Similar(ly) to my index of the Squelching 2020s, which recaps some of the worst trends of the decade, I wanted to start a list of …
I don’t know what to call this. It’s just a list of the moments in our era that have made me realize that many, many people are frustrated and depressed. Here are the things that are making us sad:
1. high-beam headlights aggravating other drivers (and contributing to accidents and road-rage)
2. medical administrators outnumbering hands-on medical professionals and nurses
3. nurses burning out and quitting their jobs to do multi-level marketing
4. people oversharing online — and I don’t mean XOJane essays
(I’m talking about people posting embarrassing videos of their kids for clout. Willobeigh doesn’t want you to post a YouTube video of her diaper blowout! Your ex-boyfriend’s ex-girlfriend doesn’t want you to post on Facebook about how her miscarriages gave you an idea for an essay about how to conquer your own jealousy. You don’t have to do this!)
5. posts on nearly every social network about people coming home and not having the energy to do anything besides cook dinner and take a shower — posts that are often written by young people
There are also memes about how “I’m going to spend the whole summer rotting in bed” or “the first thing I do when I get home from work is take off my bra and take a five-hour nap” — and when I see a 22-year-old writing sincere posts like this, I know that times are tough.
6. pressure to keep up with everyone else — without any satisfaction over where you’re at, because you’re always looking to accomplish something even more impressive
People aren’t satisfied with stability, either. They see that their friends are going on a cruise, so they have to go on a cruise. They see that their friend is taking Ozempic, so they have to try it, too. I think people should try new things, set goals, and all of that. But if you’re only doing it because you want to impress someone else, then you’re not doing it because you want to. You’re doing it to fit in and not be excluded. That sucks. ☹️
7. road rage — which seems to have worsened in the wake of the pandemic
8. (some) folks insisting that the pandemic is behind us, when we see the effects of it manifesting every single day
PTSD, Long COVID, isolation, trauma, depression, loneliness — all of these things are brutal, and these things can’t be swept under the rug so easily.
8. teachers burning out and quitting their jobs to stay at home and do multi-level marketing
9. twenty-four/seven news, twenty-four/seven shopping, twenty-four/seven social media — twenty-four/seven consumption
I’ll add more points as more things come to mind!
Jamais Mayville 