Why I hate the Suburbs

[FreshmanBob]

I'm 18 and I live in a suburban town in jersey, and I hate it.

It's so damn boring here, that besides going to the movies, or starbucks kids have nothing to do. Absolutely nothing, unless there's a concert somewhere that has a band you like enough to pay money for, there's nothing to do. Kid's tend to hang out at places but when watching movies/tv gets boring and you run out of things to say they turn to drinking and smoking to fill in the time. Then the cops come around to bust up the "parties" and everyone does the same thing the next night. Then you hear about the "alchohol problem in America" or the "drug problem in america" but if they would spend half as much as they do in arresting kids and over analizing the problem as they did in giving us something to do there probably wouldn't be much of a problem.

Kids grow up seeing older kids drink and toke and want to do the same because those kids are older, but they wouldn't be doing that if there was something to do at night.

[MagMan5446]

People drinking and smoking in suburban areas are not the "alcohol and drug problems" in America.

[FreshmanBob]

I'm talking about problems with teenagers

also, most addicts start young

[xmetal2001]

I wish I still lived in the suburbs, its better than the psuedo-ghetto I live in now.

[darklord]

I hear you on the boring part. Not much to do here but drive around. There are no real activites to do or places to go when it's late, and I end up just driving and talking with my friends. Yeah, it sucks, but it's better than living in a bad neighborhood, where my major concern would be coming home alive each day...

[graycie]

the problem with suburbs is that the more affluent ones, teenagers have more disposable income to spend on things such as drugs and alcohol.

[HoppysMag]

not to be an *** but get friends. and hang. thats all you need for a good time... just think u could be in the country where cows out number people or you could be in the "hood"...

[1stdeadeye]

Let's see:

Safe Neighborhoods, Plenty of greenery, good school systems, etc...

Except for cutting the grass and property taxes (EVIL IN NJ!!!!) I don't quite see your point.

[govnamac]

Everytime I go back to my old neighborhood, I'm so glad we moved out to the suburbs. Finding something to do on a Friday night may be difficult, but its much better than some of the alternatives. And my old neighborhood isnt even that bad.

[Jonneh]

Listen to linkin park man, their lyrics are sooo deeep!

[Python14]

Yea dude, if your complaints are that you are bored, then you are the least worthy to complain. Build a model, take up a hobby such as welding;)

[FreshmanBob]

Originally posted by HoppysMag
not to be an *** but get friends. and hang. thats all you need for a good time... just think u could be in the country where cows out number people or you could be in the "hood"...

I have plenty of friends, but most of them sit around drinking and smoking pot, they don't do anything. I'm not really into that so it gets pointless quick.

Looking back on it yeah I guess I have a lot to be thankful for, and this is kind of snobbish considering what ghettos are like and what not. I'm just tired of being bored I guess.

[BobTheCow]

argh, this post comin at you LIVE from a fellow suburbanite...
I can't really compare, because I have lived here my WHOLE FREAKING LIFE (16 years :rolleyes: ), but it still seems boring (yes I have friends, etc). Basically we do end up goin to movies, hangin at friends' houses... and the list stops there. Yay for paintball, at least... now time for a steady income!! Of course, ya gotta drive 45 minutes to get there...
[/grumbling]

[FalconGuy016]

I have the same exact problem bob, EXACT

(well, minus the toking :))

[xmetal2001]

I actually live in the historic part of the "ghetto" that I live in, so I'm kinda in a suburbish place within a more ghettoish place.

Actually I go to a nice private school that happens to be here, and all my friends live in suburbia(45 minutes away) and my ghetto isn't really much of a ghetto, so I'm not compaining.

[FreshmanBob]

Well, all I can say is..

5 MONTHS TO COLLEGE!!!!

WOOOOOOO!

[BobTheCow]

argh, ya lucky senior... I've got 2 and a half more years of this shiznat!!

[Army]

Ahhhhhh.....You live in the most affluent country in the world, and you have nothing to do.

"I have plenty of friends, but most of them sit around drinking and smoking pot, they don't do anything. I'm not really into that so it gets pointless quick."

