When I was young, I could never have imagined....
 

That Cracked would become better than Mad. :lol:

How has life surprised you?

HA! Where do you start?

I've got new hips and they are great. I have a full suspension mountain bike and a C/F 20 Speed road bike. I can track my every movement, heart rate, elevation gain, speed, average speed, max speed and receive a phone call while riding?

I remember loving my 10 speed with a mileage tracker that kept track of wheel spin. I thought it was cool when I put on aluminum toe clips.

OH YEAH, I have 4 grand kids and scored a hole in one. Life is full of surprises.

Oh I don't know. Both have had some classics.

http://i50.tinypic.com/el4c4y.jpg

http://i46.tinypic.com/t7hoc5.jpg

Haven't read either one in a long time, but I used to love them both.

How do you top these guys?

http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pu...s_Spy_9432.jpg

PAYING for a drink of water! Frequently only available in a bottle. An atrocious aspect of modern life.

Don in Austin

How about Beer cheaper than water.

Velcro shoes.

We're all too old to die young.

... That I would ever actually buy a minivan, we got it Friday, to carry all the baby stuff:eek:.... At least it means I don't need a bike rack anymore:D

That I would smoke for 30 years (quit 4 years ago) and that I would gain 50 pounds, still working on that. There was no way to guess at the pace of new technology, or how much more important that I participate in non-stop learning. Its not been easy, but I'd say its way more exciting than ever before.

I have worked in the semiconductor industry since 1980, but I am still amazed that the transistor feature size on mass-produced mainstream digital integrated circuits has dropped from 2um to 28nm, a factor of 60, in 3 decades. As a result, 1960s algorithms which were once much too complex to compute in real time are now included in commonplace consumer devices.

Similarly, my response to those who complain that "they don't make cars like they used to" is, "and we should be glad about that!"

And milk cheaper than gas. Perhaps a vehicle powered by milk? Oh - that's right. They are called babies.

One less thing to worry about I guess. :)

How has life surprised me?

I think I surprised life (and myself) by lasting this long. I never figured to live past 30 when I was young. In spite of my best efforts at earning a Darwin award, I'm still around.

Innumerable ways, of course. I couldn't have imagined computers and other electronic devices we now have, although they are amazing in hindsight rather than being surprising when they first appeared. I was 37 when I first used a computer, and would never have guessed that they would come to so dominate my life that it's hard to imagine living without them. (We actually have a server room in our house, and so many computers and mobile devices that I lose count.)

As kid/teenager I wanted to become a biochemist. I'd not have guessed that, through a series of coincidences, I would come to spend my life as a graphic designer instead. And even more surprising is that I've begun to morph into a software developer.

My parents expected me to think independently, and as a preteen I became a staunch atheist and a fervent opponent of religion in general. I would never have imagined that one day I would take up the way of Buddhist practice, and that it would become one of the most important aspects of my life.

Despite all the advances, I think I would have been horrified to know that in 2012 "2001, A Space Odyssey" would be as much science fiction as when it was written.

How do you mean? Are you referring to our lack of progress in space exploration? That we don't have functional artificial intelligences? Or are you horrified that we don't have mysterious black monoliths? :fred: :roflmao2:

Scotty, I don't think there's any signs of intelligent life down here. Beam me up.

That my kids would be smarter than I am.

That i'd still own the same car.

It surprises me that I'm now living in a 100 year old house that's almost identical to the 50 year old house I grew up in.

My dad died at 48 and his dad at 51... I NEVER expected to make it this long. So, every day is a gift...

If somebody had told me when I was a kid that I was going to be a Buddhist, I would have told him: "YOU TAKE THAT BACK JACK!"
... (Then I would have asked somebody: "what's a budist? Why did he call me that?")

Did we make it to "1984" yet?

My dad dies at 53. I remember the day I realized I was old than he and thought how it would affect my kids if I was dead.

Wednesday it will be 32 years ago.

liking green beans.

...That I would ever be as big and old as my grandparents, who fascinated me when I was very young with their seemingly immense, ponderous bodies and all-seeing eyes. My grandfather could sit in his chair for hours, and I wondered how anyone could stay in one place so long.

...and I still wonder, even as I approach that age. :)