--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The things I wanted to be when I was a…" description: "\"The things I wanted to be when I was a kid were an archeologist, because of dinosaur bones; a garbage man, because they got to ride on the side of the ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5c1/nick-tosches-17928_because_the-things-i-wanted-to-be-when-i-was-a-k_854938.jpg" --- # The things I wanted to be when I was a kid were an… ![“The things I wanted to be when I was a kid were an archeologist, because of dinosaur bones; a garbage man, because they got to ride on the side of the trucks; and a writer.” quote by Nick Tosches](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5c1/nick-tosches-17928_because_the-things-i-wanted-to-be-when-i-was-a-k_854938.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5c1/nick-tosches-17928_because_the-things-i-wanted-to-be-when-i-was-a-k_854938.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5c1/nick-tosches-17928_because_the-things-i-wanted-to-be-when-i-was-a-k_854938.jpg) > “The things I wanted to be when I was a kid were an archeologist, because of dinosaur bones; a garbage man, because they got to ride on the side of the trucks; and a writer.” [Nick Tosches](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-tosches/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Childhood aspirations reflect fascination with discovery, service, and storytelling, revealing diverse curiosities that shape adult identity. **In simple terms:** Kids often want varied, imaginative careers. Key Takeaway Embrace varied interests to enrich life. Themes identity creativity career historical archeology writing Mood nostalgic inspirational Type personal motivational When to use this quote - career counseling - museum work - writing retreats - storytelling workshops - personal reflection Key Concepts Narrative identity imagination career development Questions to Reflect On - What childhood dream still inspires you? - How can diverse interests inform your work? A Different Perspective Practical constraints may limit some paths. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Dinosaur](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dinosaur/) [Dinosaurs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dinosaurs/) [Kids](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/kids/) [Man](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/man/) [Men](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/men/) [Trucks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/trucks/) [Writer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writer/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) ## Related quotes > [“An institution is right or it is wrong. One that cannot accept dinosaur bones is one that cannot be trusted on more important matters.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fletcher-wortmann/an-institution-is-right-or-it-is-wrong-one-that-cannot-accept/) Fletcher Wortmann > [There's an incomparable rush that comes from finding dinosaur bones. You know you're the first person to lay hands on a critter that lived…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-horner/there-s-an-incomparable-rush-that-comes-from-finding-dinosaur-bones/) [Jack Horner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-horner/) > [My father had owned a ranch when he was younger, in Montana, and he remembered riding his horse across the prairie and seeing some…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-horner/my-father-had-owned-a-ranch-when-he-was-younger-in-montana-and-he/) [Jack Horner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-horner/) > [I think sometimes when people get older they start to limit themselves and think that if they wanted to start singing or they wanted…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/theresa-wayman/i-think-sometimes-when-people-get-older-they-start-to-limit/) [Theresa Wayman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/theresa-wayman/) > [I've always quite liked the idea of being an archeologist, sort of scrubbing around in the dirt.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ruth-wilson/i-ve-always-quite-liked-the-idea-of-being-an-archeologist-sort-of/) [Ruth Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ruth-wilson/) > [“It is good to be married to an archeologist because the older you get the more interested he becomes in you. Agatha Christie”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shirley-bullock/it-is-good-to-be-married-to-an-archeologist-because-the-older-you-get/) Shirley Bullock > [An archeologist is the best husband any woman can have; the older she gets, the more interested he is in her..](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/green-monk/an-archeologist-is-the-best-husband-any-woman-can-have-the-older-she/) [Green Monk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/green-monk/) > [“Like the continents, men and women were once connected, but they drifted apart. The evidence is still there, but you have to possess the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joshua-emmet/like-the-continents-men-and-women-were-once-connected-but-they/) [Joshua Emmet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joshua-emmet/) > [“A theologian, I found, is much like an archeologist. Both develop expertise in digging. An archeologist sifts through sediment to find objects buried long…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/meggan-watterson/a-theologian-i-found-is-much-like-an-archeologist-both-develop/) [Meggan Watterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/meggan-watterson/) > [I married an archeologist because the older I grow, the more he appreciates me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/agatha-christie/i-married-an-archeologist-because-the-older-i-grow-the-more-he/) [Agatha Christie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/agatha-christie/) > [I grew up at 16 years old driving trucks across the George Washington Bridge.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/don-sherwood/i-grew-up-at-16-years-old-driving-trucks-across-the-george-washington/) [Don Sherwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/don-sherwood/) > [We'd be in his office playing with trucks as a six-year-old while he's negotiating deals with presidents of major companies.