# Things you vowed you'd buy when you were a grown-up **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [June 10, 2016, 11:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-vowed-youd-buy-when-you-were-a-grown-up/757064 "2016-06-10T23:17:21Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 5
**Author:** ![August\_West](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/august_west/32/18069_2.png) [@August\_West](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/August_West)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2016, 2:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-vowed-youd-buy-when-you-were-a-grown-up/757064/81 "2016-06-14T14:10:18Z")
> [@WhyNot](#): > > I really can’t recall anything as a kid. But… > I was 22 or so, just out on my own (with my young son) for the first time ever, and I had an epiphany, right in the middle of the frozen food section of the supermarket. I had my own apartment. My own oven. I COULD MAKE TATER TOTS ANY TIME I WANT!!! > > We ate a lot of Tater Tots that first month. 😃 My wife was out of town for the weekend in February and I took my 2 boys (3 and 5) to the grocery store. We saw a FIVE POUND BAG of Tater Tots and made it our goal to finish them before Mom got home. It was glorious. ---
**Author:** ![Jennshark](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/8e8cbc/32.png) [@Jennshark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jennshark)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2016, 2:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-vowed-youd-buy-when-you-were-a-grown-up/757064/82 "2016-06-14T14:39:59Z")
:eek > [@digs](#): > > Now that you have a credit card, do not even look at the [Johnson Smith catalog(s!).](http://www.johnsonsmith.com/) > Or the [Accoutrements](http://accoutrements.com/shop/) site (by Archiw McPhee). > > Well, okay, you can look at the [UNICORN SQUIRREL FEEDER](http://accoutrements.com/shop/unicorn-squirrel-feeder.html). But then close that tab. :eek::eek::eek: You weren’t kidding! I wanted EVERYTHING, so I slammed that site down but quick! ---
**Author:** ![racer72](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/racer72/32/3075_2.png) [@racer72](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/racer72)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2016, 3:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-vowed-youd-buy-when-you-were-a-grown-up/757064/83 "2016-06-14T15:10:52Z")
> [@Sparky812](#): > > A Chevy Bronco, ??? Should that be a Ford or a Blazer? ---
**Author:** ![Barbarian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e19adc/32.png) [@Barbarian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Barbarian)\ **Post date:** [June 15, 2016, 2:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-vowed-youd-buy-when-you-were-a-grown-up/757064/84 "2016-06-15T14:21:12Z")
> [@dwyr](#): > > I also have several Lego sets. I love Lego. Platonically. What’s the last set you got? I just picked up the Mystery Machine with Fred, Shaggy and Scooby Doo. ---
**Author:** ![Catamount](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/catamount/32/2840_2.png) [@Catamount](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Catamount)\ **Post date:** [June 15, 2016, 3:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-vowed-youd-buy-when-you-were-a-grown-up/757064/85 "2016-06-15T15:20:14Z")
> [@oara](#): > > I told someone in college that maybe when I had a job after graduation I would buy cans of frozen orange juice and eat them like popsicles. I told myself that when I was an adult I’d make an entire batch of chocolate chip cookie dough and just eat it raw. I still haven’t done that. ---
**Author:** ![Mama\_Zappa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/71e660/32.png) [@Mama\_Zappa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mama_Zappa)\ **Post date:** [June 15, 2016, 5:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-vowed-youd-buy-when-you-were-a-grown-up/757064/86 "2016-06-15T17:13:37Z")
> [@romansperson](#): > > … > Pets are an interesting area. We had a bird, a dog and some fish when I was a kid because it was somehow considered ‘good for me,’ but my mother was never into it - she always considered them just something else she had to care for. I have always been very fond of animals and I’ve had pets of one kind or another ever since I was old enough to care for them myself - hamsters, birds, chinchillas, a frog, and dogs. My husband was denied pets of any kind as a child and he’s an enthusiastic aider and abetter in the pet department. Here, here. We had dogs growing up, though as I noted in a separate thread, they were pretty well neglected (I mean, they were fed and taken to the vet, but as far as training or anything, yeah, right). I had hamsters a few times, which my mother barely tolerated and ultimately refused to allow me to get another one. I always wanted a cat. Mom LOATHED cats so that was a non-starter. I got a cat as soon as I moved into my first apartment. Ultimately I had to rehome our last cat because he was causing serious trouble with my asthma :(. Beyond that, I can’t think of anything that was unobtainable as a child that I could acquire now. ---
