If you could live your life over again

[DURHAM D]

what one thing would you do different? Big or little.

Me: I would raise goats.

[OAITW r.2.0]

1. Bought Apple Stock in 1980.....

[mnhtnbb]

78. Me, too. I literally passed on buying apple

when it was $27. and Jobs was sick. I really thought that the company without him would not continue to innovate so successfully. If I had bought and held, my $10K would be worth several million.

And I might not be stuck here in the US because I would have had the cash to buy the condo on Bonaire that my husband didn't want to buy in 2015 and I would be riding coronavirus out on an island where there has been one death from it and the Netherlands has supported people at 80% of their salaries. Sigh.

[Enterstageleft]

2. I would want to be my moms dog...

spoiled rotten & adored no matter what he did.

Love you mom.

[TigressDem]

3. I would be a child prodigy and write children's books in Kindergarten.

I would learn a lot of languages.

I would start getting people building Tiny Homes in the and get indoor hydroponics started. (Still want to do that)

[Poiuyt]

4. I'd want to be a college professor

But not in the field that I majored in. (Nobody likes taking chemistry courses).

[Hekate]

5. Leave home for good at 19 and later marry the boy I fell in love with...

...when I was 16.

[3catwoman3]

6. I would not ask my sons if they would...

...like to do whatever it was I needed/wanted them to do, such as, "Would you like to do your homework," or "Would you like to clean up your mess?."

I would say, "It's time to..."

[Mariana]

61. My son-in-law does that with my granddaughters.

And it always ends the same way.

"Do you want to put your shoes on?"
"No."
"Well, put them on anyway."
"I don't want to."
"You have to put your shoes on."
"Why?"
"It's cold outside."
"I don't mind."
"I do. Put your shoes on."
"I don't want to."
"It doesn't matter what you want. Put your shoes on."
"Then why did you ask if I wanted to?"

The kid has a valid point there.

[3catwoman3]

67. Yes, she does.

I’m a peds nurse practitioner, and I often hear moms say to their 2 and 3 years olds when I pick up my otoscope, “Now, are you gonna be good and let her look in your ears?”

I say, quietly but seriously, “How about if we don’t ask permission from the 2 year old for me to do the job that you came here for me to do.”

The whole, “Don’t offer choice when there isn’t one,” guideline.

Some parents even ask, “Do you want to get your shots today?” WTH?! What kid is going to say yes to that?

Plus, I think that women are generally socialized to always word things gently and deferentially, and can have a hard time being firm. This was certainly true for me. I’m going to be 70 in April, and I still suck at standing up for myself.

[yankeepants]

7. I would have become a comedian/comedy writer.

[Initech]

8. Find what I wanted to do for a living much earlier in life.

My indecisiveness has always been my weakness.

[LostOne4Ever]

9. Be born genetically and phenotypically female (nt)

[angstlessk]

10. There are so many things...

not going to a Catholic elementary school to start,

[SoonerPride]

11. I wouldn't have started using cocaine

That was a bad idea.

In the 1990s over a 3 year span I spent $77,000 on it ruining my finances.

After reaching an emotional low I quit cold Turkey and tuned my life around.

But I would go back and tell myself instead of self medicating to escape or mask depression that seeking mental health counseling is a far better solution.

Don’t dance with the devil In the white dress.

[3Hotdogs]

12. I should'a gotten it on with Patty, Nancy, Doreen, Judy and Sally.

I was young. They wanted to. I was not wanting to be a papa.

Over the years and now, I spend a lot of time wondering how it would have turned out.

[LisaL]

13. I would not take the job on which I wasted years of my life.

It certainly messed up my career.

[DUgosh]

14. I'd stay out of the sun

And use sunscreen - and learn to love sewing sooner

[Green Line]

15. I'd become a vet, specializing in horses

[DURHAM D]

20. Would you tend to my goats?

btw - My Uncle was a large animal vet specializing in horses. The other day I was chatting with his daughters and we were listing all of his injuries from horses and cattle. People don't realize how dangerous it can be.

[csziggy]

49. Yeah, I wouldn't have raised horses and would have been a librarian

I turned down a temporary position in 1977 to be the first computer catalogue librarian at the university library. I'd already made an offer on a piece of land, purchased several broodmares who were due to foal in a few months and planned a trip to across country. A temporary position with no leave time and no benefits did not sound attractive. Plus, I'd never worked with computers at all.

