What did you want to be when you grew up?

Basic question, What did you want to be when you grew up?

what dreams however defined or vague do you remember feeling strongly toward in your childhood? did those dreams grow or change as you aged? if so, how so? did you follow the paths of your dreams? or do you feel you went a more practical and pragmatic route? do you have any regrets regarding what you choose as your dreams or regret your choices to follow / not follow those dreams?

and for those of you whom were to stressed in your childhood, by whatever various injustices, to recall ever thinking beyond that present experience, what dreams did you eventually come to have as your life balanced out enough to make room for such dreams?

and for those like myself whom was always uncertain, in retrospect what dreams do you have now or wish you had had then?

if you could change something about your upbringing would you? and what would you change? keep in mind it is what made you who you are today, try to imagine what you would be like today if your past was changed the way you wish it.



myself, i had a good childhood, no real complaints i do wish my older siblings hadnt picked on me as much but in retrospect it was not as bad as it felt like it was back then. and they weren't harsh just trying to have a bit of fun at my expense, i know now they loved me all along, so i have no hard feelings toward them.

i wish i had been more decisive in what i wanted to be when i grew up, i had a very vague notion of what i wanted, was to be something unique, something that would leave a mark on the world for eons (in a positive way), it wasnt until i hit the teens that i decided i wanted to be a scientist, and then late teens that it changed to inventor. and now i find myself as more of A Philosopher then anything, something i can enjoy doing without much effort, lol.

so how bout it? if you feel youd like to take this chance to vent about a negative childhood then feel free. but please lets try not to attack other posters.

and before anyone asks yes i am starting this thread from the same idea and premise that the other thread started on, but that thread has changed its title and direction so it is no longer the same topic, so this is not a double posted topic. thread im referring to here ->
www.abovetopsecret.com...

What all good boys want....
A BUM !

Deep down all I wanted to be was accepted without constantly trying to please others. That does not seem to be possible in much of this society. You constantly have to act to be accepted. You constantly have to go out of your way to please others.

At least, that is what we are conditioned to believe, it makes the economy flow. The problem is certain individuals take advantage of this and twist it to meet their needs. There is nothing wrong with helping a neighbor if they need help, but it seems like you are always helping the same people and they gain somehow from it.

I wanted to be a footballer ahem, soccer player, until life kind of threw me into stuff, I got a huge chip on my shoulder burned alot of bridges discovered drink, cigarettes and women and spent most of my life angry as hell. I still got a good education and wanted to be a fighter pilot lol then i wanted to be anything that meant i wore a suit. i didnt go to uni, had kids and have worked in warehouses ever since.

I wanted to be a fighter pilot until I discovered I had a problem with my eyesight. Didn't take it too well.


I probably wasn't smart enough either

originally posted by: woodwardjnr
I wanted to be a fighter pilot until I discovered I had a problem with my eyesight. Didn't take it too well.

I probably wasn't smart enough either

i forgot to mention that too, i eventually ended up with round elton john specs and did alot worse at school than i could have done because for a year i was too ashamed to wear my glasses. my dad wouldnt get me new ones

A scientist.

And now im a microbiologist !

I guess I've been wanting to be a hobo just bumming around the world as a child. My dream came true. Been self employed for the most part. Ended up in Asia as I'm writing this. I mostly had a roof over my head. Got 3 state professional licenses over a course of 10 years. Got to live on an island and that was interesting. Now I'm old and go fishing and cycling and still can do 2 finger type pushups. Life has been one heck of adventure. Stayed away from dope and alcohol and all goes well for you. I'll probably end up on the streets playing guitar though.

originally posted by: crazyewok
A scientist.

And now im a microbiologist !

GOOD JOB!!!!! it aint easy following such a dream, at least not in this society.

i should add to the thread you guys DONT be disappointed with yourself if you didnt follow your dreams, as a child we are often told the world is ours, have a dream and just walk the path, as an adult we look back and realize it wasnt a path i failed to follow, it was more like a complete cliff face i was forced to climb without gear, and avoiding the climb (not following the dreams) still turned out to be an endless uphill battle, so dont let this thread make you feel bad about yourself, maybe i should include in the OP that we should also take a moment to reflect on our achievements even if they weren't related to our childhood dreams. lets not limit 'achievement' to physical results, even internal reflection / alteration can be quite an achievement.