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-trump-jr/we-d-be-in-his-office-playing-with-trucks-as-a-six-year-old-while-he/) [Donald Trump, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-trump-jr/) > [From food trucks to hot dog stands to county fair favorites, 'street food' has enjoyed a rich and storied history in American cuisine. However,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/homaro-cantu/from-food-trucks-to-hot-dog-stands-to-county-fair-favorites-street/) [Homaro Cantu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/homaro-cantu/) > [Country girls don't check out other guys. We check out other trucks.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/country-girls-don-t-check-out-other-guys-we-check-out-other-trucks/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I unloaded trucks for a living and I hated it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-norton/i-unloaded-trucks-for-a-living-and-i-hated-it/) [Jim Norton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-norton/) ## More by Nick Tosches > [Mortality applies to every aspect of life. The fear of death is the driving fear of life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-tosches/mortality-applies-to-every-aspect-of-life-the-fear-of-death-is-the/) [Nick Tosches](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-tosches/) > [They say nobody has the attention span to read great books early in life. If I start to read something good, I'll look and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-tosches/they-say-nobody-has-the-attention-span-to-read-great-books-early-in/) [Nick Tosches](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-tosches/) > [Steiner has here transformed the vaporous conceptions of his life, the vapors of what never was and never will be, from their aeriform state…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-tosches/steiner-has-here-transformed-the-vaporous-conceptions-of-his-life-the/) [Nick Tosches](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-tosches/) > [The older you get, the more you live with ghosts.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-tosches/the-older-you-get-the-more-you-live-with-ghosts/) [Nick Tosches](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-tosches/) > [You're never gonna outwrite the movement of the white clouds and the blue sky. You're never going to. There are times when I try…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-tosches/you-re-never-gonna-outwrite-the-movement-of-the-white-clouds-and-the/) [Nick Tosches](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-tosches/) > [Johnny Depp is, to me, a rare kindred spirit with like sensibilities, who has escaped the beast. He's probably one of the few people…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-tosches/johnny-depp-is-to-me-a-rare-kindred-spirit-with-like-sensibilities/) [Nick Tosches](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-tosches/) > [“I believe in the power of origins, a belief that, as Ecclesiastes put it, 'that wich is done is that wich shall be done:…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-tosches/i-believe-in-the-power-of-origins-a-belief-that-as-ecclesiastes-put/) [Nick Tosches](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-tosches/) > [The appeal for drugs has dwindled. Except for actual opium. If I could get real opium, I'd stir it in my hot coffee every…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-tosches/the-appeal-for-drugs-has-dwindled-except-for-actual-opium-if-i-could/) [Nick Tosches](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-tosches/) > [My father, God bless him, thought it was such an impossible desire to be able to make a living the way I do. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-tosches/my-father-god-bless-him-thought-it-was-such-an-impossible-desire-to/) [Nick Tosches](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-tosches/) > [As a young man, I felt a need to communicate with somebody or something, but it seemed in my own particular environment that that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-tosches/as-a-young-man-i-felt-a-need-to-communicate-with-somebody-or/) [Nick Tosches](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-tosches/) > [I wanted to just get a job so I could have enough money for my own apartment and be able to get drunk. And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-tosches/i-wanted-to-just-get-a-job-so-i-could-have-enough-money-for-my-own/) [Nick Tosches](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-tosches/) > [“And, of course, that is what all of this is - all of this: the one song, ever changing, ever reincarnated, that speaks somehow…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-tosches/and-of-course-that-is-what-all-of-this-is-all-of-this-the-one-song/) [Nick Tosches](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-tosches/) > [You got guys that are so old, you see them eating lunch, the drool's just coming from their mouth, and they're sending around memos…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-tosches/you-got-guys-that-are-so-old-you-see-them-eating-lunch-the-drool-s/) [Nick Tosches](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-tosches/) > [I don't have a college degree.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-tosches/i-don-t-have-a-college-degree/) [Nick Tosches](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-tosches/) > [I think Elvis Presley will never be solved](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-tosches/i-think-elvis-presley-will-never-be-solved/) [Nick Tosches](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-tosches/) [Explore all 36 Nick Tosches quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-tosches/) ## More Because quotes > [One is a painter because one wants so-called freedom; one doesn't want to go to the office every morning.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcel-duchamp/one-is-a-painter-because-one-wants-so-called-freedom-one-doesn-t-want/) [Marcel Duchamp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcel-duchamp/) > [I gave my archive to Emory University because there's a really dear friend who teaches there, Rudolph Byrd, and he's the editor.