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Younger people are admitting baby boomers got these 17 things right

"Kids shouldn't be on phones or iPads all the time. It makes them weird."

an older woman standing outside looking stern beside overlay of comment that reads, "12. Stop being so sensitive"
via Christian Buehner/Unsplash

Baby boomers didn't get everything wrong.

In recent years, baby boomers have often been the target of criticism from younger generations. The most common accusations are that boomers are selfish and don’t care about leaving ample resources (whether financial or environmental) to subsequent generations. They also come under fire for not being able to acknowledge that it was easier for people of their generation to come of age when things were more affordable and life was a lot less competitive.

However, we should also understand that many of today’s problems are not the boomers’ doing, especially when it comes to the issues that stem from entitled children and technology run amok. In hindsight, there’s something to be said about the importance boomers placed on self-reliance, letting kids be kids, and having a healthy skepticism towards technology.

In the end, each generation contributes to the tapestry of society in its unique way, whether good or bad, even baby boomers. This became evident after a Reddit user named Youssef4573 asked the AskReddit subforum: ‘What is something you can say ‘I'm with the boomers on this one’ about?” Over 4,700 people responded to the prompt, and the most prevalent problems mentioned by the younger generations were overreliance on technology, the modern world’s lack of human touch, and how Gen Xers and millennials have raised their children.

Here are 17 things that younger people are “with the boomers” about.

1. Public filming

"Just because I’m in public doesn’t mean I want to be filmed. Yeah, I know legally you can, but common courtesy people." — Jayne_of_Canton

2. Customer service

"I want to talk to a person in customer service, not a machine." — lumpy_space_queenie

"And also a person that actually works at the company I bought the product from, not a teenager at an outsourced call center with a script to follow and who answers calls for 15 different companies on the same day." — Loive.

3. Turn up the dialog

"For the love of all that is holy, can we fix the audio in movies so that the music and sound FX aren’t drowning out the dialogue?" — Caloso

"And the action sequences don’t burst your eardrums or the dialogue is whispers." — Whynottry-again

4. Bring back buttons

"No, I don't need everything in my car to be electronic. Some stuff needs buttons." — LamborghiniHEAT

"This was the big thing for me in my last car - trying to adjust volume or change songs while driving is way more dangerous when it’s all touch screen. Thankfully my current car has physical knobs for everything." — GeekdomCentral

5. App overload

"Every store/service does not need an app." — BigDigger324

"I was standing at a car rental counter at an airport (boomer here) to rent a car. My daughter’s car broke down on the way to pick me up. While standing at the counter, with a customer service rep right there and not busy, I had to log in to their site, create an account, and reserve a car. It seemed ridiculous and it took a long time, filling in my license information and all that. This was last September." — Cleanslate

6. Bring back DIY

"Learning DIY skills is crucial. I had basically zero DIY skills when I bought my house because I had lived in apartments for so long and I've had to learn a lot. YouTube tutorials are absolutely clutch." — JingleJongleBongle

7. Turn off the speakerphone

"I hated this when I worked at Walmart. So many of my coworkers would talk on speaker or watch TikTok at full volume. It's just trashy imo, nobody wants to hear your media." — WhiteGuy1x

"I work at an emergency medical office and holy sh*t the amount of people that sit in a quiet, peaceful lobby and just have the LOUDEST conversations on their phone…. Speaker or otherwise. Not to mention the people that still watch sh*t without headphones. Like do you not see the plethora of other people around you that you’re disturbing?" — Cinderpuppins

8. Ban QR code menus

"I think menus should be tangible." — Limp-Management9684

"QR codes kill the vibe. We’re all on our phones constantly throughout the day and then when you go to spend some quality time with someone, it’s another excuse to whip out the phone and stare at it. There’s an intimacy to a physical menu. You’re looking at what the other person is reading, you’re each pointing to parts of the menu. You’re noticing the lighting of the restaurant. QR codes feel chintzy and kill the ambiance completely." — VapeDerp420

9. Stop subscriptions

"When I was your age, you only had to pay for a video game once to own it." — CattonCruthby

10. Free the children

"A kid in 2024 should have the same freedom to exist unsupervised and move about their community independently as a boomer did growing up." — PixelatedFish

"The world is safer than it's ever been and people are more scared than ever. I blame true crime and local news." ⲻ Unhappyhippo142

11. Kids need to touch grass

"Kids shouldn't be on phones or iPads all the time. It makes them weird." — Ubstantial_Part_952