If I'd only known - five years later I got my first computer and I am good with them. If I'd taken the job I would have sold the horses, kept one or two for personal horses, and not run the farm as a business. I would have worked my way up through the university library system and held desk jobs for 40 years.

I would not have had three concussions, a rebuilt shoulder from a traumatic injury, or worn out my knees and back working on the farm. I probably would have ended up getting the carpal tunnel surgery I had eight years ago but that would have been a lot easier than the multiple other surgeries I have had over the years.

Yes, working with horses is dangerous, even if they are just herbivores.

[Green Line]

88. I worked with horses for years

You're right they can hurt you, I've been bitten, kicked, pushed into walls and stepped on, but I still love being around them.

What breed were your horses?

[csziggy]

90. I bred foundation Quarter Horses

The foundation ones are those with little Thoroughbred blood so they look like the old style cow horses. Oddly enough, even with that, the last horse I bred looks like a draft horse cross - he's over 16 hands, solid bone, and just plain massive. He looks like he is half Belgian draft horse!

I also dabbled in breeding some Warmbloods, crossing my Quarter Horse mares with an imported Trakhner stallion down the road. While the horses were very well built they were pushy and didn't listen. My Quarter Horses, even the big guy, were bred to have good personalities.

Unfortunately between my knees, shoulders, and bad back I can no longer work with the horses - it's just too painful and dangerous. I still get to watch my retired broodmares in the pasture, but the youngest of them is almost sixteen years old now.

[Green Line]

91. At my age the only horses I could have would be lawn ornaments

It's nice you can watch your retired broodmares. I mostly worked with TB's.

[csziggy]

101. I call mine pasture potatoes but it is nice to be able to watch them

The people now running the farm take care of them so they get good attention every day.

Most of the TBs we got to deal with while we were boarding other people's horses were off the track idiots. My old vet would always recommend that they be turned out to play for three to six months, then brought into training slowly so their bodies and minds could adjust. Most people didn't follow his advice and their TBs would end up with bone problems or the horses were geared to simply running full out. Bad outcomes for everyone.

That's why I appreciated my QHs. I bred horses that did everything from three day eventing to working cow horses with a lot of just pleasure/trail riding horses in between. The few nutcases I produced were sold off - some were just nuts from when they hit the ground and even with the same imprinting and ground handling they just were not right in the head. Over the six generations of horses I bred, I managed to breed out that problem.

[Green Line]

89. Sure, I love goats.

I've worked with horses, there's always a long list of injuries, it seems it's always the ones you trust who get you.

[grumpyduck]

16. As overall happy as I am with the direction I took,

if I had known then what I learned later, I would have gone into reconstructive surgery, focusing on major trauma and industrial accidents.

[BluRay76]

17. Lots of things...

Pursued creative interests along the way, not just the safe career path I chose.
Taken better care of my body - more real food, less junk food, more exercise.
Really made it clear to the people I love how thankful I am to have them.
Find things to be passionate about in as many areas of life as possible.

To me these are the difference between existing and truly living. And I am pursuing them now to the best of my ability, but I regret that I spent as long as I did on a safer path.

[mia]

56. Welcome to DU, BluRay76.

May what you look for bring you joy!

[Totally Tunsie]

92. Nice first post, BlueRay76.

Welcome to DU.

[GeorgeGist]

18. Moved to NZ when I had the chance.

[mia]

19. I would be an architect

creating spaces for all people to live securely with land to enjoy growing food and a beautiful view.

[Quemado]

21. I would not have married my first wife.

That was the biggest mistake I ever made.

[yellowdogintexas]

23. I would not have married my first husband

funny how that works. It was a bad mistake for him and for me .

[flying rabbit]

22. Interesting answers

Me: I can't decide.

[lastlib]

24. After college, fled to Paraguay and fought extradition.....

Hoping that way I could finish my law degree, instead of putting up with the crap I got from my family. Not gonna go into details, but DAMN, that still burns me, thirty-five years later.

[vercetti2021]

25. Never quit school

I think my life would have been hugely different if I stayed in school. That was a pivotal moment in my life that easily decided what path I was gonna go on. If I stayed in school. I would have met people, been more sociable, had more opportunities to successfully develop myself better.

I opened the door that lead to nowhere except a GED and a manual labor job. And I live at home. So...

[LeftInTX]

75. That's a biggie..

If you're still young and free, you can go...