**Author:** ![G0sp3l](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/c68b51/32.png) [@G0sp3l](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/G0sp3l)\ **Post date:** [June 15, 2016, 9:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-vowed-youd-buy-when-you-were-a-grown-up/757064/87 "2016-06-15T21:06:29Z")
A Nissan 300ZX. When I finally had the chance to get one I chose the Mazda RX7 instead. After an especially close brush with death on the 405 I have not bought a sports car since. ---
**Author:** ![dwyr](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dwyr/32/363_2.png) [@dwyr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dwyr)\ **Post date:** [June 15, 2016, 11:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-vowed-youd-buy-when-you-were-a-grown-up/757064/88 "2016-06-15T23:05:04Z")
> [@Barbarian](#): > > What’s the last set you got? > > I just picked up the Mystery Machine with Fred, Shaggy and Scooby Doo. I like the buildings and architectural sets mainly though I did get the Big Bang Theory set at the Lego Kidsfest a couple of Saturdays ago. (I was accompanying my two nephews - the eleven year old measures his Lego in pounds.) Sadly, or not, I realized I had a bunch of VIP points on the Lego website and ended up ordering the Tower Bridge set. I have no idea where I’m going to put it when it’s built, the thing is huge. And they’re releasing Big Ben next month… ---
**Author:** ![epbrown01](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7ba0ec/32.png) [@epbrown01](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/epbrown01)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2016, 12:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-vowed-youd-buy-when-you-were-a-grown-up/757064/89 "2016-06-16T00:04:17Z")
> [@J-P\_L](#): > > A motorcycle. This. We had dirt bikes as kids but my brother injured his knee and was laid up for months, so they were taken away and we were forbidden to ride them. When I turned 18, I got my first street bike, and I’ve had bikes pretty much ever since. What’s funny as my siblings see this as some smoldering rebellion thing over losing the bikes as kids, but 1) I really enjoy riding and 2) there was really no one to rebel against as an adult. My grandmother took the bikes as a child safety concern (and the expense of my brother’s rehab was probably a large factor) - she never gave a damn about my riding one once I was grown. The other big want was a Jaguar XJ. Maybe the first car I remember thinking “wow, that looks nice.” I still like Jags, but horror stories from owners have kept me away for decades. ---
**Author:** ![digs](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/digs/32/14889_2.png) [@digs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/digs)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2016, 3:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-vowed-youd-buy-when-you-were-a-grown-up/757064/90 "2016-06-16T03:56:10Z")
I sublimated my vehicle needs by building model kits as a kid. Glued my fingers together many a time trying to cope with the fact that I’d never own any of my masterpieces in full size. If I really fulfilled my dreams, I’d have a pretty gaudy garage: “Opalescent Silver Blue” two-seater Jaguar XKE British Racing Green Aston-Martin DB5 (with ejector seat, of course) 1964 1/2 Mustang convertible in Signal Flare Red AND my '66 Corvette would be a sight: it’d be a sparkly candy teal with orange pinstriping. (Oh, and I’d be running errands with racing slicks on for some reason…) ---
**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 16, 2016, 6:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-vowed-youd-buy-when-you-were-a-grown-up/757064/91 "2016-06-16T06:18:52Z")
When I was a wee tyke, my older brother had an electric train that I was not allowed to touch. His set was a simple circular track with no scenery. He spent his time stupidly sitting on the floor, watching his little train going around in circles . . . until he got bored and never played with it again. I wanted to make little towns, mountains, tunnels, bridges, rivers and waterfalls. I actually wanted an entire room dedicated to my electric train setup. ---
**Author:** ![glee](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/b5a626/32.png) [@glee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/glee)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2016, 11:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-vowed-youd-buy-when-you-were-a-grown-up/757064/92 "2016-06-16T11:03:16Z")
> [@panache45](#): > > When I was a wee tyke, my older brother had an electric train that I was not allowed to touch. His set was a simple circular track with no scenery. He spent his time stupidly sitting on the floor, watching his little train going around in circles . . . until he got bored and never played with it again. I wanted to make little towns, mountains, tunnels, bridges, rivers and waterfalls. I actually wanted an entire room dedicated to my electric train setup. > [@glee](#): > > And here is a youtube video of my railway (doesn’t show the scenery that was added - perhaps it’s time for an update…) So far it’s just around the walls (but I’ve added lots of scenery…) ---
**Author:** ![ftg](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ftg/32/2801_2.png) [@ftg](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ftg)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2016, 1:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-vowed-youd-buy-when-you-were-a-grown-up/757064/93 "2016-06-16T13:40:01Z")
A go-cart. Somehow I didn’t think that a car would be even better. ---
