I feel oldie…oh so oldie…
Umm. So I think I had my first “I feel old” moment Sunday night. So here’s how it went down. 10:30 pm I get a text message from a friend’s teenage daughter. She wants to interview me about year book questions and she needs an ‘old yearbook.’
First, I consider ignoring the text, seeing as she did preceed it with ‘are you still awake?’ Oh how I could have blissfully not answered and let it go. But then I thought of Amie’s post way back when… Pay it forward, Shelli, pay it forward. Even if it eats into your writing time. So I called her back.
I quickly regretted my decision when she sent me the list of questions I was to answer. First, I’m too young, she needed someone from the 80’s, but me in the mid 90’s would have to make due. So look at these doozies I got slapped with…
What is important to each group and how can you tell?
What is the economic status evident and what are the indicators?
What social conditions are present in each culture?
I looked at these and thought 
why couldn’t you ask me about The Cranberries and Adult Onesies? I mean, she wanted me to THINK! As I’m writing a blow job scene, she wanted me to think deep thoughts about my high school years. Talk about killing the moment.
Anyway, onto the part I felt old. On the social conditions, I decided to mention our school was pretty heavily influenced by the Grunge movement. I mentioned Nirvana and Kurt Cobain and she writes back….what’s grunge? Okay…I could maybe understand the not knowing what Grunge is…maybe… IF WE DIDN’T LIVE IN SEATTLE! But anyway, it made me feel old, because I swear that movement was like…yesterday.
But seriously. This is how I know I’m going to suck when my kid comes to me for help someday. When the girl wrote back and asked how she was supposed to turn my sparse answers into a full page report I told her: The questions suck, and that I had a WTF reaction to them, and that she should just ‘expand on my answer’ ie: make shit up.
*Sigh* Probably why I decided not to go into teaching as well. But, hey, at least I paid it forward…I think. Have you had an ‘I feel old moment’ yet?
January 7th, 2008 at 6:27 am
Hey! i’m 19 and the grunge movement WAS just yesterday ;) some people just have no respect for decent music thats more than 5 minutes old.
(proven by all the covers of 80’s and early 90’s songs that when you say “oh you know such and such a band!” they go “what the hell are you talking about?”)
January 7th, 2008 at 7:41 am
I think the problem is…the girl doesn’t have a clue what those questions mean and your answers were supposed to tell her
You really don’t want to know how old all this makes ME feel!
January 7th, 2008 at 9:45 am
I work with MUSICIANS who are 19 and don’t know who Eddie Vedder is, so the grunge issue doesn’t surprise me at all, but what on earth kind of questions are those?
January 7th, 2008 at 11:23 am
I wonder what would happen if she questioned me and I mention Crosby, Stills and Nash? Or James Taylor? Or Steppenwolf? Or Emerson, Lake and Palmer? Or Yes? The bands I grew up with.
She’d probably say, “Didn’t they used to be contemporaries of Mozart?”
Children these days.
January 7th, 2008 at 12:46 pm
Wait until your daughter says, “So mom, when you were alive in the olden days…?” My dd is seven and already I’m sooo uncool.
January 7th, 2008 at 1:22 pm
It’s not just you, Shelli! I read those questions and thought, “How the hell is anyone supposed to answer those??” Seriously…I remember Chernobyl and jokes about glowing chartreuse. I can tell you exactly where I was when the first shuttle exploded. But economic status indicators? Social conditions? Those questions seriously do suck!
January 7th, 2008 at 1:33 pm
Yay, Ayla! I like you
Natasha, yeah I don’t think she got the questions much either!
Rob, I love Crosby, Stills and Nash!
Jennah, I’m going to faint the day she asks!
Heather, I’m so glad you think the questions suck too! I thought maybe I was just…slow? LOL.
January 7th, 2008 at 2:16 pm
Ooooh I agree with Natasha. I bet she was told to ask those questions yet has no idea what they mean!
I shared this pain with Shelli last night guys and we were boggled. Our brains couldn’t handle it. And the grunge thing - hello! Girlfriend you live in SEATTLE. Nuff said.
My children constantly refer to how old I am. It sucks. Little jerks.
January 7th, 2008 at 3:11 pm
Thank you Ayla!!!!
*sigh*
OMG I have them all the time. Honey I have a FOURTEEN YEAR OLD. I was sitting around (wasting time I’m sure) and realized that in NINE MONTHS I WILL BE THE MOTHER OF A HIGH SCHOOLER
January 7th, 2008 at 3:12 pm
Emily, that is too funny!!
January 7th, 2008 at 3:13 pm
Ok Funny Old Mom Moment……last night my kids were singing Cars (circa 1980) ya know? and I thought, “I Knew that song when it was NEW”
We need a what the hell smiley.