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-walker/i-gave-my-archive-to-emory-university-because-there-s-a-really-dear/) [Alice Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-walker/) > [Because of the womb being a central phenomenon in the feminine body, the whole psychology of woman differs: she is non-aggressive, non-inquiring, non-questioning, non-doubting,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rajneesh/because-of-the-womb-being-a-central-phenomenon-in-the-feminine-body/) [Rajneesh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rajneesh/) > [I love casting against type and doing things you wouldn't expect, because I think you get more interesting performances that way. Hollywood loves to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-s-goyer/i-love-casting-against-type-and-doing-things-you-wouldn-t-expect/) [David S. Goyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-s-goyer/) > [There were songs that we cut out after we chose the name, because 'Praise Break' turned out to be an underlying concept that I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-caesar/there-were-songs-that-we-cut-out-after-we-chose-the-name-because/) [Daniel Caesar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-caesar/) > [It took me 20 years to buy an electric typewriter, because I was afraid it would be too sensitive. I like to bang the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elmore-leonard/it-took-me-20-years-to-buy-an-electric-typewriter-because-i-was/) [Elmore Leonard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elmore-leonard/) > [I was also known as Frodo because I was an early adopter of 'The Lord of the Rings.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-perrotta/i-was-also-known-as-frodo-because-i-was-an-early-adopter-of-the-lord/) [Tom Perrotta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-perrotta/) > [I believe in taxation and health care that is outside the usual libertarian mandate, because I don't want people to have to suffer. It's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-peart/i-believe-in-taxation-and-health-care-that-is-outside-the-usual/) [Neil Peart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-peart/) > [It's like saying French shouldn't be taught because you don't understand it because it's new. Shakespeare is just like learning a new, exciting language.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-barnett/it-s-like-saying-french-shouldn-t-be-taught-because-you-don-t/) [Samuel Barnett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-barnett/) > [Whether it was Little League or playing with your brothers or sisters, that was always a problem. If I would lose - because I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cal-ripken-jr/whether-it-was-little-league-or-playing-with-your-brothers-or-sisters/) [Cal Ripken, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cal-ripken-jr/) > [Sometimes, when full and in fear that I will continue to eat unwanted food just because it's staring at me, I will place my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-nichols/sometimes-when-full-and-in-fear-that-i-will-continue-to-eat-unwanted/) [Rachel Nichols](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachel-nichols/) > [I didn't want to do 'Fashion Police' because I thought, 'This is stupid, this is beneath me, who wants to talk about fashion?' It…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joan-rivers/i-didn-t-want-to-do-fashion-police-because-i-thought-this-is-stupid/) [Joan Rivers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joan-rivers/) > [I was contacted by Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore, MP, through the Pune Film Institute and offered the post in the NFDC. I accepted it for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/suresh-gopi/i-was-contacted-by-rajyavardhan-singh-rathore-mp-through-the-pune/) [Suresh Gopi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/suresh-gopi/) > [I have always been a big meta guy because I think the way journalism is practiced in Washington, and the way everyone sort of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-leibovich/i-have-always-been-a-big-meta-guy-because-i-think-the-way-journalism/) [Mark Leibovich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-leibovich/) > [There are a lot of kids out there copying and distributing movies - not because they care about seeing the movies or sharing them…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-perry-barlow/there-are-a-lot-of-kids-out-there-copying-and-distributing-movies-not/) [John Perry Barlow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-perry-barlow/) Browse all 15,485 Because quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "The things I wanted to be when I was a kid were an archeologist, because of dinosaur bones; a garbage man, because they got to ride on the side of the trucks; and a writer.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Nick Tosches" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-tosches/the-things-i-wanted-to-be-when-i-was-a-kid-were-an-archeologist/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Because" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-tosches/the-things-i-wanted-to-be-when-i-was-a-kid-were-an-archeologist/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5c1/nick-tosches-17928_because_the-things-i-wanted-to-be-when-i-was-a-k_854938.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5c1/nick-tosches-17928_because_the-things-i-wanted-to-be-when-i-was-a-k_854938.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5c1/nick-tosches-17928_because_the-things-i-wanted-to-be-when-i-was-a-k_854938.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“The things I wanted to be when I was a kid were an archeologist, because of dinosaur bones; a garbage man…” — Nick Tosches", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Nick Tosches", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-tosches/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "The things I wanted to be...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-tosches/the-things-i-wanted-to-be-when-i-was-a-kid-were-an-archeologist/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-tosches/the-things-i-wanted-to-be-when-i-was-a-kid-were-an-archeologist/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```