"The same could be said about most adults." — DrunkOctopus

12. Stop being so sensitive

"People in our generation are far, far too sensitive. Don't get it twisted; empathy is, by and large, a good thing and it takes some serious doing for me to say it's gone too far. But collectively, we've become people willing to throw every last bit of energy fighting against every slight and making sure our pet cause gets top billing to the point of fighting amongst each other even if we're in almost complete agreement otherwise. Emotional energy - like any other kind of energy - is very much a finite resource. Whereas boomers could at least generally agree to disagree and get on with things (obvious cross-wielding exceptions doth apply). Culturally, we've lost sight of the adage of 'winning the battle, losing the war.'" — almighty_smiley

13. Stop delivery

"Food delivery services are a complete ripoff; if you use them regularly, you’re terrible with money. Get off my lawn." — VapeDerp420

14. Parking meters

"So rather than throwing a few coins in your meter, you have to now get your license plate #, get your meter number, go to the meter station, stand in line with everyone waiting to pay their meter, then you're set. It's an unnecessary amount of extra steps. I don't carry cash much anymore, but I can hide a small amount of coin in my car to quickly pay a meter." — Luke5119

15. Kids should know their place

"Not letting your children rule the roost. When did it become acceptable to let your kids back-talk to you, slap you, climb all over shi*t in public places? As we've raised ours, I've witnessed so many parents around us just let these behaviors slide. It's kind of sad when I'm the one saying things like, "Did I just hear you just say that to your mom?!?!?!?! That is not ok. You go and apologize right now!!". Then I get this stunned "deer in headlights" look back that tells me they aren't used to someone calling them out on their behavior." — Cobblestone-Villain

16. Pride in ownership

"Seems that a lot of boomers have pride of ownership and enjoy maintaining what they have." — Awkward_Bench123

17. Don't follow leaders

"My dad (a solid boomer) has been saying that ALL politicians are crooks since he became disenchanted with politics around the Nixon era. He was starry-eyed before that, trying to make social change, yada yada. He still votes, but holds his nose. Can’t say I disagree with him." — Thin_white_duchess


This article originally appeared last year.

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Health

From trials to treatments: one family's journey with "Brittle Bone Disease"

For Alex and his family, osteogenesis imperfecta spans four generations — and Shriners Children’s has been there every step of the way with life-changing care.

Four generations, one diagnosis: A family’s lifelong journey with “Brittle Bone Disease”
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Like his mom, grandma and great-grandma before him, Alex was born with a condition called osteogenesis imperfecta, otherwise known as “brittle bone disease.” For every family member before him, the condition meant a lifetime of broken bones, hospital visits, and constant worry — but that story is now changing. With the support from Shriners Children’s™, Alex is experiencing a level of freedom and quality of life that former generations had only hoped for.

A family affair

Alex’s family’s story began in 1934, when his great-grandma June started fracturing her bones at the age of 10. June would be nearly a teenager before she received a diagnosis of osteogenesis imperfecta — and, with that, she became one of the first patients with the condition to be treated at Shriners Children’s.

June’s daughter, Wanda, was diagnosed with the same condition at Shriners Children’s shortly before she was born in 1955. Like her mom Wanda spent a significant part of her childhood in the hospital, often watching her siblings line up outside the hospital window to wave and wish her luck between surgeries.

When Wanda’s daughter was born, Chandra spent years undergoing treatment at Shriners Children’s for osteogenesis imperfecta, like her mom and grandma before her. Experiencing more than 200 fractures in her early years, she was unable to walk before age 22 — but no less determined to make life better for others with her condition. Chandra donated her bone marrow to be used in a study, and the results contributed to the OI protocols and treatment that are now the standard of care all over the world. Best of all, this study would go on to benefit her own son, Alex.

Care that feels like family

While her treatment journey was challenging, Chandra also cherished her experience at Shriners Children’s. “The staff was like family to me,” she said.

Shriners Children’s has been providing that same level of professional care for families across the country. Founded in 1922 — just two years before June was born — Shriners Children’s has been providing specialty care to children with a wide variety of complex conditions, such as orthopedics, burn injuries, cleft lip and palate, and others.

But Shriners Children’s doesn’t provide this care alone. All services are made possible by generous donors. Through their giving, patients are able to access specialty care as well as adaptive equipment, long-term rehab, surgeries, and more. In one year alone, Shriners Children’s performed more than 24,000 life-changing surgeries, as well as 446,000 procedures. On top of that, they delivered tens of thousands of prosthetic and orthotic devices for patients in need and welcomed an additional 62,000 patients on top of that.

