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Pop Culture | Life | 00s

15 Things We All Experienced That Will Make Anyone Under 20 Wonder How We Survived

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1. Using the wall sharpener only to have it make our pencils look like this

Then, when you tried to fix it your hand would slip and you'd end up destroying your knuckles against the wall.

2. Checking the paper to see what was going to be on TV

Los Angeles Times

And don't forget having to check it for movie times too.

3. Putting plastic covers on the tags of our Beanie Babies

We had to protect our "investment" until our collection was actually worth something.

4. Having to back things up on CDs

A single scratch and you could lose everything.

5. Calling 411 to find a phone number

Paramount Pictures

Even worse was that they'd charge you money for it.

6. Having to press the same button 8000 times to get the right letter

We had to work for every single letter we typed.

7. Using these stickers when your papers ripped out of your binder

Trying to get it lined up just right was always such a pain.

8. When the CD you were interested in buying wasn't one of the ones in the store's listening kiosk

What if the only good song was the single? How were we going to find out before paying for it?

9. Having to sell these chocolates any time your school was fundraising for something

Resisting the temptation to just eat them all yourself was one of the biggest moral crises we faced as kids.

10. Trying to figure out which files on Limewire weren't riddled with viruses

Brothersoft

We were totally willing to risk giving our computers an STD if it meant getting free music.

11. Having to check the album inserts to find out the lyrics

Jive

And if it didn't have any lyrics inside, then you had to hope that the song would show up on at least one of the two lyrics websites that existed on the internet.

12. Cleaning all of the dust and gunk out of your mouse

Sure, it always worked way better afterwards, but it was still super gross.

13. The overwhelming terror that gripped you when you accidentally hit the internet button on your phone

You'd immediately start screaming and frantically mashing the "End" button.

14. Making the perfect playlist, only to realize it's one song too many to fit on a blank CD

You'd spend hours assembling an absolute masterpiece, then you'd have the impossible choice of picking which song to cut.

15. The burden of having to carry all of the gadgets you needed as 37 separate devices

We practically needed to have a Batman-esque utility belt if we ever wanted to leave the house. Or a very large backpack.