[vercetti2021]

81. 30

Not that young

[Tanuki]

86. 30 is young. My mom started college for the first time at age 39,

juggling the responsibilities of being a wife and the mother of 4 kids. She took community college courses the first year and then transferred to a low-cost state university, and completed her bachelor's degree in 4 years. You might want to look into the offerings at community colleges and vocational/technical programs near you. There are generally many certifications available with 2 years or less time commitment. Even if you don't think 30 is young (because it's the oldest you've ever been, so far), when you are 65 you will look back and realize how young it really is. The choice you can still make today will determine whether the 65-year-old "you" is still looking back with regret, or with relief that you chose to take the active steps needed to change the course of your life going forward. You can do it!

[LeftInTX]

95. Young! Community college is fairly easy and there are so many flexible options today

My sister in law is 57 and she just finished her Master's Degree...

[renate]

99. that is SO young!!!

I went back to school at 28. My sister went back to school at 53. And she'd already had a successful career... she just wanted to go from something good to something better. In your case, if you're not happy with having not gone to school, you're looking at 35+ years of regret if you don't do it. It's not necessary for everyone--plenty of people are happy and successful without it--but it sounds like it's what you want to do, deep down.

Please do consider going back to school if it's what you want. It genuinely is not too late. NOT AT ALL.

[Bluethroughu]

26. I would have bought a farm, or farm land.

Built my first garden this year, donated to local pantry and fed 10 families along with mine. Who'd have thought I'd be so successful and enjoy it, so much. The garden is about 400sqft.

Growing a garden is awesome fun.

I'm growing,
into the knowledge of who I am.

[shanti]

27. Live on a farm

It's too late now...

[Laffy Kat]

28. Finish my degree.

Truth is, I've done great without one, but I still regret not having finished college.

[walkingman]

68. Go back - you will probably enjoy it much more than you did years ago.

[silverweb]

29. So many things.

But no. If I had done things differently, I wouldn't now have the best son and daughter in the world. It was all worth it.

[Blue_playwright]

30. Stopped doing things half-assed...

... I’m moderately successful that way, I bet I could have done great writing if I’d actually tried.

[Mr.Bill]

31. Once in an interview they asked Gracie Slick of The Jefferson Airplane

if she could live the 60s over again would she like to to it any differently.

She responded without hesitation that she would like to do it with blonde hair and big tits.

[Enterstageleft]

44. Uh, Gracie

I loved you just the way you were.

Beautiful, talented, fantastic...don't ever change...you are a beautiful person.

[I_UndergroundPanther]

32. I would have

Gotten myself out of my abusive home and school and town much quicker.

I than would not have the problems I have so severely now.
Annnnd..

Learn to drive.

[jcgoldie]

33. I have 80 goats

You can raise them whenever you want.

[DURHAM D]

35. Wow.

I was thinking about goats as pets because they are so cute - maybe a half dozen or so. 80 is a lot so I am guessing you make cheese or yogurt or something.

btw - Can you drink raw goat milk?

[jcgoldie]

38. yes of course

We make cheese and my wife make soap to sell and the raw milk is delicious I drink it 10 months of the year then dry them off and i have withdrawals. I wouldn't recommend more than 6 as you said they are a lot of work probably more than you think.

[DURHAM D]

46. I just used the goggle to figure out how you

dry off a goat. I learned something new.

So, how do you get them started again? Diet? or something more?

btw - I use to live on a few acres about 10 miles out of a major U.S. city. One of the farms on my route home had goats. They were the small ones that would be running along and then jump up in the air for no reason. Most nice days when I drove home there were cars stopped all along the road to watch them run and jump. Do you have any idea what breed they were? They were really really cute.

[jcgoldie]

48. yes

small ones were probably pygmys or nigerian dwarfs... how you get them started again is let them have babies just like people.

[jcgoldie]

43. I posted these here before but

Here some of my goatees...

[DURHAM D]

47. Awwwhhh - you are a lucky man. nt

[PoliticAverse]

55. I think somebody made the ears too long. n/t

[Bayard]

57. Great pics!

Nubians?

Love our goaties. We have Nigerian Drawfs. Only 8 right now, but hoping baby Adam gets to work soon with the girls. Don't do anything with them except love them.

[jcgoldie]

59. Thanks !

Yes they are Nubians all registered.

[marlakay]

34. Go to college instead of marrying young

Love my kids, but first marriage was bad and always had low paying jobs all my life.

[Stinky The Clown]

36. Be the second coming of Bucky Fuller

R. Buckminster Fulller (Run it through the Google machine)

[Tiger8]

37. Write songs, play guitar, piano and sing

I just love music and I'm sure I would have at least one hit song.