**Author:** ![Sparky812](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/eb9ed0/32.png) [@Sparky812](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sparky812)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2016, 3:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-vowed-youd-buy-when-you-were-a-grown-up/757064/94 "2016-06-16T15:14:01Z")
> [@racer72](#): > > ??? Should that be a Ford or a Blazer? Yes, brain fart… I was thinking Chevy Blazer but wrote Bronco. ---
**Author:** ![Mona\_Lisa\_Simpson](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ce7236/32.png) [@Mona\_Lisa\_Simpson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mona_Lisa_Simpson)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2016, 4:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-vowed-youd-buy-when-you-were-a-grown-up/757064/95 "2016-06-16T16:14:26Z")
All the Lego dreams in this thread. My son loved and still does love his Lego, but my brother never had much. I asked my brother about that obvious lack in toys. His answer: “Have you MET our Dad\*?” \*Things my Dad hates, in no particular order. 1. Things made of plastic. 2. Small things. 3 Assemble-it-yourself things. 3. Things that create mess or clutter… 4. Stepping on things, tripping on things… ---
**Author:** ![Spud](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spud/32/347_2.png) [@Spud](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spud)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2016, 5:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-vowed-youd-buy-when-you-were-a-grown-up/757064/96 "2016-06-16T17:26:02Z")
A Mustang GT convertible. I drove by a lot with my wife and spotted one and told her that would be my next car. She rolled her eyes and said “whatever.” That wasn’t a “no.” A couple of days later I asked her to take me back to the lot because I had to pick up my Blazer. She was a bit surprised when she saw the Mustang in the garage. We are somehow still married, and I’m still having a blast driving it seven years later. ---
**Author:** ![Son\_of\_a\_Rich](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/son_of_a_rich/32/5439_2.png) [@Son\_of\_a\_Rich](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Son_of_a_Rich)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2016, 6:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-vowed-youd-buy-when-you-were-a-grown-up/757064/97 "2016-06-16T18:45:42Z")
> [@usedtobe](#): > > A large but tasteful house in the redwoods of Northern CA. > > Kind of like what Neil Young has done, but up along the coast. > > Of course, I was going to be filthy rich from inventing a fiberglass airplane using the Ragallo wing\*. > > This idea was formed in 1964 - about 20 years before plastic planes came along. > > I was wrong about the wing - it seems too twitchy and, I suspect, does NOT scale up. > > - > - this is the simple, three poles and some fabric design seen in hang gliders and ultralights. It’s the triangular one. Lots of powered Rogallos around. They’re typically called trikes, and apparently they fly ok. ---
**Author:** ![madmonk28](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/madmonk28/32/20811_2.png) [@madmonk28](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/madmonk28)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2016, 6:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-vowed-youd-buy-when-you-were-a-grown-up/757064/98 "2016-06-16T18:50:34Z")
Ever since I was a kid, I’ve always wanted one of those boxy US Mail Jeeps. I think there are companies that convert them back to left hand drive and sell them. It just looks like a great little car to take camping and fishing. ---
**Author:** ![brainstall](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/35a633/32.png) [@brainstall](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/brainstall)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2016, 7:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-vowed-youd-buy-when-you-were-a-grown-up/757064/99 "2016-06-16T19:40:50Z")
A horse. I bought and sold a few, so got to realize that dream for a few years, but they are expensive pets, and just not affordable for me now. I still want a mule. Bought one once, but long story, was not able to keep her, so rehomed her with a friend a few days later. One day, I hope to get another one that I can keep. ---
**Author:** ![enipla](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/54ee81/32.png) [@enipla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/enipla)\ **Post date:** [June 17, 2016, 12:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-vowed-youd-buy-when-you-were-a-grown-up/757064/100 "2016-06-17T00:01:31Z")
> [@madmonk28](#): > > Ever since I was a kid, I’ve always wanted one of those boxy US Mail Jeeps. I think there are companies that convert them back to left hand drive and sell them. It just looks like a great little car to take camping and fishing. FYI, they are 2 wheel drive. So maybe not great for off road adventures. I ‘heard’ that one of the reasons for the USPO used them is that if there was another huge war, they could easily be converted to 4 wheel drive and used by the military. I have no idea if that’s true, but kinda makes sense. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-vowed-youd-buy-when-you-were-a-grown-up/757064.md?page=4) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-vowed-youd-buy-when-you-were-a-grown-up/757064.md?page=6)