I would say; you've needed new friends for a long time. Criminy, I grew up in the 60's. There was no such thing as "the Mall" or skateparks, or paintball, or mountain bikes, or ATV's, or dozens of other things to do. Boy Scouts, 4-H, FFA, Explorers, school clubs, civic organizations, riding bikes for miles and miles for no particular reason.

Camping was always my passion, I would usually go for the weekend by myself. There is a lake close to town, that I had permission to camp and fish at. I would hike over the mountain and down the ridgeline just to make it more interesting, since walking the county road was too dusty.

Why must there be things provided, so you won't be bored? Do it yourself, and live a little.

[fire1811]

pssst...move to the country, buy a bunch of guns, shoot them off the back porch.
more fun then you know what to do with :D

[shartley]

Good post Army… and I will elaborate on it a bit….

Drugs and teenagers is not restricted to, or even more prevalent in, one socioeconomic group or another. The income of the parents does not dictate the “disposable income” of the child in itself. There are many kids from “lower income” families with more “disposable income” than the rich kids… why? Because they WORK. ;) When Mommy and Daddy buy you everything, what disposable income do you have?

Also, “there is nothing to do” has been the mantra of uncreative teens from the dawn of time. When my kids say that, I turn off all the TVs, Video Games, Stereos, and Computers and have them get out the cards, board games, or go outside. We have 2 basketball hoops, paved driveway to skate on, big field to play in (Frisbee, soccer, football, croquet, etc.), the paintball field to work on, and more. And that does not include the fact that all my kids have nice bikes to ride.

And having nothing to do is never an acceptable excuse for getting into trouble, taking drugs, etc. There is always something that can be done, and is constructive in nature. You just have to use the brain that was given to you……….. And THAT is one of the first steps in becoming a mature and positively contributing member of society. :)

[fire1811]

boy scouts??? come on army thats just
not "cool" anymore. ;)

i was an eagle scout and did the same as you army.
i would rather just wander around the woods and hike by myself then sit around playin games.
oh well new generation

[Mango]

Originally posted by FreshmanBob


I have plenty of friends, but most of them sit around drinking and smoking pot, they don't do anything. I'm not really into that so it gets pointless quick.




As Army said, you need new friends. Get away from those "friends" immediatly if you care about your future.

Also, I have spent my entire life in South Jersey in the suburbs and overall I have found plenty of constructive things to do while bored in my teenage years. Some were better than others. But they never included alcohol or drugs I can assure you of that.

One of my favorite things to do when I first started college and started to get healthy, was hiking through the forests and woods. It's a great way to get outside and feel connected to nature, plus burn some calories. Just NEVER go alone if you plan to go to trekking deep into the woods. Parks are also a GREAT place to hang out. Frisbee, football, etc. There are limitless things to do just use your head.


Also, those other friends of mine that smoked pot and drank a lot (and guess what, they still do today in college), thier lives are non-the-better for it. In fact, two of my friends, who I rarely talk to anymore but hear about from other friends, are spending extra years in college because of thier addictions. They became dependent on the substances to deal with stress and it only made things worse.

[gimp]

Man, I live in the sticks. We might actaully have more cows than people in my town. We find plenty to do! 7 times out of 10 we end up going swimming in some river on the side of the road. Or we'll spend the whole night building some big jump and then riding stuff off it till someone gets really hurt. You can always start playing an instrument. Jammin with friends is a lot of fun. During the winter we play hockey and go snowboarding all the time. And, well, drinking is also one of our favorite things to do, hehehe. If I can find all that stuff to do, where there are more cows than people, I'm sure you can find something to do in a more populated area.

[BobTheCow]

Originally posted by fire1811
boy scouts??? come on army thats just
not "cool" anymore.
:confused:
It provides for me what army was talkin about...

[fire1811]

ummm yes of you loook a little farther to the right you will see this ;)
that was a joke
i am an eagle scout and now i help other scouts out as
a leader

[Automaggin2]

Where in jersey do u live? i live in mount laurel, burlington county. yea, everyone in my town just smokes up and drinks. Some kids have turned to coke. I just work or hang out with my girlfriend, since theres nothin better to do.