Hope for a new generation

With Chandra’s bone marrow donation, along with the compassionate care he was able to receive through Shriners Children’s, Alex is now able to live a life his family only dreamt of. To treat his condition, Alex receives infusions that regulate calcium levels in his blood and slow bone breakdown.

“When Alex started walking between one and two years old, I was shocked,” Chandra said. “The fact that he was able to walk, even run, and knowing I had a part to do with that, makes my heart happy.”

Without consistent treatment, Alex’s family believes he might still be spending most of his time in the hospital, facing broken bones and countless fractures. Instead, the compassionate care he receives has given him a bright future — and has made Chandra eternally grateful.

“Shriners [Children’s] is amazing with him,” she said. “I love Shriners [Children’s] so much.”

Shriners Children’s helps children heal and thrive so they can chase their dreams. Learn more about how they’re making it possible and share this article to inspire others to join you. Shriners Children’s relies on generous donors to make a difference.

Donate today during the 3X Match Challenge to make 3X the life-changing impact for patients.

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Pets

Four guys write a letter asking to walk their new neighbor's dog. The dog writes back.

"I am very friendly and full of beans."

black lab, dog walker, dog walker near me, dog walker ap, neighbors, good news, pets, feel good news
Photo credit: Canva, Stevieticks /Instagram

black lab (left. Handwritten letter (right)

If you've lived your whole life with a dog, a home has to feel pretty empty without one. Your heart has to feel like there's something missing as well. When Jack McCrossan, originally from Scotland, moved to Bristol, England with his three friends, they were bummed out to learn that their landlord didn't allow dogs.

So when they saw a beautiful black Sheprador (a German Sheppard Lab mix) in their neighbor's window, they knew that had to become buddies with her. They wrote the dog's owner, Sarah Tolman, a letter asking to arrange a play date with the dog. "If you ever need someone to walk him/her, we will gladly do so," they wrote.

"If you ever get bored (we know you never will, but we can dream), we are more than happy to look after him/her. If you want to come over and bring him/her to brighten our day, you are more than welcome. If you want to walk past our balcony windows so we can see him/her, please do," the letter continued.

"We hope this doesn't come too strong, but our landlord won't allow pets, and we've all grown up with animals. The adult life is a struggle without one," they wrote. "Yours sincerely, The boys from number 23," the letter concluded.

Soon after, the boys in 23 received a response from the dog herself, Stevie Ticks, accepting the offer. However, it may have been written by her human, Sarah Tolman. In the letter, Stevie shares a bit about herself, saying she's two years and four months old, was adopted in Cyprus, and that she's "very friendly and full of beans." (The boys shouldn't worry about a gassy hound, in England, "full of beans" means lively.)

"I love meeting new people and it would be great if we can be friends. I must warn you that the price of my friendship is 5 x ball throws a day and belly scratches whenever I demand them," the letter continued. A few days later, the boys got to meet Stevie.

"Meeting Stevie was great!" McCrossan told Buzzfeed. "She was definitely as energetic as described. We got to take her for a walk and she wouldn't stop running!"

Tolman thought the boys' letter was a fantastic gesture in an era where, quote often, neighbors are strangers. "In a day and age where people don't really know or speak to their neighbors, it was really nice for them to break down that barrier," she said. After the story went viral, she saw it as an opportunity for people to share their love of dogs with the world. "My mother and I are amazed at all the love we've received from around the world these past few days," Tolman wrote as Stevie. "If you have a doggo in your life, share that love with those around you."

A lot has changed since this story first warmed hearts around the globe. The boys have since moved away, but as of September 2024, Stevie is around 8 years old and still living her best life. Recently, she even made it to the doggie wall of fame at her local coffee shop.

In the years since this story first went viral, pet-sharing and neighbor dog borrowing have actually become more common, especially in cities where landlords restrict pets. Several platforms (like BorrowMyDoggy) and community groups now exist to pair dog owners with trusted neighbors who want occasional playtime, walks, or dog-sitting without having to own a pet. It’s a small but growing trend that reflects how deeply animal companionship is needed—even for people who can’t adopt a dog full-time. In many apartment buildings, these kinds of informal arrangements help reduce loneliness, build community, and give non-owners the emotional benefits of living with pets.

Just goes to show the power of a dog's love…even if that dog isn't your own.

This article originally appeared six years ago.

