# 50 things to do before you're 30 - which have you done? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [January 21, 2006, 1:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/50-things-to-do-before-youre-30-which-have-you-done/340952 "2006-01-21T01:17:35Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![elfkin477](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/a9a28c/32.png) [@elfkin477](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elfkin477)\ **Post date:** [January 21, 2006, 7:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/50-things-to-do-before-youre-30-which-have-you-done/340952/41 "2006-01-21T19:30:17Z")
1. Have a really stupid accident which necessitates a hospital visit (broke a small window and cut my wrist open. slipped with cutting something held in my right hand…while using a box cutter. ouch) 2. Shoot something (only if BB guns count) 3. Make a pointless modification to your house (several things, but painting a gas tank to look like the yellow submarine was the most pointless :)) 4. Refill an inkjet cartridge 5. Completely dismantle an object larger than yourself (pool, swing set, several armoires etc) 6. Stay up all night listening to a girl have an emotional crisis (I lived in an all girls dorm, this happened on a monthly basis) 7. Lick the terminals of a 9 volt battery 8. Dial 911 (this isn’t something to aspire to! But do I get extra points for first having done it as a toddler during an actual emergency?) 9. Read a 500 page book in one sitting 10. Escape a perfectly justified parking ticket. I have no idea what 12, 13 or 27 mean. Or what “mains” means in 32. And 36 isn’t imported into the US, so… ---
**Author:** ![NinjaChick](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/71c47a/32.png) [@NinjaChick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/NinjaChick)\ **Post date:** [January 21, 2006, 7:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/50-things-to-do-before-youre-30-which-have-you-done/340952/42 "2006-01-21T19:39:36Z")
1. Have a really stupid accident which necessitates a hospital visit 2. Take a weekend break more than 1000 miles from home 3. Spend more than your monthly income on a pocket sized gadget 4. Use a whole roll of gaffa tape in one day 5. Buy a samurai sword 6. Break a sledgehammer 7. Tip a waiter with something other than money 8. Light a fire with petrol 9. Fall asleep and get really hilarious sunburn 10. Get drunk on Absinthe 11. Stay up all night listening to a girl have an emotional crisis 12. Lick the terminals of a 9 volt battery 13. Set off a fire extinguisher 14. Drive at least 600 miles in a day on two lane roads 15. Watch all the Monty Python films In one sitting 16. Commit a faux pas which means that a friend will never speak to you again 17. Make a bet you couldn’t afford to lose 18. Read a 500 page book in one sitting 19. Escape a perfectly justified parking ticket. (Uh, it would have been a speeding/reckless driving ticket. Amazing how tears from a cute little 17-year-old girl can influence a cop). Not bad considering I’m not yet 20. ---
**Author:** ![ITR\_champion](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/c67d28/32.png) [@ITR\_champion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ITR_champion)\ **Post date:** [January 21, 2006, 8:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/50-things-to-do-before-youre-30-which-have-you-done/340952/43 "2006-01-21T20:21:45Z")
I am male, currently 23, and apparently I have a long way to go. > [@](#): > > 1. Take a weekend break more than 1000 miles from home - I think I max out at 700 miles, but I should get bonus points for driving their rather than flying. I was in Claremont, and I went hiking in northern California. > 2. Boot Linux on your home PC - Yup. > 3. Get lost in a country where you don’t speak the language - I got lost when my family was in Italy. I was nine years old at the time. > 4. Delay paying a bill until the summons arrives - Yes, but I had a good excuse. My apartment burned down. I forgot to notify the electric company, so they continued trying to bill me for the monthly fee. It took a while for the bill to reach me at my new address. > 5. Destroy a speed camera - not on purpose. > 6. Say something obscene on national television - I’ve never been on TV. I’ve said many obscene things to security cameras. > 7. Make a bomb - no, but a close friend did so. > 8. Live abroad. - In France, Germany, Italy, Wales and Alaska. (Alaska isn’t abroad, but it should be.) > 9. Stay up all night listening to a girl have an emotional crisis - not an experience that I’d like to repeat. It was a girl I didn’t know, but she decided to break up with her boyfriend outside my window. > 10. Stay at the office for more than 24 hours - Does my college’s computer lab count as “the office”? > 11. Set off a fire extinguisher - I’ve been in a kitchen when the automatic sprinklers were triggered by excessive smoke. Twice. > 12. Drive at least 600 miles in a day on two lane roads - possibly. (Wales has a lot of two lane roads). > 13. Watch all the Monty Python films In one sitting - No, but I did watch about twelve episodes of _Flying Circus_ once. > 14. Read a 500 page book in one sitting - probably. > 15. Escape a perfectly justified parking ticket. - I plead the fifth. ---