I have to say NJ is one of the worst states to live in. everything is illegal, its the most densely populated state, and it gets to hot and icky in the summer. The only good thing new jersey has is beaches. best in the country.


New Jersey has the highest car insurance rates in the country. I pay over 2000 dollers a year and I'm driving my sisters 1993 Mercury Sable. Come on. Cut me a break.

I want to go quad or dirt bike riding with some friends, but you can get 2 feet from the house without gettin cops up your butt. Its bad. Real bad. Me and my friends go paintballin deep into the woods, and we still get cops botherin us.


Cops are *POOF*. I got stopped for no reason over 7 times last year. I got illegally searched 3 times by cops in the past year. I got pulled over by a cop for going 42 in a 40 MPH zone.

WATCH THE CUSSING

[Dubstar112]

Originally posted by FreshmanBob


I have plenty of friends, but most of them sit around drinking and smoking pot, they don't do anything. I'm not really into that so it gets pointless quick.

Looking back on it yeah I guess I have a lot to be thankful for, and this is kind of snobbish considering what ghettos are like and what not. I'm just tired of being bored I guess.

Yeah, some of my friends got busted the other night, Im not into that thing either. Oh well, it was thier waste of spring break(being grounded).

[BobTheCow]

Originally posted by fire1811
ummm yes of you loook a little farther to the right you will see this ;)
that was a joke
i am an eagle scout and now i help other scouts out as
a leader
;) gotcha... sorry bout that.

[1stdeadeye]

Originally posted by Automaggin2

Cops are *POOFED AGAIN*. I got stopped for no reason over 7 times last year. I got illegally searched 3 times by cops in the past year. I got pulled over by a cop for going 42 in a 40 MPH zone.

I would rethink this if I were you. Cops are all that stands between you and the kind of anarchy we saw in Baghdad last week. Some of my best friends are cops and they are great people. They make diddly squat for the job they do and risks they take!

No cop stops you for no reason. My buddy Jeff always tells me it is easier not to pull anyone over, lot less paperwork.

[HoppysMag]

Originally posted by Automaggin2

Cops are *POOFED HERE, TOO*. I got stopped for no reason over 7 times last year. I got illegally searched 3 times by cops in the past year. I got pulled over by a cop for going 42 in a 40 MPH zone.

dude if the limit is 40 and ur doing 42 they have reason to pull you over, your over the speedlimit. sure most cops wont pull u over tile like +5 over the limit but guesse what they can pull u over for +1 if they want, its the law get used to it.

[Archangel Kid]

Ohhh.... cmon.. i live in Barnegat,Nj... for all u people that live in NJ know its got NOTHING to do... anywho i'll be 17 nextyear and the 10 min drive to LBI won't be that bad :D

[FreshmanBob]

I'm in basking ridge, its pretty affluant.

Shartly and Army,
I never said anything about disposable income, that must've been someone else. You guys list great things (many of them i do) but they're daytime activities. At night you can't go hiking because every nature reserve is closed and I'm not a fan of night biking or running. Also, playing bored games and video games every weekend makes me feel kina nerdy, like there should be better things to do. I also like working out, but again, not really a night time activity.

As far as my friends that toke and drink, I mostly talk to them at school. I stopped smoking 2 years ago (memory is a good thing!) and they're not a big part of my night life.

As far as cops, they can be jerks when they want to be. Most cops are ok, but a lot of the ones here are ex-marines, so they're a little.. umm aggressive?

Thanks for all the other kids posting that have my same problem, helps a little.

I'm gonna go watch that helen of troy thing now.

[deathstalker]

Originally posted by FreshmanBob
Thanks for all the other kids posting that have my same problem, helps a little.
It seems the only problem is you and your friends don't have a lot of imagination and you expect everything to be handed to you. Suburban America is obviously not the problem because you didn't list anything going on in the "Big City" that you would rather be doing. Besides, I live in a "Big City" and the only thing different from the suburbs is traffic lights are every other block, the lawns are bigger and the houses smaller, and there's better public transportation.