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Boomer parents reveal why they so often withhold medical information from their adult children

"Respectfully, why?"

boomers, boomer parents, millennials, millennial parents, parenting, family, love, relationships, generations
Photo credit: Canva

People share their theories about why Boomer parents won't tell you what's going on with their health.

Generational differences can make it seem like we're not living in the same reality as those just a few years younger or older than us. But it's the Baby Boomers who, perhaps, are the most perplexing to their children and grandchildren who want to understand and relate to them.

Even a therapist who specializes in family dynamics day in and day out struggles to understand one peculiar habit that seems to be nearly universal among those in the 60 and above age bracket.

Mary Beth Somich, LCMHC, who has been a family therapist for 10 years, recently posted a TikTok that struck a nerve. The caption reads, "Help me understand this Boomer parenting behavior."

"There is this thing that Boomer parents consistently do that I have to admit, I truly do not understand. I would really like to understand this, as I think it would really help my Gen X and Millennial adult clients."

In her experience, Somich says, older adults tend to withhold important medical information from their adult children, sometimes until way after the fact. It often comes wrapped in a cushioning phrase like, "We just didn't want to worry you."

In the video, she acts out a few scenarios that are all too familiar to many adults with Boomer parents: Mom springing it on you out of the blue that Dad had "open heart surgery yesterday." Or one of your parents suddenly disclosing that "Grandma has been on life support for a week."

"These are adult children now. These are adults." She says her adult clients come into her practice after moments like this feeling upset, sad, and even betrayed. In short, they're far more upset than they would have been hearing the hard news sooner.

"If the idea here was to spare your adult child some anxiety, it has backfired," she says. But the question still remains: Why do they do it?

@yourjourneythrough

Respectfully, why? If this hits home and you want to talk it through, message us the word “contact” to chat or book a session. 💌 #raleigh #boomerparents #parenting #raleighmoms #familydynamics

The video racked up over a million views on social media, and viewers had no shortage of things to say about this frustrating phenomenon.

Theories abound as to why Boomers tend to withhold health-related updates. Some called out the behavior as manipulative or selfish:

"They don't want to deal with our emotions. Surely you know that"

"Emotional immaturity is likely a part of it - avoiding having to acknowledge their own distress about it and also avoiding experiencing their kids’ distress. Sweep it under the rug until you can’t not trip over it."

"They will give you every health update of the neighbor down the street that you don’t even know but won’t tell you when they have cancer. Then they make you feel bad that you didn’t know because you don’t come around enough."

"It’s a form of punishment and control. 'If we cared, we would have asked.'"

Several people theorized that it's hard for parents of any age to think of their own kids as adults, so the urge to protect and shield them is tough to break even once they're truly grown. Others were more empathetic, recalling that Boomers weren't exactly raised with a lot of tender affection and care in the '50s and '60s:

- YouTube www.youtube.com

"Boomers had f-ed up parents and so were their parents. Etc. There was no counseling, no mental health talk. It was non existent. OUR feelings were dismissed and communication skills were not taught to us. we were taught to brush everything under the rug and I think all of this is reflection of how we react to things now."

"Late Boomer here (Gen Jones). Our parents kept everything from us. No talking about money, relationships, or coping skills. We never learned how to relate to our adult children unless we taught ourselves."

Parents in the '60s and thereabouts were heavy on authority and much lighter on warmth than parents today. The phrase, "Children should be seen and not heard," was a common refrain of the day, so it's no wonder they might have trouble opening up and communicating.

Experts say the truth is really a bit of both: A genuine (if misguided desire) to protect or not "burden" adult children, mixed with difficulties in being vulnerable as a result of their upbringing.

boomers, boomer parents, millennials, millennial parents, parenting, family, love, relationships, generations Kids raised in the '50s and '60s were not taught much about openness and vulnerability. Photo by Flaviu Costin on Unsplash

"Boomers are extremely independent and are used to making their own decisions," Marianne Matzo, PhD who specializes in palliative care and gerontology, told Upworthy. "Remember, they came of age during the Vietnam war, and one of the legislative changes at that time was people were legal adults at age 18. At a young age they had the legal right to make major decisions and want to keep that freedom. They don’t need the family to drive them to the doctor, nor be involved in making decisions about their lives. The tendency is to make decisions and inform the family afterwards.