[BainsBane]

39. go to law school.

[DURHAM D]

54. I took the LSATs and was accepted but

decided not to go. It was really my Dad's dream. I have never regretted it but my parents and family members use to tease me all the time about what a mistake I made. They did this while they watched me start and build a successful business. Also, even though I am the youngest child I retired before any of my siblings.

[SharonClark]

40. Take more risks.

[meadowlander]

42. Majored in Engineering instead of Philosophy the first time around.

If I'd gone into my current job straight out of college, I'd be a few years away from retirement now instead of still paying off my mortgage when I'm 75.

But you live, you learn. There's a lot to be said for traveling when you're young and still in good shape to enjoy it too.

[herding cats]

45. Change my major.

I'd have went into medicine instead of business. It suites me better as a person, and I'd have been helping people in a tangible way. I'd have liked that. I should have just followed my heart from the beginning.

Oh, and I have goats. So, there's at least that in my life. I didn't fail completely!


P.S. Goats are a lot more work and responsibility than you think. I have 4 and they're escape artist. Houdini has nothing on them. I'm not kidding!

[Tarc]

50. Not a single thing different. I wouldn't even take the offer.

As painful as some life events have been, any deviation I feel would result in different kids or maybe no kids at all.

They have their life ahead of them, I'd have to right to alter that just to fix my own screw-ups.

[FM123]

51. I wouldn't have talked myself out of so many things.....

[CanonRay]

52. Not married my 1st wife!

[Demobrat]

53. Been more physical.

Basically been behind a desk my entire working life - which is my whole life. I’ve never not worked. My body is not thanking me. If I could go back and be anything I wanted - professional athlete. Or at least a marathon runner.

[smirkymonkey]

58. Tried harder.

I have been a slacker all of my life. I have still done ok despite it all, but I would have liked to have achieved my full potential. I think I was just too afraid to fail at anything. I never really had to work hard to get by, so I didn't.

I wish I had moved to Europe and had become a historian or a professor of European history. I wish I had not been so afraid of financial insecurity and so afraid of leaving the security of the corporate world.

I did go back to graduate school for something I was minorly interested in (well, quite interested at the time), but realized that at I was not comfortable living without the perks and salary of a corporate job, so I went back. And ended up hugely in debt on top of it. Biggest mistake of my life and not very well thought through.

Most of all, I wish I had been true to myself, more authentic and more honest with myself and others. I have finally learned, but there were too many wasted years.

Oh, on edit: I would have gotten a dog. I still hope to have one someday. It is my greatest ambition in life.

[Yavin4]

64. "I wish I had not been so afraid of financial insecurity and so afraid of leaving the security...

of the corporate world."

I am you, and at 56, I am leaving the corporate world and finishing a Masters degree program.

[smirkymonkey]

77. Good for you, Yavin!

I am your age, and it's not like I couldn't do it again, but i am still in so much debt from the last masters degree I couldn't think about taking on anymore. I wish you all the best! I am glad you were able to get out of it.

[Bayard]

60. Lived a life with less regret

I have said before, I should write a book, but afraid it would be dismissed as totally unreal.

I really wanted to be a vet (and a part-time songwriter). Couldn't hack the chemistry. I did work as a small animal vet tech for about a year. I do a decent job with my horses, giving vaccinations and such. Actually do that with all our animals.

I would have divorced my ex much sooner, before he got abusive. I would have told my family I loved them much more often. I would have pushed harder for my art degree. I would not have moved to Calif. I would not have moved to Ohio before that. I should have stayed in Louisville.

For all of you wishing you had bought a farm. Its never too late, and yes--it is hard work even for our meager 10 acres, but its wonderful!

[Lucinda]

62. Eat properly.

❤️~✿~❧~🌿~❧~✿~❤️

[walkingman]

63. I should have taken an offered transfer to Eugene, Oregon in the 70's from Texas. Little did I

know that my home state would become the next Mississippi. I think moving to the West coast would have changed my life in a positive way. It has been an accelerating movement to the right here since the 80's. Hardly recognizable these days.

[ellie]

65. I would have went away

to college; I had the opportunity but wanted to stay near my friends. I haven't talked to those people in over 30 years. I would have believed in myself more.

[FreeState]

66. Not been raised LDS n/t

[Dem4Life1102]

69. Go VHS, not Beta

[liberaltrucker]

70. I'd stay out of that bar in Naturita, CO

On Oct 23, 1982.

[moonscape]

74. I'll bite. Lemme guess. That's

when you met your ex?

