Generation Gap

Image courtesy of steemit.com

Has anyone else been following any of the social media reels and/or videos about the generation wars?  First off, why do we need to be fighting amongst ourselves; but that's a topic for another day.

What appears to be happening is that some members of Gen Z (born between 1997 and 2012) are antagonizing members of Gen X (born between 1965 and 1980).  In particular, a Gen Z girl posted a reel saying that Gen X was "the worst generation."  

This triggered a multitude of Gen X social media influencers (John Kotrides, The Real Slim Sheri, Graeson McGaha, etc.) to respond with reasons why Gen X people are the way we are.  Raise your hand if any of the following create a wave of nostalgia or a surge of PTSD in your heart:

• Goonies
• Walkman
• Dodgeball
• Bike ramps made of cinder blocks and scrap lumber (with no helmets)
• The Merry Go Round (not the carnival ride)
• Babysitting by age 10
• Buying cigarettes for your parent(s)
• Saturday morning cartoons
• Bugs Bunny
• Scooby Doo
• The Grape Ape
• Johnny Quest
• Speed Buggy
• Popeye
• Red Rover
• Schoolhouse Rock
• Conjunction Junction
• I'm Just a Bill
• See-Saws
• Metal Slides (bonus points for a tornado slide)
• Heads Up 7-Up
• After School Specials

How many of you ever heard at least one of these from your parents:

• Quit crying or I'll give you something to cry about
• Walk it off
• Rub some dirt in it
• I brought you into this world, I can take you out of it
• If your friends all jumped off a bridge, would you do that too?
• Don't come in until dark

Wow, that was a nice little trip down memory lane, wasn't it?

I am young enough to remember when I thought 40 was old, and now I find myself at age 57 thinking that 40 is young.  Anybody with me?

Image courtesy of cheezburger.com

This came home to me soundly when I started working part-time at our local Fareway Meat & Grocery store.  Like most grocery stores, there are a lot of teenagers employed at Fareway.  I work one evening per week and Saturday mornings.  Particularly on the week nights, I find myself to be the oldest person on the payroll.  So much so that I have been dubbed Mother Fareway by my younger coworkers.  

I cannot count the times when I have said something that another Gen X'er would either laugh with me or cry with me about, but from my Gen Z coworkers I get blank looks.  Let me elucidate:

• Book covers
• Paul Revere
• Manual transmission
• Floppy disks
• Cursive
• Passing notes in class
• Pay phones
• Cigarette Machines
• Road atlas
• Disposable cameras

Image courtesy of redeemedreader.com

Then again, there was one time when I was shocked by someone from the generation before me:

Me:    Your total is $19.88....hey, 1988, that's the year I got married!

Customer:    Then you're just a newlywed

Me:    Okay...we'll be married 36 years in September.

Customer:    My husband and I have been married 65 years, how about that?

Me:    That's amazing!  I hope we last that long.

Customer:  I never thought he'd live this long...

Me:    ...???...

Customer:    Have a nice day!

Me:    What the hell??

To go back to the social media generation war, what I've decided is that the Gen Z influencers are not indicative of their entire generation.  Not all Gen Z's are entitled, lazy, self-centered or whatever negative label chosen to be assigned to them.  

However, I am pretty sure the Gen X influencers are, in fact, indicative of their entire demographic group:  strong work ethic, don't care what others think about them, don't really talk about their feelings, and loyal.

Image courtesy of instagram.com/totally80sroom

Oh yeah, and HAD THE BEST DANG MUSIC E-V-E-R!!

• Under Pressure
• Girls Just Wanna Have Fun
• Don't Stop Believing
• Now I'm a Believer
• Sweet Caroline
• Danger Zone
• Living on a Prayer
• Walk This Way
• I Love Rock-N-Roll
• Mony Mony

Well okay, I've had a good enough trip down memory lane; I need to go take my Geri-Tol now.  And THERE...that's another one that the young whippersnappers at Fareway didn't know!!