When we were younger, we wished so badly to be adults. We wanted the freedom of driving, the legality of drinking cocktails, and the flashy cell phones and credit cards. We played pretend and created a world where everything was great, easy, fine. What we didn't envision was 15-page assignments, 30-hour workweeks, or utility bills that just seem to come once a month.
Dear 10-year-old me, you were an idiot.
Growing up is one of the worst best things you can ever do, and as the days drag on this semester I'm left realizing that maybe I'm not cut out for this whole "adult" thing. Who says what age we have to be adults? I frequently feel like a 7-year-old operating in a 22-year-old's body, just trying to make it to nap time. Only nap time now consists of a venti white lightening with five shots of espresso—and no, the caffeine is not as reassuring as a fuzzy blanket and pillow.
Luckily for those of us who aren't handling the whole "adult" thing well, websites like Pinterest and Facebook are there to distract us. (And to remind us that we aren't the only ones.) What's better is that there are plenty of people who have already proven that "adulting" makes for great memes.
Without further ado, here are the most spot-on memes/GIFs out there that capture what it really feels like to adult.
1. Do we even have a bed time?
I can't remember the last time I went to bed before 10 p.m. on a weeknight...
2. After only getting two hours of sleep, mornings are no longer welcomed with excitement and positivity.
How did 7-year-old me sprint out of bed at 7 a.m.? Like what? If it's before 10 a.m., don't expect much. Well, expect me to be late. really.
3. Being an adult also means doing the mystical "college" thing.
I'm almost 100 percent positive no one mentioned just how much homework I was going to have in college. I thought I was just going to make more friends and eat a whole pizza whenever I wanted.
4. And the closer you get to graduation the more consistently you hear, "What do you want to do with your life?"
Pretty sure my play-pretend scenarios went from pretending to be 20-year-old me to skipping to 35-year-old me with a husband and a baby—there's a reason 10-year-old me skipped over the middle.
5. The older you get, the less blunt you're allowed to be.
Is this the new play-pretend? If so, how do I not?
6. And how exactly do you cook chicken? Or put air in your car's tires? What's the little light on my dashboard mean again?
The Internet is really a glorious creation... Probably would have gotten E. Coli by now... (but not from Chipotle).
7. Can I pay those in Monopoly money and Trident layers? No?
8. Can someone help me with this whole, adult thing?
9. When all of your responsibilities start to add up and you're in denial...
Dear adulthood,
I'd like my childhood back.
Sincerely,
Someone who really just can't adult.
