What rules did you disobey as a child? What rules do you disobey today?

I am big on rules and regulations. Always have been, since a kid.

I was never a bad kid, so not many rules applied to me.

I was no angel, but I knew when and when not to cross the line, then and now.

Generally I think of myself as a rule follower, but of course I disobey some rules.

I go over the speed limit at times, that one is probably pretty common.

As a teen I took the car out a couple times before I had my license. I never would have done it except my boyfriend convinced me to. It was not in my nature to break laws or rules.

For the most part I think my rules are very similar as a child and as an adult. The basic rules of safety and being good are the same. I had a lot of freedom and autonomy as a child, and I never desired to do wreckless things, things you can try when outside of your parents control.

Mostly, from my point of view, rules are what I would do anyway, they just happen to be written down. The rules that are stupid hopefully eventually come under fire or get changed.

I was always one of the kids that would do something that it never even occurred to anyone that you’d need to tell a kid not to do it. For instance, some friends and I were playing hide and seek when we were about 5. I went inside the house, up the stairs and climbed out of a second story window onto the first story roof (it was a tri-level)

The other kids were all freaking out and they called their parents in to look for me. I didn’t come out of hiding until one of the moms suggested calling the police to find me. When I revealed my super awesome hiding place, everyone asked me why I did it. I was like.. are you kidding, this was the best game of hide and seek EVER! And I said I won the game because nobody said that the roof of the house was off limits.

And that kind of sums up what my childhood personality was like.

I am an accomplished jaywalker. Always have, always will…till I get hit by a car I guess, haha.

We were fortunate as kids as we lived next to countryside where the only rules were those we made for ourselves. We would be told to come back in time for tea but otherwise we were as free as birds. There are lots of rules now but I am hardly aware of them. I find plenty of freedom within the rules.

I just HATE things that fly in the face of common sense.
One example that comes to mind is when our bank renovated the drive through, there was a “No left turn” sign posted at the exit. It opens to Main street. WTH do you mean No Left Turn? That’s ridiculous! You can make a left turn from anywhere else on to Main street! I asked them about it once. They said it was a KDOT thing. I turn left from there every chance I get, even if I really need to turn right.

I don’t use my turn signal if no one is behind me, what’s the point? Yep, I’m a jay walker too and I’ve been known to make some wild U turns including jumping islands, out of necessity of course. I remove all tags from pillows and mattresses, and, I had a debate with my local park ranger about what constitutes “sunset” in our river park. He conceded and now I am allowed to park outside the gate at closing BUT..I can stay til after dark, which IS sun-SET. lol

I do not open bags on the dotted line and wantonly tear them apart, that’s what chip clips are for. I also have my little brownie baking arrangement with my gardener, so, technically I am breaking the rules of illegal marijuana possession, oh well. Otherwise I’m a model citizen. lol

As a child I stepped on a million cracks, I ate Pop Rocks while drinking Coke, and I constantly cheated when using my mother and your mother were hanging out clothes . . .

As an adult I drink to excess, I use marijuana, and am constantly ending sentences with prepositions, sort of.

kid rules vs. adult rules? adult rules are boring.

I read library books in class.
I drink coffee.

I’m sure it was an unspoken rule to not flip off your mother behind her back and I’m sure if she knew I still did it, it’d be frowned upon.

I am still a child.
I text in class.
I stay up after my mother told me to go to sleep.
I drink energy drinks, even though my doctor told me it’s bad for my heart murmur. Who cares?

I am both a rules follower and a changer of rules. I will follow the rules of the land because I feel that it is the right thing to do (in most cases). When I feel that the rules are not justified, I don’t merely break them. I feel that it’s important to fight so that the rules are changed for everyone.

We create a just society because we make laws and enforce them so that everyone follows them. When some people make excuses or bend the rules, it does nothing to further the fine-tuning of those laws, and therefore does nothing to improve society.

