What skill have you lost (that you miss)?

[swee'pea99]

A subject that entered what passes for my mind earlier today when I wanted to summon my dog back from a distance.

Time was, I could have done it with aplomb and a couple of fingers. When I was in my early teens, friends and I used to work hard on our whistling. I had many variants literally at my fingertips. The most basic - first two fingers of both hands laid on the tongue in a kind of V - produced a striking, manly mid-range tone, with a pleasing clarity and timbre. An inverted index + little-finger combo could generate a piercing shriek that would shatter glass. With practice, you could get a note out of a thumb-to-index finger 'O' that could have a cat do a 6 foot vertical take-off at 100 yards.

I'm pretty sure I still have the same mouth and fingers, but the best I can come up with now is a thin, watery rasp.

Are there any skills whose passing you mourn?

 

[Night Train]

As a furniture maker I miss the skills needed to make fine furniture that I lost since becoming ill nearly 2 years ago.
I also miss being able to remember things.

On a 'lighter' note I miss being able to haul myself up a rope, hand over hand, with my legs straight out. I am just too heavy to do it now.

 

[slowmotion]

Even though fairly puny, I used to be able to jump up to the loft hatch and pull myself up through it with my arms. One day a long time ago I tried it again and failed. Never managed it since...

 

[albion]

As a teenager I wasted a few days on pinball.

There was one machine I think called Space Invaders where something like 6 mega fast repeat central loops with the flipper got a free game with maybe every 2 more another free game. Considering I could repeat 15 loops there was very little waste of money.

I sort of do miss seeing pinball machines down the pub.

 

[Herbie]

A subject that entered what passes for my mind earlier today when I wanted to summon my dog back from a distance.

Time was, I could have done it with aplomb and a couple of fingers. When I was in my early teens, friends and I used to work hard on our whistling. I had many variants literally at my fingertips. The most basic - first two fingers of both hands laid on the tongue in a kind of V - produced a striking, manly mid-range tone, with a pleasing clarity and timbre. An inverted index + little-finger combo could generate a piercing shriek that would shatter glass. With practice, you could get a note out of a thumb-to-index finger 'O' that could have a cat do a 6 foot vertical take-off at 100 yards.

I'm pretty sure I still have the same mouth and fingers, but the best I can come up with now is a thin, watery rasp.

Are there any skills whose passing you mourn?

Cycling with my hands in me pockets....bit scared to do that these days

 

[Black Sheep]

I used to be able to use an artists air brush

not sure I could manage it now.

 

[biggs682]

to be able to look at a nut or allen headed bolt or screw and know without checking what size spanner or allen key to use

 

[steve broughton]

No longer being able to wee uphill

 

[Brains]

Drink silly amounts of alcohol stay up all night and still be fine to work the next day

 

[jim55]

Cycling no hands !!

 

[defy-one]

Being able to drink 5 pints and still remember everything :-(

 

[donnydave]

another vote for cycling with no hands. I used to be able to take my jumper off while riding in my early teens, no chance now. Crikey that was 15 years ago. I think I need a drink....

 

[marzjennings]

Being able to dunk a basketball. I really tried again at 40, and I got close. Not so much the years as the extra weight (+3 stone) compared to my playing days.

 

[Herbie]

No longer being able to wee uphill

we used to have competitions at school to see who could pee the highest

 

[Herbie]

another vote for cycling with no hands. I used to be able to take my jumper off while riding in my early teens, no chance now. Crikey that was 15 years ago. I think I need a drink....

being able to drink loads for 3 nights in a row and think nowt about it...now after 3 pints i'm wasted