Jenna Budrea-Roman, a licensed clinical psychologist, tells Upworthy that, unfortunately, parents and their adult children can find themselves in a vicious cycle:

"These older adults still have a sense of obligation and it might feel wrong not to share something significant with their child ...They might avoid bringing it up until the last possible moment, then creating an emotional boomerang for their child ('Wait, what do you mean you might have cancer and are getting a biopsy tomorrow?'). The adult kid feels equal parts concerned, angry for not being trusted with the information earlier, and confused as to what they should do to be supportive. This reaction reinforces to the parent that they should have kept the information to themselves and have "now caused more problems." No one gets what they need in this dynamic to feel emotionally safe and connected."

As in most cases in life, the way forward is to not shy away from direct and uncomfortable conversations, and to handle them with empathy. It's fair to be upset and anxious because of how sensitive health updates are handled, and to communicate that, but remember not to attack your parent's independence, their right to privacy, or their struggles with vulnerability.

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Pets

Man's unique gift for naming cats has strangers asking him to name their kittens

Hersberry, O'dis, Nuffin—watch how "Unc" comes up with his adorable names.

kittens, cats, pets, naming cats, naming kittens
Photo credit: Canva

What would Unc name these kitties?

"The Naming of Cats is a difficult matter, it isn't just one of your holiday games…" – T.S. Eliot

One of the best parts of getting a new pet is choosing a name for them. Unlike children, who have conscious feelings about their names and may object to off-the-wall choices at some point, a pet presumably couldn't care less what the humans in their lives call them. A dog could be named Fred, Red, or Potatohead and be none the wiser. We've seen cats with names that go far beyond the norm even for pet names, like Parking Lot, Crunchwrap Supreme, and Missile Launcher (Missy for short) among other creative monikers.

But if any animals were going to care about what we name them, surely it would be our finicky feline friends. And one man, whom we'll call Unc (for his @UncGotThaMunchies handle), seems to have a gift for giving kitties very special (or rather, "pecial") names. Unc has become the father of 13 kitties, and his naming of cats has become a bit of a viral phenomenon.

@uncgotthamunchies

#cat #cats #catsoftiktok #kitten #kittensoftiktok

First, there's Blackaroni and Cheese, a black and orange kitten pair that people are just gaga over. But Unc has begun a whole movement of naming kitties in a "berry pecial" way, with Hersberry leading the way. Why Hersberry? Because her's berry pecial to Unc, of course.

@uncgotthamunchies

#cats #cat #kitten #kittens #catsoftiktok

Among the other kittens, we have another pair named Thor and Lowkey (yes, spelled Lowkey) and another orange kitty that Unc named Midas, "because there Midas well be no other kitties on the whole planet."

@uncgotthamunchies

#cat #catsoftiktok #kitten #kittens #kittensoftiktok

People have become so enamored with these cute and clever kitty names that some have started asking Unc to help them name their own kittens. One person shared a photo of their adorable orange kitten and asked if Unc could name him because they couldn't think of a good name. Unc didn't disappoint.

"When people see dis kitty right here," he said in a response video. "They will say, 'Oh, dis kitty is so beautiful. Oh, dis kitty is so pecial.' So I think his name should be O'dis." Then he explained all the nickname benefits of the name O'dis and how special this name would make the kitty feel.

@uncgotthamunchies

Replying to @glitterdiamondsparkles #greenscreen #cat #catsoftiktok #kitten #kittens

Someone else shared a photo of their fuzzy little tabby kitten, writing, "First I saw your Hersberry video then Midas and now the universe sent us a kitten and we can't think of a name for her. Can you help name her??" Unc responded with a video saying that he'd had a premonition as he was laying around looking at kitties on TikTok that a beautiful little girl kitty was going to come to him needing a name, and he should have the name ready for her when he saw her. Watch how that played out:

@uncgotthamunchies

Replying to @megan_elizabeth__ #greenscreen #cat #catsoftiktok #kitten #kittensoftiktok

Did he choose a perfect name or what? The kitten's owner responded in the comments and said, "Won’Da it is!! 🥰 Thank you!!"

Unc got another orange kitten sent to him with a name request. This one got the name Nuffin:

@uncgotthamunchies

Replying to @Raegan Schafer #greenscreen #cats #cat #kittens #kittensoftiktok

"Because there is nuffin on dis Earf more cuter than this kitty. And there is nuffin on dis Earf that I would not do for this kitty. And there is nuffin on this whole Earf that could keep me from loving this kitty," explained Unc. Of course.

People are loving watching Unc name other people's kitties, with multiple people calling him a walking green flag.

"There is nuffin on this earf as precious as you naming kitties 😍😂🫶🏼," wrote one commenter.

