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Never heard of Xennials before? You're not alone! It just so happens, the term Xennial first appeared in an article for GOOD Magazine by writers Sarah Stankorb (who coined the term) and Jed Oelbaum. It was described as "a micro-generation that serves as a bridge between the disaffection of Gen X and the blithe optimism of Millennials." Other unique terms have come to describe this group (roughly figured to have been born between 1977-1983.)

These include The Star Wars Generation, The Oregon Trail Generation, and Generation Catalano, (the latter suggested by Slate writer Doree Shafrir in reference to Jordan Catalano on the hit 90s TV show My So-Called Life.) In @sourcomedy's clip making the rounds on Tiktok, Nate gives us the reasons Xennials are truly awesome. Here are a few hilarious takeaways from Nate's bit on the topic:

Growing up as a young kid felt safe.

boy holding on swing bench Photo by Annie Spratt on Unsplash


"When I was a kid, it felt like the 50s. You'd go outside and your parents just didn't know where you were. We went to school to school and played Oregon Trail on a computer at school! No one had a computer at home - it's like what are you a Zillionaire?"

They still had privacy.


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While Nate shares he got AOL, a home computer, a beeper and a cell phone in high school, he didn't have social media until he was 26 with Myspace.

"Whatever I did in high school is a rumor. It can't ruin my life!"

You are equally impressed and disappointed by other generations.


@sourcomedy

The Lucky Ones #natebargatze #natebargatzecomedy

On a hotel stay, the Chromecast on his TV stopped working so he called the front desk. "The oldest voice I ever heard answers the phone. This guy was a Civil War survivor. I mean, he was the age where you just go 'Thank you for your service.' So I tell him my Chromecast is not working and I could have just made up a word. I mean, he's never heard of that. I could have said 'My beep bop broke.' He goes, 'Look, I don't know what this is. But there's a younger guy, I'm gonna send him up, he'll be able to help you."

A guy shows up, Nate muses, and he's "his dad's age." Nate immediately determines that if he can't fix it, this guy can't either. "But he's the generation that still wants to give it a try. So he comes into my room, sits on my bed, just a little too far back, I thought."

He then says the guy grabbed the remote and just started pressing everything. Nate suggests, "I'm gonna turn the shower on, open a window, let's try everything!"

The "pressing all the buttons" tactic shockingly doesn't work. Nate shares that the guy finally says, "Alright, there's a younger guy. He's about to come to work. And at this point, I'm like 'I'm the younger guy, man. It's alright dude, I don't need it.' And he goes, 'No, no, no, it's a Millennial." And I was like 'Alright, now we're getting somewhere. This is what the Millennial does. He was born with technology, he's gonna know how to fix this!"

So the guy says the Millennial will arrive to work in an hour. And Nate tells us, "Let me tell you. You know how quick that Millennial fixed it? Well, I'll never know because he just didn't come to work that night."

And guess who relayed this message. "I found out because the old guy called me. He was supposed to fill in for him. He was furious, dude. He hates that Millennial. He goes 'He never comes to work. He doesn't take it serious. He's got a peanut allergy.'"

In the end, it took a Xennial to figure it out. "I ended up fixing it myself, because it was just unplugged. So that's yeah…that's my fault."

via James Breakwell / Twitter

Raising kids is tough, but there's a lot of laughs along the way. Comedy writer James Breakwell has four daughters under the age of eight and shares their hilarious conversations on Twitter. And, from Breakwell's tweets, it looks like his five year old has a future in comedy. Here's a sampling of some Breakwell's funniest kid-inspired tweets.


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His 5-year-old isn't the only (often unintentionally) hilarious child in the house; the 7-year-old and 3-year-old turn up from time to time. There's also a 2-year-old, but she hasn't been the subject of many tweets yet.


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This article originally appeared four years ago.

Joy

Comedian mocks ridiculous cat behaviors in viral 'If Cats Went to School' skit

The what-to-do-if-your-human's-on-a-Zoom-call instruction is spot on.

Cats would much rather play with a box than with the toys that came in it.

Ah, cats. Those of us who've been chosen by the Cat Distribution System know their propensity for quirky behavior, and those who haven't have least heard the rumors. It's all true, of course. Cats are weird little creatures who defy our expectations of them simply because they can. They're undeniably gorgeous and graceful—the perfect predator—yet also loveable, doofy dinguses. They are wicked smart and oh so dumb at the same time. The fact that cats are basically walking contradictions is part of what makes having them so fun.

It's also why British comedian Jake Lambert's video imagining "If Cats Went to School" has cat owners everywhere chuckling. In the viral sketch, Lambert plays the role of a teacher instructing cats on what to do in various situations, with "lessons" that are seemingly universal among our feline friends.

