# Awfully old for your first time! **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [June 15, 2020, 4:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/awfully-old-for-your-first-time/855707 "2020-06-15T16:12:29Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 17\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![WildaBeast](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wildabeast/32/6_2.png) [@WildaBeast](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WildaBeast)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2020, 11:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/awfully-old-for-your-first-time/855707/61 "2020-06-16T23:02:17Z")
> [@Alessan](#): > > I had to deal with car insurance for the first time last week. I’m 45. The first time I ever bought a car on my own I was 34. My parents gave me a (cheap, used) car as a college graduation present and I drove that car for over a decade before buying one myself. The first time I ever bought a brand new (not used) car was a week after my 39th birthday, a little over a year ago. ETA: Come to think of it, when I bought that car it was also the first time I ever owned a car that was built during the same decade I owned it. ---
**Author:** ![panache45](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/panache45/32/64_2.png) [@panache45](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/panache45)\ **Post date:** [June 17, 2020, 12:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/awfully-old-for-your-first-time/855707/62 "2020-06-17T12:03:07Z")
I never learned to drive until I was 30. In my defense, I lived in Manhattan for several years until then. ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [June 17, 2020, 2:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/awfully-old-for-your-first-time/855707/63 "2020-06-17T14:27:11Z")
> [@TreacherousCretin](#): > > in combo with the sugar/lard confection called marshmallows There’s no lard or fat in marshmallows, at least not Jet Puff or the store brand that I have here. It’s sugar, corn syrup, and gelatin, mainly. ---
**Author:** ![TRC4941](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/trc4941/32/6792_2.png) [@TRC4941](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TRC4941)\ **Post date:** [June 17, 2020, 2:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/awfully-old-for-your-first-time/855707/64 "2020-06-17T14:36:59Z")
> [@Dung\_Beetle](#): > > **TRC4941** , I didn’t learn to drive until I was 21. Yep, I was scared. What made you finally do it? > [@panache45](#): > > I never learned to drive until I was 30. In my defense, I lived in Manhattan for several years until then. You have a good excuse! ---
**Author:** ![Cheesesteak](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cheesesteak/32/3694_2.png) [@Cheesesteak](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cheesesteak)\ **Post date:** [June 17, 2020, 4:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/awfully-old-for-your-first-time/855707/65 "2020-06-17T16:11:14Z")
I didn’t have smores until I was an adult with a kid in Cub Scouts. While they’re nice and all, I gravitate towards just eating the chocolate and toasted (burned) marshmallows separately. My dad hated peas his entire life, when he was in his '70s I convinced him to try a fresh pea from my garden. It was the first pea he ever enjoyed eating. ---
**Author:** ![psychobunny](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/54ee81/32.png) [@psychobunny](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/psychobunny)\ **Post date:** [June 17, 2020, 7:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/awfully-old-for-your-first-time/855707/66 "2020-06-17T19:05:45Z")
What kind of sick thread is this where everybody hates Smores? Sure toasted marshmallows are great but if you are worried about messy, it’s much neater to have them between squares of graham cracker than trying to eat them directly off a stick or pulling them off and getting your hands all sticky. Anyway, I will be the renegade and say that I like Smores. I will eat all of yours. ---
**Author:** ![california\_jobcase](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/9d8465/32.png) [@california\_jobcase](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/california_jobcase)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2020, 3:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/awfully-old-for-your-first-time/855707/67 "2020-06-18T03:59:45Z")
I have had the chance to try s’mores a few times, but I really like to eat the parts separately. Therefore, I have never tried them. I suppose I should someday to see if the sum is greater than the parts, but who knows when that will be? Also, I have never tried a PB&J sandwich. The P and J just never sounded like a good mix to me. I also have intentions of trying one someday, but I never seem to buy jelly. ---
**Author:** ![lobotomyboy63](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lobotomyboy63/32/2900_2.png) [@lobotomyboy63](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lobotomyboy63)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2020, 4:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/awfully-old-for-your-first-time/855707/68 "2020-06-18T04:32:44Z")
> [@psychobunny](#): > > What kind of sick thread is this where everybody hates Smores? Sure toasted marshmallows are great but if you are worried about messy, it’s much neater to have them between squares of graham cracker than trying to eat them directly off a stick or pulling them off and getting your hands all sticky. Anyway, I will be the renegade and say that I like Smores. I will eat all of yours. “Hate” is a strong term. I love me some chocolate. Graham crackers are pretty tasty as well. Marshmallow, I’m kinda neutral. If I were going to eat one, it would be lotsa chocolate, some graham crackers, and just a smidge of marshmallow. Mind you, I’ve heard of (but never eaten) a fluffernutter. Love PB and I’d try it. And I can’t discount the role of marshmallow in an old fave, Rice Krispie treats. But too much is quickly achieved IMO…glue it together and get out. I considered starting a thread about things you should like eating but don’t. #1 on my list: chocolate covered cherries. The components are fine but not together. I discovered this while trying my first bite of Black Forest Cake. No. Just no. The chocolate covered cherries go over the top by adding that bizarre uber sugary filling stuff. STOP! Let me tell you what I **will** eat. Take two slices of bread. Apply peanut butter to each. Scramble an egg or two. Press that hot egg between the peanut buttered bread slices and let it melt. But do get PB that has very little added sugar. ---
**Author:** ![needscoffee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/needscoffee/32/1076_2.png) [@needscoffee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/needscoffee)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2020, 4:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/awfully-old-for-your-first-time/855707/69 "2020-06-18T04:47:03Z")
> [@psychobunny](#): > > What kind of sick thread is this where everybody hates Smores? Sure toasted marshmallows are great but if you are worried about messy, it’s much neater to have them between squares of graham cracker than trying to eat them directly off a stick or pulling them off and getting your hands all sticky. Anyway, I will be the renegade and say that I like Smores. I will eat all of yours. I’m with you - these guys are nuts! More s’mores for you and me! We used to cook them over the electric stove when I was a kid. I don’t even like marshmallows ordinarily. They have to be cooked golden-browned and melted. ---
