What is your ONE regret in life (so far)?

FancyRex

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Jan 19, 2023
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Doing summer classes at ISU the summer of 2012. Mom had cancer and didn't make it to Thanksgiving. I wasn't aware that things were that bad when I signed up for summer classes. Maybe I should have known better.

By far my biggest regret.
 

HFCS

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Aug 13, 2010
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LA LA Land
In my 1996 high school econ class we bought a stock and tracked it the whole semester.

I picked all time low verge of bankruptcy Apple at literally pennies, I want to say 11 pennies? Oh to have even put 50 or 100 real dollars on it.

Can’t say I was some financial wizard, I was already into graphic art on computers I’d end up focusing career on and just a young Mac nerd.
 

Cloneon

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Oct 29, 2015
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West Virginia
Interestingly, I got cancer at 42, yet had never so much as a cold until then. It was pretty advanced, but was a very treatable cancer. Regardless, I was given odds. Of course, 'reflection' is the most natural by-product. At that point I wouldn't have changed one thing. I was greatly appreciative of everything I was given and was proud of the human being I had become.

Little did I know that my future from that point on would sway my answer. 5 years later I would meet my wife. My only regret is that I didn't meet her much earlier in my life.
 

State2015

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not pursuing sports in college

i add few offers to go play DII basketball and football but chose to go to iowa state and prepare to walk on for football. was playing pick up basketball the summer before college and tore my quad and never played organized sports again

a part of me regrets just not going to a smaller school to play football.

still had a hell of a time up at iowa state, though.
I have a similar feeling here. Wouldn’t change my time at ISU for anything tho. I feel like if I played football at a smaller school, I’d regret hurting my body more just to play football in front of a smaller crowd than my high school games.

Plus I feel like being an alum of a bigger school has helped with networking etc in my career
 

BoxsterCy

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Sep 14, 2009
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Don't want go down a long list but as an elder I do regret not talking more with my dad. I wasn't that close to my parents, especially my mother, can't really think of any real conversation I had with her. Had more of those with my dad but wished I'd sat down and wrote down more stuff, from stories of his grandfather teaching him to drive in a Model T to WWII stories. I have a few WWII stories but I was pretty little when he told me about walking into a house and hearing German hobnail boots on the floor above. He never told me how that ended. Little Boxster did ask. Older Boxster might have gotten the answer. He was not an infantry guy, was a medic in an artillery battalion, which makes the why and what a bit more interesting.
 
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BoxsterCy

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I think for me it’s not trying to spend more time with people that were here but arent now. It’s not that I couldnt, because I had the time. I just didnt. When youre young, sometimes you dont appreciate time in that way

HUGE on my "no regret" list is abruptly quitting my design office job. Good job, bad pay and BAD boss/owner. Was to the point of not sleeping at night. An older architect acquaintance, became a good friend, hired me to work on the huge remodelling of his personal residence. The crew as an ad hoc group of Lutheran seminary students and one real carpenter. Ended up doing concrete work, framing, building a big stair tower, installing a million windows, cedar decking, wood ceiling, sheetrocking, metal roof and Carlisle rubber flat roof. Even helped assemble and deck an I-beam bridge from the main house to the two story garage/studio bldg. Huge contemporary house that had a bit of everything. Only thing missing was shingles, it had none.

Came to an end when I got a job with the Corps of Engineers, another huge "no regrets" I came close to screwing up and turning down because the pay quoted was pretty low. GF at the time insisted I take the job. Guy quoting the salary was an acting chief and had quoted me the WRONG salary...it was actually higher once I had talked with the personnel folks.
 
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MeanDean

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HUGE on my "no regret" list is abruptly quitting my design office job. Good job, bad pay and BAD boss/owner. Was to the point of not sleeping at night. An older architect acquaintance, became a good friend, hired me to work on the huge remodelling of his personal residence. The crew as an ad hoc group of Lutheran seminary students and one real carpenter. Ended up doing concrete work, framing, building a big stair tower, installing a million windows, cedar decking, wood ceiling, sheetrocking, metal roof and Carlisle rubber flat roof. Even helped assemble and deck an I-beam bridge from the main house to the two story garage/studio bldg. Huge contemporary house that had a bit of everything. Only thing missing was shingles, it had none.