**Author:** ![FairyChatMom](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fairychatmom/32/21906_2.png) [@FairyChatMom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FairyChatMom)\ **Post date:** [January 21, 2006, 8:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/50-things-to-do-before-youre-30-which-have-you-done/340952/44 "2006-01-21T20:27:55Z")
I’m 52, and I haven’t done a single thing on the list. Guess I’m more boring than I thought… ---
**Author:** ![Jayn\_Newell](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f9ae1b/32.png) [@Jayn\_Newell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jayn_Newell)\ **Post date:** [January 21, 2006, 9:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/50-things-to-do-before-youre-30-which-have-you-done/340952/45 "2006-01-21T21:08:39Z")
1. Shoot something–Targets of numerous types. When your father, all his friends and most boys you know shoot, you shoot a few things yourself. I would’ve shot a partridge once (bow), but my aim isn’t that good. 2. Buy a samurai sword–Not yet, but I still have time. I have a thing for sharp metal objects so I probably will at some point. 3. Dial 911–an old woman had a diabetic seisure in front of me and my roommate while we were heading to a movie. She fell over in the crosswalk. ---
**Author:** ![AngelicGemma](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/439d5e/32.png) [@AngelicGemma](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AngelicGemma)\ **Post date:** [January 21, 2006, 10:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/50-things-to-do-before-youre-30-which-have-you-done/340952/46 "2006-01-21T22:07:07Z")
These are the one’s I’ve done - 1. Have a really stupid accident which necessitates a hospital visit - Fell down the stairs while showing off. 2. Get lost in a country where you don’t speak the language - Did this in France. 3. Spend more than your monthly income on a pocket sized gadget - Once or twice. 😃 4. Delay paying a bill until the summons arrives - Britannia Music. They such ass. 5. Refill an inkjet cartridge 6. Park inside a motorway service station 7. Get something for free through a masterpiece of complaining - Many cinema tickets, after the ink from a cup went al over my top. 8. Get drunk on Absinthe - I found it no different then getting drunk on other drinks. 9. Stay up all night listening to a girl have an emotional crisis. I’m 20. I think it’s a good start. i need to learn to drive, so I can bump up the numbers. ---
**Author:** ![GorillaMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/50afbb/32.png) [@GorillaMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GorillaMan)\ **Post date:** [January 21, 2006, 10:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/50-things-to-do-before-youre-30-which-have-you-done/340952/47 "2006-01-21T22:17:53Z")
I’ve done: 1 2 4 5 6 8 15 24 25 27 31 32 33 37 38 41 46 49 ---
**Author:** ![Fionn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/a587f6/32.png) [@Fionn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fionn)\ **Post date:** [January 21, 2006, 10:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/50-things-to-do-before-youre-30-which-have-you-done/340952/48 "2006-01-21T22:38:41Z")
I’ve stayed up all night listening to a girl in an emotional crisis and bought a samurai sword, but those are it for me. ---
**Author:** ![tomndebb](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/b9e5f3/32.png) [@tomndebb](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tomndebb)\ **Post date:** [January 21, 2006, 11:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/50-things-to-do-before-youre-30-which-have-you-done/340952/49 "2006-01-21T23:03:35Z")
Before 30 I managed to do the following, although it seems filled with rather silly stuff: (How the heck was I supposed to boot up Linux when it had not even been written before I was well past 30?) \*1. Have a really stupid accident which necessitates a hospital visit 2. Shoot something 3. Take a weekend break more than 1000 miles from home 1. Delay paying a bill until the summons arrives 2. Refill an inkjet cartridge 3. Light a fire with petrol 4. Live abroad. 5. Give yourself a mains electric shock. 6. Completely dismantle an object larger than yourself 7. Stay at the office for more than 24 hours 8. Drive at least 600 miles in a day on two lane roads 9. Read a 500 page book in one sitting\* * * * The next two are close: _5. Get lost in a country where you don’t speak the language_ (I suffer an inability to get lost, but I have wandered around a few European towns without a map.) \*43. Hotwire a car \* (We used to routinely hotwire one of the backhoes on a site wherre I worked, but I’ve never tried it on a car.) ---