**Author:** ![Melbourne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b5e925/32.png) [@Melbourne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Melbourne)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2020, 5:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/awfully-old-for-your-first-time/855707/70 "2020-06-18T05:13:54Z")
> [@glee](#): > > I’m 66 and don’t even know what a s’more is. :eek: > (Is it because I’m in the UK?) You could try at home, but that would be a really bad idea: traditionally Hershey’s chocolate bars were thinner than Cadbury, which gives you a thinner layer of chocolate, and the distinctive cheese-cake flavor of Hershey’s milk chocolate cuts across the sweetness and contrasts with the other flavors. Also, like any food that consists of sugar, then more sugar, with more sugar, it’s an idea that appeals mostly to kids. The idea is that you eat just enough so that you want s’more. Your consumption should be regulated by the difficulty of melting the marshmallows over an open fire, and the limits imposed by adult supervision. ---
**Author:** ![Dereknocue67](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/6de8d8/32.png) [@Dereknocue67](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dereknocue67)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2020, 7:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/awfully-old-for-your-first-time/855707/71 "2020-06-18T07:52:16Z")
I’ve never had a s’more and have no desire to try one. ---
**Author:** ![Melbourne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b5e925/32.png) [@Melbourne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Melbourne)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2020, 11:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/awfully-old-for-your-first-time/855707/72 "2020-06-18T11:42:44Z")
Actually, I really like Wagon Wheels and Chocolate Royals, which are the commercial versions of the same thing. I think that for adults, the secret really is using enough of the biscuit base. ---
**Author:** ![kiz](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/7feea3/32.png) [@kiz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kiz)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2020, 1:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/awfully-old-for-your-first-time/855707/73 "2020-06-18T13:45:39Z")
If you were in scouting as a kid you definitely know what a s’more is, what it tastes like, and how messy they are. They’re THE staple camping dessert. Loved them as a kid and disliked them as an adult because of the sweetness. I’ve never been a fan of marshmallow anything anyway but I’ll admit that it offsets the sweetness of the chocolate in its own sweet (haha) way. ---
**Author:** ![Max\_S](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/46a35a/32.png) [@Max\_S](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Max_S)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2020, 9:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/awfully-old-for-your-first-time/855707/74 "2020-06-18T21:26:57Z")
> [@monstro](#): > > I’ve never heard of people eating smores outside of the camping experience. Since lots of people have never been camping, it doesn’t seem that crazy to me that lots of people have never had smores. In addition to campfires, I’ve also had s’mores during barbecues, if you take off the rack you can use that flame. And then a couple of times when we couldn’t (or didn’t want to) go out, we could use the flame from our gas stovetop and little wooden skewers to make s’mores inside. I think I tried making s’mores with a microwave once when I was young, but I don’t remember whether it worked or not. ~Max ---
**Author:** ![TreacherousCretin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/treacherouscretin/32/476_2.png) [@TreacherousCretin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TreacherousCretin)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2020, 10:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/awfully-old-for-your-first-time/855707/75 "2020-06-18T22:17:08Z")
> [@pulykamell](#): > > There’s no lard or fat in marshmallows, at least not Jet Puff or the store brand that I have here. It’s sugar, corn syrup, and gelatin, mainly. Yeah, I figured it wasn’t lard but I shot from the hip anyway. Whatever, the ickysweet confection we now call “marshmallow” is a poor substitute for the root pulp and honey mix it’s named after. Or so I’ve read. ---
**Author:** ![GuanoLad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guanolad/32/42_2.png) [@GuanoLad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GuanoLad)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2020, 1:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/awfully-old-for-your-first-time/855707/76 "2020-06-27T01:58:44Z")
There are many common things that I have never done, or did very late in life, mostly due to locality or similar inaccessibility, or sometimes cultural unawareness. Some examples include: riding a roller coaster or ferris wheel; drinking a Cherry Coke; driving a car; or having sex. Some I did do eventually, some I still never have and likely never will. ---
**Author:** ![Grestarian](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/grestarian/32/3227_2.png) [@Grestarian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Grestarian)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2020, 6:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/awfully-old-for-your-first-time/855707/77 "2020-06-27T06:32:28Z")
I first had s’mores in the back yard of a neighbor’s house on the 4th of July. They were lighting firecrackers and making s’mores for the Independence Day celebration. I was probably 10 at the time and my giant marshmallows kept burning in the fire. Blackened sugar is far from delicious, so I learned not to like toasted marshmallows or the s’mores made with them. Thirty-plus years later I was up at Lake Tahoe with friends and everyone was gathered around two fire pits. Someone brought out Graham crackers, marshmallows, and a bag of Hersheys’ bite-size bars. Half the fun was grabbing a bunch and then bargaining with others to get more of the bars you like and fewer of the bars you didn’t – Krackle for Goodbar or Almond for Special Dark – and of course everyone’s preferences were different so it all worked out. And, since I had gained a lot more coordination (and height, for that matter) over thirty years, I was skillful enough to just toast my marshmallows to a golden caramelized skin all around. Sandwiching that between two quarters of a Graham cracker and a bite-sized bar of Special Dark or Hershey’s Almond was heavenly! And, because they were such small packages (mmmmmaybe my mouth had gotten bigger over the years, as well) they didn’t leave a mess all over my hands and face any more. Still, I could only handle a few before suffering from sugar overload. –G! [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/awfully-old-for-your-first-time/855707.md?page=3)