Smoking pot in your basement is fine. But pot should be legal for everyone. We should be active in legalizing it.

And not to pick on you, Coloma, but….
@Coloma: “I don’t use my turn signal if no one is behind me, what’s the point?”

The point is, there could be someone behind you or anywhere and you just don’t see him/her. It’s a good law precisely because it takes the “I didn’t see her” element out of it.

To summarize, I feel that it is to the benefit of everyone if we all obey the laws – unless we are actively trying to change them.

Oh, and when I was a kid, I had an ethics that was immature and void of any consistency. I broke many laws/rules.

[hey, look at that. I think this was my first post in months. What gives?]

@Dutchess_III You are a marvel to behold! You put a smile on my face. I wonder if, just by chance somehow, that sign might quietly disappear of a night? Would anyone notice?

@tom_g

Trust me when I say no one is behind me, or, oncoming. I live off of a rural mountain highway and when there is no car in sight for miles behind me, this is where my no turn signal applies.
:-)

Hey @wundayatta I’m a law breaker, NOT a thief!

I attended The Ohio State University. While there you crossed the street wherever and whenever you wanted. We always thought we were
invincible and besides it was
THEIR insurance! This may be
true at other schools, but it
definitely is at OSU!

@GracieT Their insurance if you are injured or dead? I never understand that attitude. At Michigan State U we crossed the street in undesignated places a lot, but very trafficked area and busy intersections we stuck to the crosswalks pretty much.

@Coloma – I get it. And I don’t mean to be all hung up on the turn signal, but I do think that it’s important. In some ways, the turn signal represents something bigger – so don’t take it personally…

The thing is, it’s the law. You’re likely thinking that you have enough good judgement to decide whether or not you should follow the law because the circumstances seem clear (nobody around for miles, etc). And I trust that your judgement and driving are top notch. However, most people have something that they feel they don’t need to do for some reason. And it’s much easier to break laws when you’re not going to be caught. However, this doesn’t make it right.

It also doesn’t improve road safety on that rural mountain highway. Everyone makes mistakes, but having something in muscle memory (like flicking the turn signal on while making a turn) is a good thing. If you never make a turn without a turn signal, it’s practically impossible to make a turn without a turn signal. So, when you’re in an area that requires turn signals, there is just no thinking about it. You signal and turn.

If there was a cop sitting at that intersection, would you turn your signal on while making that turn? If so, why? And are there other things that you do or do not due based on whether or not you feel that you will be caught?

Note: I know this seems silly, because it’s just a turn signal. Lack of turn signals is a huge pet peeve of mine, so ignore it. But, how a society decides on, implements, and follows rules is interesting.

@JLeslie, I admit I never thought about reality! We also liked to set off car alarms- I was in school while car alarms were stil new!

@GracieT Hahaha, I never realized until this second that people might purposely trip car alarms. My mind just does not work that way I guess.

That exchange up there ^^^^ reminds me of a time when my brother in law and sister were very young newly weds, and some vandles went up and down their street busting out car windows with a bat. My BIL was LIVID! He said, “I never realized how bad it pissed people off when I did that!!”

Uhh… as a child, I was pretty much a rule follower. I truly loved being a good girl. Then came college… my halo got a tad tarnished. One of my favorite memories was getting into the locked up school pool at 2 AM with some friends. I also joined several action groups and went around DC with posters and a glue bucket. A cop drove by me one night and I stood there grinning at him like a fool, then saluted him. A little under the influence, I was.

As an adult, I follow rules that are there for a reason (like blinkers and taxes), but when it comes to “society’s rules,” (like having to marry because of a baby) I usually write my own rulebook. I love Mark Twain’s quote: “In matters of principle, stand like a rock; in matters of taste, flow with the current,” and I try to live by that.

I played with fireworks – a lot. We could get the good stuff back then before the high power ban in the mid 60’s. I miss those days.

M80’s. Good stuff Maynard.