**Author:** ![Jammer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/df705f/32.png) [@Jammer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jammer)\ **Post date:** [January 21, 2006, 11:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/50-things-to-do-before-youre-30-which-have-you-done/340952/50 "2006-01-21T23:21:43Z")
1. Have a really stupid accident which necessitates a hospital visit. 2. Shoot something 3. Take a weekend break more than 1000 miles from home 4. Boot Linux on your home PC 5. Get lost in a country where you don’t speak the language 6. Delay paying a bill until the summons arrives 7. Do a J turn in order to beat somebody to a parking space 8. Break a sledgehammer 9. Make a bomb (for our FBI overloads, I was 10 and it was only a small one) 10. Smash a CRT 11. Light a fire with petrol 12. Drive at more than 140mph. 13. Get something for free through a masterpiece of complaining 14. Give yourself a mains electric shock. 15. Completely dismantle an object larger than yourself 16. Fall asleep and get really hilarious sunburn 17. Stay up all night listening to a girl have an emotional crisis 18. Lick the terminals of a 9 volt battery 19. Take part in motorsport (only if go kart racing counts) 20. Stay at the office for more than 24 hours 21. Set off a fire extinguisher 22. Drive at least 600 miles in a day on two lane roads 23. Read a 500 page book in one sitting 24. Escape a perfectly justified parking ticket. ---
**Author:** ![bizzwire](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/958977/32.png) [@bizzwire](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bizzwire)\ **Post date:** [January 21, 2006, 11:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/50-things-to-do-before-youre-30-which-have-you-done/340952/51 "2006-01-21T23:30:28Z")
> [@FairyChatMom](#): > > I’m 52, and I haven’t done a single thing on the list. Guess I’m more boring than I thought… Don’t fret; Some of these thing we couldn’t have done before thirty anyway (Boot Linux on your computer) Others, I have no desire to, and the remainder are, as has been noted, more apropos to frat boys than, ahem, people of substance. ---
**Author:** ![TheLoadedDog](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/35a633/32.png) [@TheLoadedDog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TheLoadedDog)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2006, 12:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/50-things-to-do-before-youre-30-which-have-you-done/340952/52 "2006-01-22T00:17:40Z")
1. Shoot something 2. Take a weekend break more than 1000 miles from home 3. Get lost in a country where you don’t speak the language 4. Delay paying a bill until the summons arrives 5. Do a J turn in order to beat somebody to a parking space 6. Make a bomb 7. Light a fire with petrol 8. Get something for free through a masterpiece of complaining 9. Fall asleep and get really hilarious sunburn 10. Stay up all night listening to a girl have an emotional crisis 11. Lick the terminals of a 9 volt battery 12. Drive at least 600 miles in a day on two lane roads 13. Watch all the Monty Python films In one sitting 14. Shag an ex-girlfriend by mistake 15. Dial 999 16. Commit a faux pas which means that a friend will never speak to you again 17. Escape a perfectly justified parking ticket. Yair, pretty average, mine. ---
**Author:** ![Governor\_Quinn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/d26b3c/32.png) [@Governor\_Quinn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Governor_Quinn)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2006, 12:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/50-things-to-do-before-youre-30-which-have-you-done/340952/53 "2006-01-22T00:25:11Z")
1. Refill an inkjet cartridge 2. Give yourself a mains electric shock. 3. Completely dismantle an object larger than yourself 4. Read a 500 page book in one sitting I’ve lived a boring life. ---
**Author:** ![percypercy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/8baadc/32.png) [@percypercy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/percypercy)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2006, 12:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/50-things-to-do-before-youre-30-which-have-you-done/340952/54 "2006-01-22T00:29:30Z")
I’ve done: 1. Have a really stupid accident which necessitates a hospital visit 2. Shoot something 3. Boot Linux on your home PC (although this didn’t go well) 4. Get lost in a country where you don’t speak the language (Paris with a school group) 5. Write off a car(car vs. telephone pole, telephone pole won) 6. Escape a perfectly justified parking ticket. -Lil ---
