h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

I've always used thirTEEN to nineTEEN, but it would appear that others here have their own ideas... thoughts?

Officially it's 13-19, but I was considered a teen when I was 12. For some reason. Probably a "near enough" sorta thang.

officially?

The term teenager was coined in I think the thirties or forties meaning those in the '-teen' years. 11 and 12 are considered 'preteen', I believe.

Yup.
And, contrary to popular belief, the pre-teens are worse
I could just be speaking from personal experience, and I know there are others out there who have the exact opposite view, but my pre and early teens were the worst. These days, I like who I am, I'm getting to know *who* I am, I love my friends, I'm better adjusted... The fact is, your late teens are a ball, compared to the hormone-ridden horror of your pre-teens.

Well, 13 and 19 are the first and last years of yer life that end in 'teen', so they must be when you're a teenager!

And bubs, my preteens were a peice of cake. No way were they worse...

I agree preteens is way easier than late teens although 15 was a good age, I reckon that should be marked down as the bets time of your life, you don't think so at the time but afterwrds when you look back you realise it was much better than the rest of your teens But then early teens are harder still so I guess it just depends on the person

Hey, these preteens get (comparitively) no schoolwork, little responsibilities, little/no hormones to screw 'em up and get petted as kids. What more could you want?!

Ummm, white chocolate? Serious;y pre teens is a doodle compared to what early teens was like

Maybe it's different for guys, but I've found that my hormones, ability to deal with homework etc have gotten better as I've gotten older.
And pre-teens have no hormones?! Tell that to my 12 year old sister.

And I've got a little brother comin' up....oo-er!
tbh, I think that my ability to handle these things has changed not a dot. But with age comes a bit of maturity (sensibleness), so I can apply a bit more thought to what's happening. But, if you think about it, my actual -handling- of it has changed little. I just think I understand it better. Dig?

But doesn't better understanding bring better handling?

That's what I was thinking. But last night, when I wrote that, I thought that my actual -handling- hadn't changed. Now I realise I was only thinking about one area in which I'd applied understanding to handling *^_^*

*pouffer*
I don't even wanna know

I guess what you say is true

the only thing difference, that i can see, between being a teenager and being in your 20's, is that people don't come down on you so harshly when you throw stuff at the movies, and and its a lot harder to get kicked out of places like stores and restaurants for being loud, making fun of people, breaking stuff and tripping the waitress when she walks by. seriously, people say you have more responsibility when you get older, and that's true, but what they dont tell you is that theres no one around to kick your ass if you dont do what you're supposed to. if your parents said to mow the lawn, you'd get in trouble for not doing it. if you're 28, and you dont mow the lawn, the worst that happens is the neighbors complain and you tell them to piss off and continue on your way. if you dont do what you're supposed to, the worst you get is fired, evicted, a small jail sentence, or bad credit. people come down way too hard on teenagers, and they really try to scare them about what the future hold for them. just don't stop being a teenager when you hit 20. it isn't as bad as they say!!!

'...theres no one around to kick your ass if you dont do what yo 'if your parents said to mow the lawn, you'd get in trouble for not doing it.' 'u're supposed to....' if you dont do what you're supposed to, the worst you get is fired, evicted, a small jail sentence, or bad credit'
-
So, getting a short jail sentence is less of getting in trouble for not doing what you are supposed to do compared to being scolded or sent to your room without your dinner?

Best excuse for not mowing the lawn as an adult
- "It's a natural garden"

Very true Heidi. I wonder why people seem intend on giving us such a hard time. I wonder, maybe they get a sense of power about it. They can't work out in the Big Boy's world so they try to dominate the kids. I've seen a lot of that...