I wanted to be me, not what everyone else wanted me to be. I was confused because you weren't allowed to be you back then.

You had to "be somebody".

a reply to: pryingopen3rdeye

I've always been pretty simple.
I grew up only wanting one thing; to be happy.

Honestly, I wanted to either be a gospel singer or a porn star.

Now I sell plastic . . .

Shogun ..
Instead ended up as a physician / surgeon ..

I really don't know what I wanted to be when I was very young. Probably a spy or secret agent of some sort, the kind you see in movies and video games... lol

Anyway, when I was in middle school I wanted to become a UPS truck driver. I just wanted to drive a truck but I didn't want to go long-distance, just stay local.

When I got in high school I wanted to be an auto mechanic. My uncle helped get me a job in a body shop to repair auto body, so not exactly the same line of work but close. I've been working in that same body shop since I was 15 and learned everything I know about collision repair and painting there.

Now I recently got involved with restoring old cars with my cousins and we opened up our own shop. I still don't do a whole lot of mechanical work since my area of expertise is on the body work and painting side of things, but I do get to tinker around under the hood every now and then.

Oh, and as far as my childhood and upbringing goes, I guess I couldn't ask for it to be much better. If I could change something about it I would go back and change some of the choices I made in high school but it's too late for that now.

As a very small child, the usual stuff...bus driver, train driver, astronaut, that sort of thing.

When I got a little bit older...IDK, 10, 11, 12...I wanted to be a nudist.

Yes, my friends.

A nudist.

Don't ask me why, it is as bizarre-sounding to me now as evidently it is to your good selves.

I had a very clear vision of the future, with me, the wife, the kids, all walking about naked...in the house, outside, at work, on holiday, everywhere.

There was nothing sexual about it, all very innocent.

What the advantages were is anyone's guess - I suppose I considered it a healthy lifestyle choice perhaps, I don't know.

I was so fired-up with missionary zeal that I remember sharing my vision of the future with several nonplussed-looking individuals - school friends, teachers, family friends - who politely refrained from telling me what they really thought.

Then the thing left me in an instant and I never mentioned it again.

I was a whole nother person back then...

originally posted by: CJCrawley
As a very small child, the usual stuff...bus driver, train driver, astronaut, that sort of thing.

When I got a little bit older...IDK, 10, 11, 12...I wanted to be a nudist.

Yes, my friends.

A nudist.

Don't ask me why, it is as bizarre-sounding to me now as evidently it is to your good selves.

I had a very clear vision of the future, with me, the wife, the kids, all walking about naked...in the house, outside, at work, on holiday, everywhere.

There was nothing sexual about it, all very innocent.

What the advantages were is anyone's guess - I suppose I considered it a healthy lifestyle choice perhaps, I don't know.

I was so fired-up with missionary zeal that I remember sharing my vision of the future with several nonplussed-looking individuals - school friends, teachers, family friends - who politely refrained from telling me what they really thought.

Then the thing left me in an instant and I never mentioned it again.

I was a whole nother person back then...

Sounds like fun... lol

I wanted to play pro football. A hairline fracture in my senior year help me phase out of that foolish dream, and I had no dreams for about 10 years. Then I was overcome by a fierce desire to be a father with the birth of my son. After, the dream returned, and I decided I wanted to be self made and happy.

a reply to: pryingopen3rdeye

As a very young girl I wanted to be a unicorn. As I got into my teens, I wanted to be the next Janis Joplin, but the drinking didn't set well with me.

Then I spiraled off into being a happy commune member for a few years....ahhhh the hippy daze. It was hard to juggle college with commune, so commune fell off my plate.

I've owned a recording studio, been a silicon valley executive, owned a small resort and restaurant, now own goats and make goodies from goats milk.

I still don't know what I want to be when I grow up....

Des