**Author:** ![Scylla](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a5b964/32.png) [@Scylla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Scylla)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2006, 12:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/50-things-to-do-before-youre-30-which-have-you-done/340952/55 "2006-01-22T00:32:14Z")
[QUOTE=Priceguy] 1. Have a really stupid accident which necessitates a hospital visit 2. Shoot something 3. Take a weekend break more than 1000 miles from home 4. Spend more than your monthly income on a pocket sized gadget 5. Break a really large plate glass window 6. Make a parachute jump on a hangover 7. Use a whole roll of gaffa tape in one day 8. Make a pointless modification to your house 9. Delay paying a bill until the summons arrives 10. Break a sledgehammer 11. Smash a CRT 12. Light a fire with petrol 13. Own a convertible. 14. Drive at more than 140mph. 15. Completely dismantle an object larger than yourself 16. Write off a car 17. Fall asleep and get really hilarious sunburn 18. Stay up all night listening to a girl have an emotional crisis 19. Lick the terminals of a 9 volt battery 20. Stay at the office for more than 24 hours 21. Set off a fire extinguisher 22. Drive at least 600 miles in a day on two lane roads 23. Shag an ex-girlfriend by mistake 24. Commit a faux pas which means that a friend will never speak to you again 25. Make a bet you couldn’t afford to lose 26. Read a 500 page book in one sitting ---
**Author:** ![Mississippienne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d2c977/32.png) [@Mississippienne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mississippienne)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2006, 12:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/50-things-to-do-before-youre-30-which-have-you-done/340952/56 "2006-01-22T00:48:03Z")
Some of these things sound pretty dumb to me. Kidnapping someone? Booting Linux? Bomb-making?! Please! I certainly hope to avoid most of this list. That being said… 1. Shoot something I’ve fired a rifle. Hit the dirt. That count? 1. Take a weekend break more than 1000 miles from home New Orleans, Montreal, ah how I miss you both. And one I’m going to accomplish soon: 1. Live abroad. Istanbul, here I come! ---
**Author:** ![wolfman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/a8b319/32.png) [@wolfman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wolfman)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2006, 2:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/50-things-to-do-before-youre-30-which-have-you-done/340952/57 "2006-01-22T02:03:49Z")
1. Have a really stupid accident which necessitates a hospital visit 2. Shoot something 3. Take a weekend break more than 1000 miles from home 4. Boot Linux on your home PC 5. Spend more than your monthly income on a pocket sized gadget 6. Post bail for a friend 7. Break a really large plate glass window 8. Use a whole roll of gaffer’s tape in one day (of course I was actually gaffing at the time, so it might not count) 9. Make a pointless modification to your house 10. Buy a samurai sword 11. Delay paying a bill until the summons arrives 12. Destroy a speed camera 13. Refill an inkjet cartridge 14. Do a J turn in order to beat somebody to a parking space 15. Break a sledgehammer 16. Make a bomb 17. Smash a CRT 18. Tip a waiter with something other than money 19. Light a fire with petrol 20. Park inside a motorway service station 21. Own a convertible. 22. Drive at more than 140mph. 23. Get something for free through a masterpiece of complaining 24. Give yourself a mains electric shock. 25. Completely dismantle an object larger than yourself 26. Write off a car 27. Fall asleep and get really hilarious sunburn 28. Stay up all night listening to a girl have an emotional crisis 29. Lick the terminals of a 9 volt battery 30. Take part in motorsport 31. Stay at the office for more than 24 hours 32. Set off a fire extinguisher 33. Drive at least 600 miles in a day on two lane roads 34. Hotwire a car 35. Watch all the Monty Python films In one sitting 36. Dial 999 (is that the same as 911)? 37. Commit a faux pas which means that a friend will never speak to you again 38. Make a bet you couldn’t afford to lose 39. Read a 500 page book in one sitting 40. Escape a perfectly justified parking ticket. 40 out of 50 before 30; not bad or is it not good. (assuming I translated the intention correctly) ---
