# Things adults do that you find (mildly) juvenile **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [July 18, 2018, 12:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-adults-do-that-you-find-mildly-juvenile/818141 "2018-07-18T12:40:58Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Robot\_Arm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/robot_arm/32/18280_2.png) [@Robot\_Arm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Robot_Arm)\ **Post date:** [July 18, 2018, 4:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-adults-do-that-you-find-mildly-juvenile/818141/41 "2018-07-18T16:29:57Z")
> [@Filbert](#): > > Yeah, I definitely subscribe to the [XKCD](https://xkcd.com/150/) view of adulthood. I achieved the childhood dream of having pizza and hamburgers every night for a week, but it was only because I had to use up the ground beef and cheese before they went bad. ---
**Author:** ![Inigo\_Montoya](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/inigo_montoya/32/124_2.png) [@Inigo\_Montoya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Inigo_Montoya)\ **Post date:** [July 18, 2018, 4:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-adults-do-that-you-find-mildly-juvenile/818141/42 "2018-07-18T16:46:37Z")
[DELETED] My list got pretty long so I deleted it when I realized nearly everything someone else does that comes to my attention is annoying. Common thread, though, is people behaving as though their interests are more important than someone else’s. Making laws to ban stuff that hurts nobody, but seems gross. Seeking revenge. Hoarding & not sharing. Basically, stuff you can imagine a 3 year-old doing if they had 20-60 years to think it up. Adults eating Cap’n Crunch while watching Adventure Time, or wearing comfortable clothing, or listening to music that helps them find value in their own lives, or just doing something harmless to others but which brings them joy…these are the opposite of annoying to me. Maybe I don’t understand the question? ---
**Author:** ![Machine\_Elf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/82dd89/32.png) [@Machine\_Elf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Machine_Elf)\ **Post date:** [July 18, 2018, 4:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-adults-do-that-you-find-mildly-juvenile/818141/43 "2018-07-18T16:55:20Z")
> [@Filbert](#): > > Yeah, I definitely subscribe to the [XKCD](https://xkcd.com/150/) view of adulthood. I prefer [this one.](https://xkcd.com/291/) ---
**Author:** ![Doug\_K](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b5ac83/32.png) [@Doug\_K](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Doug_K)\ **Post date:** [July 18, 2018, 4:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-adults-do-that-you-find-mildly-juvenile/818141/44 "2018-07-18T16:55:28Z")
> [@bibliophage](#): > > Grown men wearing short pants. It’s not particularly rational or fair, but it’s how I feel. It doesn’t bother me in certain contexts (if they’re at the beach, hiking, running, mowing the lawn, relaxing at their own home, etc.). But at restaurants or stores, at work or school, when visiting other people’s houses, put on some long pants. > > I think it bothers me because of my father’s experiences. Until he as 12, his controlling, extremely old-fashioned mother wouldn’t let him wear long pants, ever. He had to wear shorts in the summer and knee-pants (knickers) in winter, whether he wanted to or not (and he didn’t want to). He so resented that childhood rule that he never wore shorts as an adult, even when the weather was hot. To this day I associate long pants with grown men and short pants with children. Myself I never wear shorts in public and only very, very rarely at home. I’m kind of the same way. My daughters sometimes ask me why I don’t wear shorts in the summer, and I’ll tell them truthfully that it’s mostly because going outside half naked means the sun is beating down on my exposed skin, making me hotter, not cooler. But also, I’ll occasionally point out adult men wearing shorts and ask them “Would you really want to be seen in public with me if I dressed like that?” The other thing is that no one has worn real shorts since the early 80s. When I was in school knee length shorts were called “kneeknockers” and were the kiss of death socially. You could never live that down. Even if you revealed yourself to be Superduperman in the last panel, Lois Pain would just slap you down and say “Yer still a dork.” ---
**Author:** ![Patx2](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/73ab20/32.png) [@Patx2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Patx2)\ **Post date:** [July 18, 2018, 5:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-adults-do-that-you-find-mildly-juvenile/818141/45 "2018-07-18T17:38:59Z")
I’ll go with adults that just can’t keep their mouths shut. For example, I have three SILs. I have learned over the years, and have told my daughter the same, that unless you want personal and confidential information spread through the family, do not share. The moment something is said to one of them, it is either called into, or texted to the others. As intelligent adults, they all are, I think they are all capable of understanding when a conversation or topic is confidential and something I decided to share only with that person. ---
**Author:** ![Thudlow\_Boink](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thudlow_boink/32/320_2.png) [@Thudlow\_Boink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thudlow_Boink)\ **Post date:** [July 18, 2018, 6:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-adults-do-that-you-find-mildly-juvenile/818141/46 "2018-07-18T18:08:15Z")
> [@bibliophage](#): > > Grown men wearing short pants. When I was a kid, I don’t remember adults wearing flip-flops in public. And if you go back even further, a grown man would have always been wearing a hat, coat, and tie. ---
