

20points

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#62

Friggin wings...

They had 25 cent wing nights all over the place. Not only that they were extremely cheap. A huge bag was < $10 if you wanted to smoke them. $20 was more than enough for a party where people at 20+ each.

Final score:

19points

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#63

Not getting felt-up at airports.

Iarwain_ben_Adar Report

Final score:

17points

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#64

Nothing - 30 years ago the stores were empty, so even if you had money - you needed connections to get what you wanted. You needed access to the black market for dishwasher liquid. Chocolate and oranges were Christmas presents for almost every child born in the late 80s and bananas were such a luxury when they strted appearing year round people were acting like they're insane wen they saw them.

If you wanted to travel, you needed to apply for visas for literally everywhere. 30 years ago life was a horror show! Now, you don't even need a passport to travel to almost 40+ countries - just pack your s**t and go... Vacation in Greece? Start the car and you'll be on the beach in 4 hours. Venice carnival? No problem, just get the plane tickets while they're cheaper than the petrol to the airport...

gerginborisov Report

Final score:

16points

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#65

Having your own row on an aircraft.

jrsinhbca Report

Final score:

8points

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Justin Sandberg

I am a writer at Bored Panda. Despite being born in the US, I ended up spending most of my life in Europe, from Latvia, Austria, and Georgia to finally settling in Lithuania. At Bored Panda, you’ll find me covering topics ranging from the cat meme of the day to red flags in the workplace and really anything else. In my free time, I enjoy hiking, beating other people at board games, cooking, good books, and bad films.

I am a writer at Bored Panda. Despite being born in the US, I ended up spending most of my life in Europe, from Latvia, Austria, and Georgia to finally settling in Lithuania. At Bored Panda, you’ll find me covering topics ranging from the cat meme of the day to red flags in the workplace and really anything else. In my free time, I enjoy hiking, beating other people at board games, cooking, good books, and bad films.

Dominyka

I'm a Visual Editor at Bored Panda, crafting captivating visual content to enhance every reader's experience. Sometimes my mornings are spent diving into juicy dramas, while afternoons are all about adding extra laughs to the world by editing the funniest memes around. My favorite part of the job? Choosing the perfect images to illustrate articles. It's like imagining a story as a movie in my mind and selecting the key shots to tell the story visually.

I'm a Visual Editor at Bored Panda, crafting captivating visual content to enhance every reader's experience. Sometimes my mornings are spent diving into juicy dramas, while afternoons are all about adding extra laughs to the world by editing the funniest memes around. My favorite part of the job? Choosing the perfect images to illustrate articles. It's like imagining a story as a movie in my mind and selecting the key shots to tell the story visually.

What do you think ?

Solidhog 1 year ago

Customer loyalty. Rewarding long term customers instead of offering better deals to new customers. Companies focusing on product quality instead of increased profits. Looking at you Apple! You abandoned your own philosophy about providing quality products ahead of profits. Music artists being artistic, creative and individual. Cornbeef and spam.

10points

DBear 1 year ago

Shoplifters being prosecuted instead of getting a free pass.

6points

AllyKilie 1 year ago

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James S 1 year ago

Being left alone by your employer after finishing your day

5points

zena bena 1 year ago

Instruction (detailed)manuals coming with product not go to such and such app or website

3points

Mona 1 year ago

Skies dark enough to see stars and fireflies. Now everything is increasingly bright and everyone wonders why there’s an insect apocalypse

2points

Tuesday's child 1 year ago

I honestly didn't know about a lot of these things, thanks for opening my eyes 🤯🤯

2points

TMoxraaar 1 year ago

Furniture that is made with not only real wood, but solid techniques. The last time I saw a drawer that meet the corners with dovetails it was at an antique shop. The only thing I can think of is companies want to make it just shoddy enough that we can question if it fell apart so soon because we did something wrong putting it together.

1point

Bec 1 year ago

It really annoys me that items are posted as 'wood' on FB marketplace when they are clearly particleboard. Can these people not tell?

0points

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Ru Bee 1 year ago

Caviar

1point

Freya the Wanderer 1 year ago

Why do these blasted spammers keep posting on BP, when they get downvoted so quickly?

0points

Aniko Hirman 1 year ago

This comment is hidden. Click here to view.

Ꮋꭼꮮꮮꭺ-ꮪꮻꮜꭱꮯꭺɴꭰꭹ 1 year ago

>:(

1point

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Solidhog 1 year ago

Customer loyalty. Rewarding long term customers instead of offering better deals to new customers. Companies focusing on product quality instead of increased profits. Looking at you Apple! You abandoned your own philosophy about providing quality products ahead of profits. Music artists being artistic, creative and individual. Cornbeef and spam.

10points

DBear 1 year ago

Shoplifters being prosecuted instead of getting a free pass.

6points

AllyKilie 1 year ago

This comment is hidden. Click here to view.

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James S 1 year ago

Being left alone by your employer after finishing your day

5points

zena bena 1 year ago

Instruction (detailed)manuals coming with product not go to such and such app or website

3points

Mona 1 year ago

Skies dark enough to see stars and fireflies. Now everything is increasingly bright and everyone wonders why there’s an insect apocalypse

2points

Tuesday's child 1 year ago

I honestly didn't know about a lot of these things, thanks for opening my eyes 🤯🤯

2points

TMoxraaar 1 year ago

Furniture that is made with not only real wood, but solid techniques. The last time I saw a drawer that meet the corners with dovetails it was at an antique shop. The only thing I can think of is companies want to make it just shoddy enough that we can question if it fell apart so soon because we did something wrong putting it together.

1point

Bec 1 year ago

It really annoys me that items are posted as 'wood' on FB marketplace when they are clearly particleboard. Can these people not tell?

0points

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Ru Bee 1 year ago

Caviar

1point

Freya the Wanderer 1 year ago

Why do these blasted spammers keep posting on BP, when they get downvoted so quickly?

0points

Aniko Hirman 1 year ago

This comment is hidden. Click here to view.

Ꮋꭼꮮꮮꭺ-ꮪꮻꮜꭱꮯꭺɴꭰꭹ 1 year ago

>:(

1point

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