Came to an end when I got a job with the Corps of Engineers, another huge "no regrets" I came close to screwing up and turning down because the pay quoted was pretty low. GF at the time insisted I take the job. Guy quoting the salary was an acting chief and had quoted me the WRONG salary...it was actually higher once I had talked with the personnel folks.
I still remember my starting salary at the Corps of Engineers in January 1981. $19,741
 

BoxsterCy

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I still remember my starting salary at the Corps of Engineers in January 1981. $19,741

I started October 1980 as a temp GS-7. Guy quoted salary in my job offer using the regular GS scale and not the engineer/architect scale. Pretty big difference to this underemployed guy at that time.
 
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KennyPratt42

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Jan 13, 2017
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Probably going to Iowa State, if I’m being completely honest.

It’s probably more a big ‘what if’ than a definite ‘regret.’ I ultimately chose Iowa St. because it was close to home so it was comfortable, from scholarships and a college fund I wouldn’t have any debt, and I was obsessed with Iowa St. athletics. But I floundered around until about 5 years ago (early 30s). I got my Iowa St. degree, went to law school (didn’t graduate), owned a series of houses, etc. but was just kind of floating around and had some mental health issues.

I had opportunities out of high school to go to some prestigious universities (Wash U in St. Louis with a large scholarship, Yale, et al) and I’ve always wondered if I went away to college how that would have changed things. I’m guessing it would have either challenged me and made me work though some things or would have blown up which also might have made me work though some things sooner.
 

Bipolarcy

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Oct 27, 2008
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I'm honestly surprised at the response to my "being born in a different time" thread, and it inspired me to start this one.

What is your one single regret you have in your life thus far, that you not necessarily wish could go back and change, but think about how different things could be if you had done this one thing?

Damn, that was a long question....

Not trying to get too personal, I'm really just looking at relatively small things in the grand scheme of things in your life (that sounded weird and very redundant, but you know what I mean).

Here's mine:

I didn't get my driver's license until April 10, 2009, and my first car until April, 10, 2010. I was 22 and 23 respectively. I just had no interest up to that point as I was able to get around just fine walking, and all my friends/girlfriends up to that point happily accommodated me. It wasn't until I was motivated by my ex-fiancee to finally do so in late 2008. She had never said anything, but one morning it was like a light turned on my head when I woke up and realized "if you're really serious about this relationship, and really your future in general, you should probably finally grow up a bit". Getting my car in 2010 also motivated me to go to college after taking 5 years off since High School graduation in 2005.

While all my friends and lady friends had no problem with it (I was very fortunate when I think back on it, especially the number of...... "Encounters" I had with the women I was meeting at the time. Late 2009 - Late 2010, I'll just say I had lots of fun), I kinda wish I had gotten my license and car at least a year or two sooner than I did.

It probably wouldn't have changed things too much, but when I think back on it, it would have opened things up a bit more, especially with the women I was seeing. Hell, nevermind the girls, it definitely would have opened things up much more socially in general I think.

Again, I was very fortunate enough that everyone I knew liked/loved me enough to play taxi all the time, but just another "what if" I like to look back on, and probably the one single regret I have in my life.

Other than that, I have no regrets in my life. I've had several small ones at times, but then I remind myself things always worked out. Sometimes it would take YEARS for that to happen, and it really makes me think about destiny/fate (for example, yeah, I made certain decisions back in 2010 - 2013 I wish I could go back and change at times, but then I realize things worked out in my favor GREATLY around 2016/2017. Hell, even today I am still feeling the effects. I was playing the long game, and just didn't know it).

Thanks for listening to another rant, as I am going through a bit of an early mid life crisis 10 years early at age 37. Which to be fair, I don't understand why I am, as I know I am still very young, and hell, I'm still 24 years old at heart. People still think I look 27/28 years old when they meet me the first time.

Post and flame away all you want. I know it's coming.

I love you all.
My biggest regret is not pursuing a career in writing for the screen, either big screen or small screen. I think I could have been very good at it, but I lacked the guts to make the move.
 

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