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Comment by foxyv | Hacker News Reader

When I was a kid, there was a shining rainbow at the end of the long slog through High School and College. I just had to not mess things up so bad I became unemployable. My parents were a shining example of this. Then 2008 hit and suddenly, you didn't just have to not mess things up, but you had to have exactly the right skills and mindset to succeed with a whole hell of a lot of luck. Most of my friends ended up with college degrees working as bartenders and waitresses.

The amount of opportunities available to the next generation have dwindled compared to what I saw as a kid. Now, you can't expect to survive doing what you love. You can barely survive doing what you hate...

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I make good money and still regret my youth so much. I didn't socialize or party in college. I'm a poorly-adapted adult who envies young people who are more risk-taking than I've ever been, and envies people my age who had their fun and now are happy to accept the stability I feel stuck in.

the same social limitations that prevented you from partying as a younger person, probably also prevent you from enjoying your nice stable life to the fullest. a lot of old boring people have lives full of fun and rewarding friendships.

i'm not trying to rub salt in the wound, i'm just saying if you can improve your social abilities, there's not really a deadline for a rich and fulfilling life. especially since you are financially stable.

There are also people who regret socializing and partying when they feel like they should have been studying instead. That's just kind of how life goes. I find it's much nicer to be stuck in stability than stuck in chaos.

I have an easy fix for you. Quit your job, and take 5 months to ride your bike from Lisbon to Istanbul.

And where will this person sleep? What will they eat? How will they speak all the local languages from Portuguese to Turkish? What if their bike gets stolen?

The people who spend their youth partying and not worrying about the future or are

> more risk-taking

(per the op)

are the people who will not bother asking themselves these questions or will simply shrug and say "i dunno we'll get through it" and just do it

It's a mindset of just doing things without worrying about them or their consequences. Of course there's ups and downs. Like the poster above said

> the same social limitations that prevented you from partying as a younger person, probably also prevent you from enjoying your nice stable life to the fullest

It's a mindset of how to live life. You don't care about these questions, which you pay for later, but that's future you's problem

One thing that eased a lot of my anxiety while transitioning to an independent adult was the knowledge that I could survive even without a home or job. My parents did a real good job teaching me how to live on my own and how to focus on the basics. Camping was a real good introduction to this.

As long as I have a $20 tent, an okay sleeping bag, and the clothes on my back I'll be okay. The real shame of our society is that so many people have been forced to live that way because of the greedy few.

They will sleep in a tent in whatever field or forest they find near sunset. They can stop at a campground or hostel every few days to shower and meet other travelers.

They will eat food bought from grocery stores and cooked on their camp stove or at the hostel.

They will speak English to most of the people they meet. Or use their phone to translate where required.

They will buy a used bike and continue on if it gets stolen.

I will get bedbugs and go back home once I realize how hard it is to find vegan food outside urban centers

Yeah I'll give it a little longer to come to a stopping point but next time I change jobs I'm taking a sabbatical on my own. I'm going somewhere. I'm meeting people. It'll be fine.

It was really tough last year because I had never quit before, I'd been at a job I didn't like for years and years. Now that I've quit once, I'll probably feel okay being unemployed for a bit next time.

Not bicycling to Istanbul though lol

"...the stability I feel stuck in". Same here.. It's hard to find joy in the life I'm living now.

According to the article, teens from families with less money are less likely to be depressed than teens from more well-to-do families. This is not an article about how economic deprivation is the driver of teen depression.

This tracks with my own experience. When your parents do well and you can barely scrape by it's horrible. If your parents are struggling too then you have something in common at least.

There is nothing worse than seeing the door close on the last bus leaving the station.

This supports their narrative, doesn't it? If they were unrelated then there would be no correlation, but if your track into adulthood is less fulfilling and secure than your childhood then you wouldn't be happy.

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