People have made a number of suggestions, many which of which are not exclusively daytime activities, and you consistently shoot them down without even willing to try. Board games are nerdy? I guess you haven't taken the time to check out the HUNDREDS of board games on the market. Hey! There's something you can do!

Finding something is very easy to do. Ask yourself, "What do I like/want to do at night?" Then DO IT!!!

If these people really aren't your friends, then you shouldn't have any problem favoring a job over them.

Find some type of shelter that is open at night for which you can volunteer.

Read!

See if there are night classes at a local school for Continuing/Adult Education and see if you can take something.

Got a girlfriend? Get one.
Got one? Then why aren't you with her?

Buy a beater and fix it up. It won't take a lot of money if you choose wisely.

Take a cooking class and start cooking meals for you and your friends and family. You'll end up spending hours before, during, and after the meal talking. And the girlfriend you get will LOVE it when you cook a nice meal for her.

The only thing limiting you is your imagination.

[InfinatyBPS]

Originally posted by FreshmanBob
I'm 18 and I live in a suburban town in jersey, and I hate it.

It's so damn boring here, that besides going to the movies, or starbucks kids have nothing to do. Absolutely nothing, unless there's a concert somewhere that has a band you like enough to pay money for, there's nothing to do. Kid's tend to hang out at places but when watching movies/tv gets boring and you run out of things to say they turn to drinking and smoking to fill in the time. Then the cops come around to bust up the "parties" and everyone does the same thing the next night. Then you hear about the "alchohol problem in America" or the "drug problem in america" but if they would spend half as much as they do in arresting kids and over analizing the problem as they did in giving us something to do there probably wouldn't be much of a problem.

Kids grow up seeing older kids drink and toke and want to do the same because those kids are older, but they wouldn't be doing that if there was something to do at night.


I'm guessing you would perfer the daily shootings, stabbings and gang fights of another area? And its not just the suburbs, its everywhere, there is nothing to do where I live either, but thats just how it is, and where I live is far from "suburbia". You should feel lucky that you have the privelege of living in a nice neighborhood, and not in a busted up apartment in a slum somewhere. And all I have to suggest is just hang out with good friends and you should be able to make your own fun. If your friends are boring enough that you aren't having a good time when your with them, get some new ones. I know that whatever I'm doing with my friends its cool and Im not bored.

[FreshmanBob]

infinity read my other posts in this thread. I know what you mean and I think I talked about it.

deathstalker, I'm not saying board games are nerdy, its just that me and the bunch of friends i usually hang out with have done that, it just gets old after a while. I'm also working on the girlfriend thing too.

as far as limiting, imagination and money are what limit me, not just imagination :D . You guys are taking this out of context. When I first posted I was just angry because there's not much to do in the burbs, its getting out of hand and I feel like every other post is an attack on my whining. :rolleyes:

[HoppysMag]

so instead of having a kid grow up drinking, u would rather grow up, drinking toking, and be a gang member just so u have something to do at night? wow... well if thats ur thing

[FreshmanBob]

hoppysmag, what is your problem?

I already said I'm fortunate to be in my current position or do you want to disregard everything i say and just try to sound mature by looking down on me?

" Looking back on it yeah I guess I have a lot to be thankful for, and this is kind of snobbish considering what ghettos are like and what not. I'm just tired of being bored I guess."


If I wanted to drink and toke wouldnt i already being doing that? Being in a gang is by choice, not by birth. Not to mention the fact that I already said I'm not into doing that, so stop being an ***.

[InfinatyBPS]

Sorry, I often post before reading an entire thread.

[HoppysMag]

Originally posted by FreshmanBob
hoppysmag, what is your problem?

I already said I'm fortunate to be in my current position or do you want to disregard everything i say and just try to sound mature by looking down on me?

" Looking back on it yeah I guess I have a lot to be thankful for, and this is kind of snobbish considering what ghettos are like and what not. I'm just tired of being bored I guess."