**Author:** ![furryman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/furryman/32/99_2.png) [@furryman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/furryman)\ **Post date:** [July 18, 2018, 6:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-adults-do-that-you-find-mildly-juvenile/818141/47 "2018-07-18T18:17:27Z")
> [@RTFirefly](#): > > On this subject, it’s recently\* become the norm in chain restaurants (e.g. Denny’s, Outback) to give you a straw with your soft drink if you order one, even though the soda’s served in a regular glass. At many of these places, the drink will arrive with the straw already in it. > > At first, my reaction was, ‘WTF do I need a straw for? I’m not a kid.’ But now I just shrug. And if the straw’s already in the glass, I use it. > \*Like over the past decade or two. When you get old, your perspective on time gets all funny. 🙂 My teeth are kind of sensitive, so I don’t see any reason why I should put ice anywhere near them. ---
**Author:** ![WOOKINPANUB](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wookinpanub/32/132_2.png) [@WOOKINPANUB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WOOKINPANUB)\ **Post date:** [July 18, 2018, 6:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-adults-do-that-you-find-mildly-juvenile/818141/48 "2018-07-18T18:19:06Z")
> [@Inigo\_Montoya](#): > > [DELETED] > My list got pretty long so I deleted it when I realized nearly everything someone else does that comes to my attention is annoying. Common thread, though, is people behaving as though their interests are more important than someone else’s. Making laws to ban stuff that hurts nobody, but seems gross. Seeking revenge. Hoarding & not sharing. Basically, stuff you can imagine a 3 year-old doing if they had 20-60 years to think it up. > > Adults eating Cap’n Crunch while watching Adventure Time, or wearing comfortable clothing, or listening to music that helps them find value in their own lives, or just doing something harmless to others but which brings them joy…these are the opposite of annoying to me. > > Maybe I don’t understand the question? I’d say you get the gist of the meaning but maybe not the spirit 🙂 I had hoped the parenthetical “mildly” would imply that I’m referring to insignificant things that you vaguely associate as childish. And **jz78817** ,of course there are ways we as a society generally think adults should act and do things. This thread is just concerned with opinions so of course we’re not all going to agree. Don’t make me go back over the dozens of threads about picky eaters and find out that you were one of the many people that called me and my finicky brethren childish 😛 ---
**Author:** ![furryman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/furryman/32/99_2.png) [@furryman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/furryman)\ **Post date:** [July 18, 2018, 6:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-adults-do-that-you-find-mildly-juvenile/818141/49 "2018-07-18T18:24:16Z")
> [@FairyChatMom](#): > > My Little Pony - I just don’t get the obsession. I enjoy MLP but honestly I would never go to a convention or dress up as one of the characters. On the other hand, are they any worse than people who are obsessed with sports? ---
**Author:** ![Thudlow\_Boink](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thudlow_boink/32/320_2.png) [@Thudlow\_Boink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thudlow_Boink)\ **Post date:** [July 18, 2018, 6:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-adults-do-that-you-find-mildly-juvenile/818141/50 "2018-07-18T18:28:23Z")
> [@furryman](#): > > I enjoy MLP but honestly I would never go to a convention or dress up as one of the characters. On the other hand, are they any worse than people who are obsessed with sports? The difference is that there have been grown men obsessed with sports for as long as I can remember, so it never registered with me as being incompatible with adulthood. But I don’t remember any adults being obsessed with things like My Little Pony or Harry Potter or cartoons or superheroes when I was a kid. ---
**Author:** ![PackerMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/f17d59/32.png) [@PackerMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PackerMan)\ **Post date:** [July 18, 2018, 6:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-adults-do-that-you-find-mildly-juvenile/818141/51 "2018-07-18T18:29:32Z")
> [@Grrr](#): > > It’s basically a casserole. > [@kayT](#): > > What is hotdish? Why is it wrong to use a spoon? I just learned about this last week. I saw it on some show on either the Cooking Channel or Food Network. Lots of variations, but basically cooked ground beef, veggies, cream of mushroom soup, shredded cheese then covered in tater tots and baked. Having grown up in the Midwest, I would have thought I would know if it, but I guess it is just a Minnesota thing. After seeing it, I had to pick up some tots on my last time shopping for groceries. This reminded me that I haven’t made it yet. Guess I know what is for dinner tonight! ---
**Author:** ![F.U.Shakespeare](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/aca169/32.png) [@F.U.Shakespeare](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/F.U.Shakespeare)\ **Post date:** [July 18, 2018, 6:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-adults-do-that-you-find-mildly-juvenile/818141/52 "2018-07-18T18:43:55Z")
Celebrating their birthday. I grew up in a red state where birthdays were for kids. When I moved to DC/Baltimore area, I was (mildly) amused at all the birthday celebrations for adults. ---
**Author:** ![Grrr](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/grrr/32/146_2.png) [@Grrr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Grrr)\ **Post date:** [July 18, 2018, 6:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-adults-do-that-you-find-mildly-juvenile/818141/53 "2018-07-18T18:58:12Z")
> [@F.U.Shakespeare](#): > > Celebrating their birthday. > > I grew up in a red state where birthdays were for kids. When I moved to DC/Baltimore area, I was (mildly) amused at all the birthday celebrations for adults. Yeah, having dinner with close friends doesn’t really ping my radar. But an adult birthday _with gifts_ and a birthday cake seems crazy to me. ---