January 7th, 2008 at 3:13 pm
Amie, oh my gosh. Let me go get you a walker.
LOL!! You’re a young’n.
January 7th, 2008 at 3:16 pm
Hmm. Cars. Like the group Cars? Or is it a song Cars? Cause all I’m getting is the vision of the Disney movie Cars and Life is a Highway (Rascal Flatts version)
January 7th, 2008 at 3:22 pm
Remember when supermodels ruled the world? This was when only models were on magazine covers. Linda, Naomi, Christi and Cindy were huge celebrities. Does anybody else remember George Michael’s “Freedom” video with all the hot models? Alice in Chains and Soundgarden were also part of the Seattle grunge scene.
January 7th, 2008 at 3:25 pm
Jane! I totally remember that and was thinking about that. Now models have become like useless. Magazine covers go to celebrities. It’s nuts!
Yes, I told the girl about Alice in Chains, but I’d totally forgotten about Soundgarden.
Here’s the weird thing about me. When I was in high school in the middle of the grunge stuff, I listened to jazz music. That was it. I REFUSED to do grunge. I always liked to go against the trends.
January 7th, 2008 at 3:41 pm
Oh well, I just had a I feel old moment reading this post. LOL I am the mom of a 17 and 16 year old terrors so I can translate what she meant when asked how she was suppose to write a full page report with your sparse responses. What that translates to “Hey why didn’t you write the full page report for me. You should be happy that I took my time to ask you about your old memories.”
January 7th, 2008 at 3:44 pm
Seriously, Chris! No kidding! And she told me it was due ‘like, days ago’.
January 7th, 2008 at 4:03 pm
Hearing about schools in America always fascinates me. I read with interest and then usually shudder a little. Life in NZ seems so much easier!
January 7th, 2008 at 4:10 pm
Shelli it’s a techno song–I bet Feisty knows it. Der
Um……Here in my car da da da da da da da Um never mind……
Cars……..du du
Cars……..du du
they say cars a lot.
January 7th, 2008 at 4:11 pm
And my ex was kind enough to remind me we’re cruising right up on forty–me first of course
January 7th, 2008 at 4:40 pm
January 7th, 2008 at 5:03 pm
Oh yeah my almost 10 year old reminds me ‘You’re quite strong for a woman your age!”
Hello I’m not young but I’m only 32!
And I agree it sounds like she wanted you to write the report for her. I can’t believe the questions! That’s crazy!
January 7th, 2008 at 5:09 pm
OK, so I don’t know what grunge is, either. But perhaps that is because I grew up on Donny Osmond.
“One bad apple don’t spoil the whole bunch, girl, ohhhhhhhhh gimme just one more……..” Never mind. Y’all probably never heard of Donny Osmond.
January 7th, 2008 at 5:17 pm
Shelley, I would LOVE to live in NZ. America is such a mess at times! LOL.
Amie! Oh I know which one that is. Barely.
Maria, you are YOUNG!
Peggy, grunge is…Nirvana. The band. Thrift shopping, cargo pants, mosh pitting, angsting… yeah. LOL.
January 8th, 2008 at 12:49 am
My kid just turned three and and he can sing all of Nirvana unplugged (for better or worse.) Obviously, this is a lack of good parenting.
January 8th, 2008 at 12:50 am
P.S. Shelli the Cars thing? Now you’re the youngin.
January 8th, 2008 at 12:51 am
Here in my car
I feel safest of all
I can lock all my doors
It’s the only way to live
In cars
January 8th, 2008 at 1:02 am
LOL! Ok, ok…I THINK I’m starting to remember it. Really. That really stilted rhythm? Like you could do that robot to it?
January 8th, 2008 at 1:47 am
Hey! You all think you’ve got it bad? My dd is starting to have HER old-age moments and feelings!!!! Now how old do you think that makes Me feel! LOL
BTW where do I go to download these little explitives?
January 8th, 2008 at 1:52 am
Hi, Rosamond! I’m not sure where we got all them :) But they seem to be on many peoples pages! Ah that’s great your daughter’s having them, too!
January 8th, 2008 at 10:50 am
Wow. I remember going to college on the east coast in ‘98 and everyone being like, “Oh. You’re from Seattle. Do you like Nirvana? Do you wear flannel shirts? Do you drink a lot of coffee?” And I wanted to yell at them for being stereotypical, but all of those things were actually true about me…
January 8th, 2008 at 12:02 pm
I KNEW Fesity would know it!
January 8th, 2008 at 12:03 pm
Rosamond……….try mysmileys.net and also google free smileys
January 9th, 2008 at 1:28 pm
Shelli - I agree - WTF? And I too feel old.
In Cars.. wasn’t that Devo?
No, wait - Google says it’s Gary Newman - but it was very techno!
Thanks, ladies, now it’s stuck in my head.