"Now, does anyone know what you should do if your human buys you a toy?" Lambert begins, eliciting an imaginary response from the class. "No, you don't want to play with it. What you want to do is give your full and undivided attention to the box it came in."

"So we're ignoring the toy completely and focusing fully on the box," he clarified.

His delivery as a teacher patiently and clearly explaining the lesson is what really sells it.

"Now, if your human wants you to sit on their lap, what should you do?" he continues. "Yes, sit anywhere else. Correct, Luna. Now, preferably that will be as close to the human as possible, but without actually touching them."

How about when you want a human to stop petting you? Naturally, you turn around and bite their hand with no warning whatsoever, right? And how about Zoom calls? What should you do when your human has one?

"Try to get their attention, yes," he says. "But what you really want to do is make sure that you get your bum in front of the camera. That's very important."

Very important, indeed. We've all been there, either as the cat owner or the Zoom call participant. How do all cats know exactly what to do in those situations? It really does seem like they're all taking the same lessons somewhere.

Finally, the homework: "Go home and completely ignore your scratch posts and just use the sofa instead. Okay?"

cat scratching a sofaJust a cat doing their homework like a responsible student.Photo credit: Canva

People saw their own cats in the sketch and appreciated the explanation for why they are the way they are.

"Owh…so my cat was just doing her homework."

"My cat Theo went to that school. He received straight A’s."

"My cat is a full star pupil."

"You’re clearly my cat’s teacher… and you’re fired."

Some also pointed out other lessons that Cat School surely teaches:

"You forgot to mention the correct time to barf : just after your human fell asleep."

""And if you need to barf, make sure to do it on your human's favourite and most expensive rug. Even if there is much more space that is easily cleanable tile."

"And don't forget to walk on the keyboard in order to create very interesting sentences for your human."

"When a human is working, paper in front, don’t forget to sit on the paper and completely cover everything :)"

"Also absolutely refuse to use the fresh water fountain your human has bought you!"

"My cat is working on his master’s thesis, 'Prescription Cat Food: The Most Efficient Way To Bankrupt A Human While Destroying The Same Spot On a Carpet.'"

All relatable. Here's to our hilariously predictable yet somehow totally unpredictable feline friends and their classmates.

You can find more of Jake Lambert's comedy on his Instagram channel.


William Ziegler of New Orleans, Louisiana.

After you're gone, people will probably forget the exact things you said to them while you were alive, but they'll never forget how you made them feel.

Unfortunately, when people write obituaries that sum up a person's life, they're often just a chronological list of factual details such as where they lived, where they worked, and how many children they had.

While those facts are important, they don't really explain the type of person the deceased was or how they made people feel. An obituary for fireman William Ziegler of New Orleans, Louisiana has attracted a lot of attention for how it hilariously summed up the life of a man who was a real raconteur.

Zeigler's daughter, Sharah Currier, said that he used to read funny obituaries to his children, so they decided to write one that would make him laugh. "He would have loved this,"Tshe told The Times-Picayune. "He probably would have forwarded this obituary to us.”

Zeigler began his career as a volunteer in the U.S. Navy.

William volunteered for service in the United States Navy at the ripe old age of 17 and immediately realized he didn't much enjoy being bossed around. He only stuck it out for one war. Before his discharge, however, the government exchanged numerous ribbons and medals for various honorable acts. Upon his return to the City of New Orleans in 1971, thinking it best to keep an eye on him, government officials hired William as a fireman.

He then continued his life of service by joining the fire department.

After twenty-five years, he suddenly realized that running away from burning buildings made more sense than running toward them. He promptly retired. Looking back, William stated that there was no better group of morons and mental patients than those he had the privilege of serving with (except Bob, he never liked you, Bob).

Ziegler's children believe that he's in heaven with his alcoholic dog.

Following his wishes, there will not be a service, but well-wishers are encouraged to write a note of farewell on a Schaefer Light beer can and drink it in his honor. He was never one for sentiment or religiosity, but he wanted you to know that if he owes you a beer, and if you can find him in Heaven, he will gladly allow you to buy him another. He can likely be found forwarding tasteless internet jokes (check your spam folder, but don't open these at work). Expect to find an alcoholic dog named Judge passed out at his feet.

His children end the obituary stressing the fact that he's actually dead.

Unlike previous times, this is not a ploy to avoid creditors or old girlfriends. He assures us that he is gone. He will be greatly missed.

You can read the whole obituary atThe Times-Picayune.

This article originally appeared nine years ago.