Inquiring minds!

[liberaltrucker]

102. Yep!

[William769]

71. Get the hell out of Florida when I came of legal age.

[usajumpedtheshark]

72. Asked for mental health care in elementary school instead of relying on food for comfort

I was bullied in school from kindedgarten through 9th grade. Things improved some in high school but by then I had other problems.
I don't know if help would be available if I have to go back in time for this do over

[Sucha NastyWoman]

73. Go to medical school.

[Raine]

76. Traveled when I was young and travel was easy to do. ☹ nt

[Coleman]

79. Sorry 2 things

#1 Not marry my 1st wife

#2 Stay in the Army. About 2 months before my end of enlistment (I was a counterintelligence agent), branch called and offered me DAES (Defense Against Electronic Surveillance) which would have resulted promotion to Warrant Officer.

[Luz]

80. Nothing. Everything I've done has led me here, and here is

a good place.

[Luciferous]

82. I would have tried harder in high school and gone to college right after instead of going now, 20

years later...

[Dirty Socialist]

83. Follow my heart instead of my head

That and major in Poli Sci

[Roisin Ni Fiachra]

84. Due to circumstances beyond my control,

I ended up having a most satisfying and fun life, despite my being totally clueless about everything, and I'm grateful. If I changed something, things may have gone south, permanently, for all I know.

"Peculiar travel suggestions are dancing lessons from God" - Kurt Vonnegut

[bigtree]

85. learn more, start work and saving earlier

...and be exceedingly more helpful to mom and dad.

[NRaleighLiberal]

87. just a few things, because I love my life!

I'd spend more time asking my relatives about their lives - genealogy has some dead ends that they may have helped with.

I'd have adjusted my interactions with my daughters when in school - they are both wonderful girls doing well enough in their married life, but my own job made me pretty impatient with them when helping them on homework, etc - sometimes I brought too much of my frustration with my job into the home and wasn't as "present" as I could have or should have been

I may have taken a different college/career path, since what I did as a job is so different from what I love to do as hobbies - then again, if I HAD to do my hobbies I'd probably not enjoy them as much.

Finally, I would have loved to learn to read music when young. I have a really good ear and natural ability, but would love the foundational stuff too.

[Efilroft Sul]

93. My wife and I crossed paths so many times when younger but didn't meet until years later.

So if I could have run into her any time between when I was 14 and 28, when I actually met her for the first time, that would be the one thing I would change. When I saw her for the first time — on my first day of work, no less — I knew she was the woman I was going to marry.

Bam, pow, love at first sight.

[bif]

94. I would have taken that overland trip from Istanbul to India in 1976

Back when all those countries were at peace, for the first time in history. I was already in Turkey and The Magic Bus Co. offered $99 round trip tickets. What a dummy.

Second do over is I would have gone to Woodstock. My childhood buddy and I discussed it but chickened out.

[Mossfern]

96. I would have not majored in Art

and then compound the error by continuing on to get an MFA.

[RobinA]

97. I Would Make

that d*ck high school guidance counselor pay attention to me at that "planning for the future" meeting in 10th grade instead of blowing me off because I was a girl with mediocre grades. I would ask him why they kept sticking me in the top academic classes when my grades were just OK, instead of putting me with the average kids where I felt I belonged. I don't know if things would have turned out any differently, but at least the decisions I made would have been with knowledge of what I was theoretically capable of.

I'm not into blaming other people for things that I do or do not do, but I was 15 years old and could have used a little assistance from someone whose job it was to assist.

And people who would follow their heart? I picked things I was interested in as careers every time. I suppose it can turn out well, but for me, working in a field completely killed any interest I had in those fields. I, it turns, was happiest in the field that was my first job out of college that I took because I needed benefits. Of course, that field went to hell in a handbasket in the '80's.

[Demsrule86]

98. I would have my parents live longer and be healthier...and My Grandparents too...other than

that...wipe out one violent assault...and nothing else.

[Tracer]

100. Become an architect.

My parents actually took me to Colgate to investigate their program, but after being told I'd need another year of high school (I was short in math), my 16 year old brain gave up that idea.

Own land. For my 16th birthday, I asked my parents for some land. I had a vision of maybe 20 acres in Maine. They didn't. (I did buy a 50 x 100 chunk of land next to my current house. Whoopee.)

Own an island. When I was 13, my dad wanted to buy Rose Island (off of Nassau). We both went there to investigate. He didn't. But having a tropical island all to yourself is a pretty nice dream.