**Author:** ![jasonh300](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/46a35a/32.png) [@jasonh300](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jasonh300)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2006, 2:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/50-things-to-do-before-youre-30-which-have-you-done/340952/58 "2006-01-22T02:04:50Z")
Things I have **not** done… 1. Boot Linux on your home PC But I’ve booted Knoppix…does that count? 2. Get lost in a country where you don’t speak the language The only countries I’ve been to where they speak another language are Canada and Mexico. In Ontario Canada, most people understand English. I have been lost in Ontario, but it was in a car. Cozumel Mexico, most people also understand English, but I didn’t get lost there. 3. Post bail for a friend I went to do this one morning, but they were releasing him on good faith when I got there. 4. Break a really large plate glass window I’ve broken a few small windows, but not any large plate glass. 5. Make a parachute jump on a hangover Never made a parachute jump. 6. Use a whole roll of gaffa tape in one day Duct tape, maybe…what the hell is gaffa tape? 7. Neck a pint of peppermint oil Neck?? 8. Pull a shemale by mistake (but realise in time…) Uhh…no. 9. Buy a samurai sword Nope. 10. Delay paying a bill until the summons arrives I never pay bills late. 11. Destroy a speed camera I’ve never encountered a speed camera although I’d probably destroy one if I was ever threatened by one. 12. Refill an inkjet cartridge I’ve filled 50,000+ laser toner cartridges in the past 15 years, but never an inkjet cartridge. 13. Say something obscene on national television If I’d stayed in New Orleans for Hurricane Katrina, I might’ve been able to draw enough attention to get on CNN, but I didn’t. 14. Break a sledgehammer Broke the handle of one once. Does that count? 15. Require medical treatment as a consequence of kinky sex gone wrong (STDs don’t count.) I didn’t seek medical treatment. 16. Kidnap someone No 17. Live abroad. I’ve lived _with_ a broad before. 18. Fall asleep and get really hilarious sunburn I rarely get sunburned. 19. Get drunk on Absinthe Never wanted to. 20. Watch all the Monty Python films In one sitting Never wanted to. 21. Shag an ex-girlfriend by mistake Someone else’s ex-girlfriend…by mistake. ---
**Author:** ![biometricks](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ecae2f/32.png) [@biometricks](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/biometricks)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2006, 2:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/50-things-to-do-before-youre-30-which-have-you-done/340952/59 "2006-01-22T02:48:10Z")
1. Have a really stupid accident which necessitates a hospital visit 2. Shoot something 3. Boot Linux on your home PC 4. Break a really large plate glass window 5. Make a pointless modification to your house 6. Smash a CRT 7. Light a fire with petrol 8. Get something for free through a masterpiece of complaining 9. Give yourself a mains electric shock. 10. Completely dismantle an object larger than yourself 11. Fall asleep and get really hilarious sunburn 12. Commit a faux pas which means that a friend will never speak to you again 13. Make a bet you couldn’t afford to lose 14. Stay at the office for more than 24 hours (I was very close to accomplishing this) 15. Escape a perfectly justified parking ticket. (never a parking ticket, but several moving violations) I’m only 26 so I still have some time to work on the rest of the list. ---
**Author:** ![Burrido](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/3be4f8/32.png) [@Burrido](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Burrido)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2006, 3:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/50-things-to-do-before-youre-30-which-have-you-done/340952/60 "2006-01-22T03:02:16Z")
1. Have a really stupid accident which necessitates a hospital visit Broke my arm sliding into first base. 2. Shoot something Use to deer hunt. 3. Take a weekend break more than 1000 miles from home Went to wyoming last fall. 4. Delay paying a bill until the summons arrives Once had a parking ticket that turned into liscence revokcation. 5. Tip a waiter with something other than money Pack of cigarettes. 6. Light a fire with petrol Oh yeah. 7. Get something for free through a masterpiece of complaining Free month from comcast after bitching about it everyday for 5 days. 8. Lick the terminals of a 9 volt battery As a kid. 9. Stay at the office for more than 24 hours Nearly 24 hours, think it was more like 22 and some change. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/50-things-to-do-before-youre-30-which-have-you-done/340952.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/50-things-to-do-before-youre-30-which-have-you-done/340952.md?page=4)