2 ms·

I'm an American. At the age of 13 my dad bought me a motorcycle that I used to ride around in the desert while he was at work. By 16 I was basically living al

by 13of40 9y ago

I'm an American. At the age of 13 my dad bought me a motorcycle that I used to ride around in the desert while he was at work. By 16 I was basically living alone. My kid, on the other hand, is 13 right now, and while he can code some pretty mean Minecraft mods, he doesn't even know how to do the dishes or get to school on his own. (Coincidentally, his mother is from Moscow, Russia and used to regularly take the subway to school...) I think maybe it has to do with the suburban sprawl we live in now -- it's populated enough that you can't wander in the forest, etc., but it's a mile hike to the nearest library or store. Why do that bullshit when you have fiber?

pavel_lishin 9y ago
This is going to sound pretty harsh, but I don't think you can blame Minecraft, suburban sprawl, or broadband for your 13 year old not knowing how to do the dishes. Not knowing how to get to school? Fair enough, maybe it really is implausible for him to get to school on his own - I don't know your local geography. My wife grew up in Plano, TX; there was a big highway between her and her high school, which was also miles away. At the time, Plano didn't really have a public bus system to speak of, and she didn't have a bike - walking five miles isn't a very good option. She would know how to get there, but there was no reason to do it aside from school bus or her parents driving.