If I wanted to drink and toke wouldnt i already being doing that? Being in a gang is by choice, not by birth. Not to mention the fact that I already said I'm not into doing that, so stop being an ***.

i wasnt talking to you *******. we both posted at the same time and urs cam up first... my responce was towards IBPS. ***

[Automaggin2]

Ao all of you people who say cops cant pull you over just for walking down the street. Well guess what, they do. And there excuse everytime is "o...there was a robbery in your neighberhood" which is complete BS cuase everytime there is a robbery the whole neighberhood knows about it. I dont care, flame away, the cops in my town suck. My town is so boring, even cops have nothing better to do then pull over people goin 42 in a 40 mph zone. My rents were even talking about getting a lawyer for me cause i keep getting pulled over and searched illegally, i dont say anything to them, they dont even ask to search me, they just pat me down.


To pass time, i work and ride. Ride bikes. I have a rode bike and my bmx bike. I used to ride everyday, but not that much anymore. In the summer, i usually spend a bug chunk of my time in the poconos (mountains in pennsylvania) goin mountain biking. New Jersey does suck, its boring as all hell, you cant do anything without gettin complained to or arrested

[1stdeadeye]

AM2,
Relax, the officers are patting you down for their safety. That is not an illegal search, but expressly allowed. They are making sur that you have no weapons on you, that's all.

Believe me I know how boring it can get when you are a teen. We have all been there! At least you have paintballing. When I was a teen (OMG, I can't believe I am saying this. I am officially old!) we basically road our YZ's all the time. Not much else to do.

Maybe you pissed off one of the officers in your town, so they are all giving you a hard time. Were you beating up cop's kids again!;)

[DaveDog]

Originally posted by FreshmanBob
I'm 18 and I live in a suburban town in jersey, and I hate it.

It's so damn boring here, that besides going to the movies, or starbucks kids have nothing to do. Absolutely nothing, unless there's a concert somewhere that has a band you like enough to pay money for, there's nothing to do. Kid's tend to hang out at places but when watching movies/tv gets boring and you run out of things to say they turn to drinking and smoking to fill in the time. Then the cops come around to bust up the "parties" and everyone does the same thing the next night. Then you hear about the "alchohol problem in America" or the "drug problem in america" but if they would spend half as much as they do in arresting kids and over analizing the problem as they did in giving us something to do there probably wouldn't be much of a problem.

Kids grow up seeing older kids drink and toke and want to do the same because those kids are older, but they wouldn't be doing that if there was something to do at night.

How about taking a spin over to Hell's Kitchen in New York or maybe Downtown Los Angeles. Those suburbs are starting to look a bit better now. :D

[adam68c]

Dude it sounds like you need a beer for sure. Hahaha. Dont be too excited about going to college. Yeah it is a lot of fun but if you are a boring person and dont make an effort nothing will change. I guess I was really lucky growing up where I did. Whoever said that NJ has the best beaches in the country must die :D:D:D. I guess thats why Im moving back. Colorado can lick my balls. It does have a lot of fun things to do but nothing compared to home. Geting a hobby is a good idea. Fix up a car and go cruise at the street races. Theres gota be a lot of wana be racers ricing it out in the burbs. At least you can laugh at them haha. Life is short Make the most of it.

[FreshmanBob]

Hoppys, sorry, I'm not a mind reader. I thought you were talking to me.

I apologize

[Python14]

Originally posted by deathstalker
girlfriend you get will LOVE it when you cook a nice meal for her.

Freshmanbob, I don't think you will ever find a better tip.

[Restola]

Just get addicted to some online game.

It will eat your life away. You'll always have something to do (get that new armor, gain another level, etc).

Really it will ruin your social life, but like you said your friends stink anyways.

[joeyjoe367]

Get a hobby and spend all your time and money on it. Kill more time with a job to support that hobby.

Between paintball and photography, I've probably spent around $2500 on gear, gas, paper, lenses etc... getting me around to play/shoot photos wherever.

If you're not old enough to have a "real" job, do chores for your parents or mow lawns.

...paint model cars or planes. That always takes forever if you do a real good job.