MMX

This is my submission to Issue 3 of Grapeshot 2010- 'X'. Yet to hear back from them so we will see how it goes!

‘MMX’

Today concludes the tenth week of twenty-ten, the international year of Biodiversity and of Youth. In those few short weeks we have witnessed the death of Alexander McQueen, the Winter Olympics, the longest annular solar eclipse and the devastation of Haiti. We have celebrated Valentines Day and New Year, twice if you include the Chinese one. We have witnessed breakthrough cinema (kudos Avatar) and have been issued tsunami warnings. So much as changed in those 67 days it is hard to imagine (well remember) what changed in the 3, 653 days before that, since 2000.

I am still coming to terms with the fact that it has been ten years since the 1990’s, to my despair gone are the days of slap bracelets, (remember those?), Hanson and The Ketchup Song, each replaced with rubber charity bracelets, the Jonas Brothers and Soulja Boy, respectively.

I am yet to crack twenty and have recently found myself saying “ten years ago…”. It’s a little odd to tell you the truth, but interesting none the less to think of all the life changing things that have occurred thus far this millennium. My Top Ten;

I. The Internet. Has a substantial history predating the 21^st Century but is vital to contemporary everyday living; business conferencing or dancing baby chain-emails. Social networks, Facebook, Myspace and Twitter have all emerged as the number one procrastination tool post 2000 to the point that an average Facebooker now spends fifty-five minutes a day tending to their account. As a student Google and Wikipedia are bookmarked, replacing the outdated encyclopedia that lived on my top shelf. I don’t know how I would live without the net nowadays.

II. Global Warming. One of the most highly documented discussed and disputed subjects of the decade. The devastating natural disasters in Bali, New Orleans, Haiti and Chile are all reminders of this. Green Bags have emerged as a political fashion statement and organic chai lattes are now a societal expectation of any environmentally respective citizen.

III. Reality Television. If you think about it for two seconds its all kinds of creepy. Stemming from the success of Big Brother we have seen the development of several reality TV branches. Talent Quests are no longer a 2^nd grade aspiration as a highly contended, profitable pursuit. Idol, X-Factor and So You Think You Can Dance for starters. Celebrities lives; The Hills, Kardasians, Newly Weds and Simple Life all have made quite ordinary people, quite famous and wealthy. Its addictive really and consequently ten years on reality TV is still raking in the big bucks.

IV. Emos. The identifiable stereotype of the decade.

V. September 11. Nearly every major political decision from October 2001 can be attributed in one way or another to ‘terrorism’. It has changed the way we perceive the world in every imaginable way.

VI. I. iTunes, iPods- the digitalization of music as we know it and of course iSnack 2.0, an inferior vegemite.

VII. Guitar Hero. There have always been game consoles, 64 the best. But Guitar Hero lets everyone regardless of musical ability feel like a RockStar.

VIII. Disney Stars. Teenage stars that as a teenager make you incredibly jealous of their lifestyle and general achievements.

IX. OBAMA. An African-American president, who has overseen a national health system, legalized gay marriage (only briefly) and addressed War.

X. Energy Drinks. I don’t know what we did for energy prior to the millennium. But V, Red Bull and Mother can be found in the hand of any student not holding a cup of coffee (organic of course) or designer water.

Admittedly I am glad to see the disappearance of stick on earrings (which doubled as eye décor if you so chose) and spandex bike shorts but some just keep coming back; Billy Ray Cyrus like Britney (who remains this decades most popular musician) has reinvented himself from the achy-breaky heart singer I used to line dance to and watch guest star on The Nanny to a Disney channel dad and now has a throng of five and fifty year old fans, not to mention the 80’s/90’s tights trend that recently reintroduced itself, though this time categorised as either leggings, jeggings, treggings and for those lucky lads, meggings, This decade has been one of celebrity babies, craigslist, the crazy frog, cougars, crocs, botox, blogging, beyblades, Billy big mouth bass, scary movies, Sims, swine flu, scooters and sticks not floppies. Characterised by the birth of Harry Potter and Myspace, the death of Heath Ledger, Steve Irwin and Michael Jackson it is interesting to think what the twenty-teens will have in store. I look forward to resurgence in scrunchies, blue eye shadow (by blue I mean Mi-Mi blue) and beginning many, if not every one of my stories with ‘back in my day’.