**Author:** ![Icarus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/icarus/32/72_2.png) [@Icarus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Icarus)\ **Post date:** [July 18, 2018, 7:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-adults-do-that-you-find-mildly-juvenile/818141/54 "2018-07-18T19:20:14Z")
> [@Thudlow\_Boink](#): > > But I don’t remember any adults being obsessed with things like My Little Pony or Harry Potter or cartoons or superheroes when I was a kid. Probably the only thing that came close to that for me was adults obsessed with Disney iconography. I tend to have a negative view of adults who are obsessed with video games, superheros, Star Trek/Wars, etc. The key word is obsessed, I am a firm believer in moderation in all things. All of the above, to me, fall into the category of entertainment, and I feel adults should not be spending 100% of their time in the pursuit of consuming entertainment. Adults should do something productive and contribute to society. Obsessing about entertainment is frankly overindulging in pleasure seeking. And I’m also on the “don’t dress like an 8 year old” bandwagon. Shorts and flip-flops and a baggy logo T-shirt and a ball cap - 8 year old. (Yes, you! I can see you through my screen!) ---
**Author:** ![dorvann](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/df705f/32.png) [@dorvann](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dorvann)\ **Post date:** [July 18, 2018, 7:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-adults-do-that-you-find-mildly-juvenile/818141/55 "2018-07-18T19:28:38Z")
As a short fat man, I wear cargo shorts all the time now that summer is here. It’s hard find long pants in my waist size that have short enough inseam for my legs. The only long pants I own now are jeans I wear with the ankles rolled up to make them short enough. Frankly I’m not sure what I would do if I couldn’t wear shorts; wearing denim in the summer is uncomfortable as hell and rolling the legs on pants that aren’t jeans looks ridiculous. Also if I saw an adult eating a Lunchable for lunch I’d just assume they were on some sort of diet. ---
**Author:** ![Gatopescado](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gatopescado/32/5711_2.png) [@Gatopescado](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gatopescado)\ **Post date:** [July 18, 2018, 7:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-adults-do-that-you-find-mildly-juvenile/818141/56 "2018-07-18T19:34:05Z")
Noisy gum chewing and phone obsession. ---
**Author:** ![Tamerlane](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tamerlane/32/7602_2.png) [@Tamerlane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tamerlane)\ **Post date:** [July 18, 2018, 7:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-adults-do-that-you-find-mildly-juvenile/818141/57 "2018-07-18T19:35:49Z")
> [@Icarus](#): > > All of the above, to me, fall into the category of entertainment, and I feel adults should not be spending 100% of their time in the pursuit of consuming entertainment. Adults should do something productive and contribute to society. Bah to that! What has society ever done for me?\* \*I mean, apart from the sanitation, the medicine, education, wine, public order, irrigation, roads, a fresh water system, and public health. ---
**Author:** ![dorvann](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/df705f/32.png) [@dorvann](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dorvann)\ **Post date:** [July 18, 2018, 7:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-adults-do-that-you-find-mildly-juvenile/818141/58 "2018-07-18T19:40:36Z")
> [@Icarus](#): > > snip > > I tend to have a negative view of adults who are obsessed with video games, superheros, Star Trek/Wars, etc. The key word is obsessed, I am a firm believer in moderation in all things. All of the above, to me, fall into the category of entertainment, and I feel adults should not be spending 100% of their time in the pursuit of consuming entertainment. Adults should do something productive and contribute to society. Obsessing about entertainment is frankly overindulging in pleasure seeking. > > snip As someone who is disabled, it’s actually pretty common to see disabled or retired people becoming obsessive fans because they need something to occupy their time that others would be using to work. This not meant as an attack on disabled or retired people; I am just trying to explain the dynamics of how an obsession can develop. Also I still eat cake on my birthday. ---
**Author:** ![Jennshark](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/8e8cbc/32.png) [@Jennshark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jennshark)\ **Post date:** [July 18, 2018, 7:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-adults-do-that-you-find-mildly-juvenile/818141/59 "2018-07-18T19:46:29Z")
> [@FairyChatMom](#): > > My Little Pony - I just don’t get the obsession. This and other adult fandom of kids’ movies and TV shows. I have some female friends who are gaga over Minions – I wish there was a FB button that could ensure I’m not subjected to Minion memes. ---
**Author:** ![Jennshark](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/8e8cbc/32.png) [@Jennshark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jennshark)\ **Post date:** [July 18, 2018, 7:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-adults-do-that-you-find-mildly-juvenile/818141/60 "2018-07-18T19:50:39Z")
> [@furryman](#): > > My teeth are kind of sensitive, so I don’t see any reason why I should put ice anywhere near them. I delude myself into thinking I’m avoiding germs from previous restaurant patrons (I’ve gotten too many “washed” glasses that had lipstick/mouth goober smears on them). [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-adults-do-that-you-find-mildly-juvenile/818141.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-adults-do-that-you-find-mildly-juvenile/818141.md?page=4)