"There is nuffin I love more than a man who loves his kitties as much as you do!!"

"Another perfect name!!! My sister is adopting a kitty today and I’ve been telling her about your names and how you come up with them. It’s great. 🥰"

Ultimately, the way Unc interacts with his kitties is what keeps people coming back. There's something so endearing about the mutual affection between him and the whole lot of them. Not all cats are sweet and snuggly, but Unc's kitties seem to be quite affectionate. People with more standoffish cats may be wondering why this man's cats and kittens are so loving. Well, here you go:

@uncgotthamunchies

#cat #catsoftiktok #kitten #kittensoftiktok #kittens

So berry, berry pecial. You can follow Unc on TikTok.

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Hilarious fake beer advertisement introduces us to the 'most Gen X man' ever and it's perfect


"Scrolling through the comments here and it feels like I finally made it home."

Gen X, Generation X, boredom, funny, 80s, 90s
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A man looks noticeably bored.

Sometimes Gen-Xers just want to feel seen, something that doesn't always happen for us. So when a YouTube account called Null Parade created a Gen X–themed ad inspired by Dos Equis, many in this latchkey sandwich generation truly showed their love.

In a video titled "The Most Gen X Man in the World - Dos Equis Ad," the description reads: "He was raised in malls, still listens to grunge music, and approaches life with one sacred philosophy: whatever. He is... the most Gen X man in the world."

The Most Gen X Man in the World. www.youtube.com, Null Parade

We see a man in his late 40s or 50s (it's Gen X, who can really tell?) sitting in a sad cubicle, sighing. A voiceover shares, "He waited 20 years for boomers to retire, only to be told millennials were the future."

We next see him sitting on a couch, playing a video game and wearing a red-and-black, '90s-style checkered shirt. The voiceover continues, "He once spent the entire weekend alone…" The screen cuts to a child playing a video game in an arcade. "…at age nine."

Shots of him staring at the iCloud on his computer are juxtaposed with him nodding on what looks like a date. "He treats The Cloud the same way he treats horoscopes—with confusion and deep distrust."

Cut to: he's sitting on a therapist's couch (same '90s checkered shirt, disheveled hair, 5 o'clock shadow). "He once tried therapy. It didn't go well." The man then speaks, sarcastically telling her, "Everything's just super. Can't you see the joy leaking out of my face? So how much does Big Pharma pay YOU to get guys like ME on pills?"

"He grew up on microwave dinners and Mountain Dew. Which is why he has to take Tums five times a day." We then see him "not" meditating behind an old-school, '80s-style boombox. "He doesn't meditate. He blasts grunge until the emotions go numb."

Gen X, Generation X, MTV, latch key kid, TV dinner A Gen X kid watches MTV with a TV dinner.Photo Credit: YouTube, Null Parade

On a hopeful note, we then see a child drinking from a garden hose, while the sun sparkles behind him. It cuts quickly to our Gen X guy drinking from a pool hose, and it's slightly less enchanting. "He still drinks from garden hoses from time to time. Not because he's thirsty, but because it tastes like danger."

Now we see him with various technology, like televisions and remotes. "His approach to fixing technology is simple. Blow on it first, hit it second."

Now he's driving. "He still refers to re-starting a song on Spotify as… 'Alexa, rewind the tape.'"

"His wardrobe hasn't changed since 94. Faded band tee, flannel, cargo shorts and sneakers that are old enough to drink. Boomers respond with anger. Millennials respond with anxiety. And him?" He looks directly into the camera and says, "Couldn't care less."

He walks slowly through a deserted parking lot. "He still gets emotional walking past abandoned malls." Flash to a young child looking overjoyed to be surrounded by an Orange Julius and a KB Toys. The voiceover carries on, "Because those places raised him better than anyone else did."

Gen X, Generation X, Mountain Dew, video games, Hungry-Man A Gen X man plays video games.Photo Credit: YouTube, Null Parade

Our Gen X guy stares suspiciously as an orange lava lamp floats behind him. "He suspects the government is lying, corporations are evil, the Wi-Fi is listening, but he's too tired to give a damn." He looks up and says, "Enjoy the soundtrack of my misery. It's boring as hell."

He stands between an older boomer and younger millennial. "He's the middle child of history, overlooked, underappreciated and ignored his entire life. But he's used to it."

We now see a backlit shot of him sitting in the garage. "He is… the most Gen X man in the world." As he sits on a dirty recliner, he holds a bottle of beer and says with purpose, "I don't always drink. But when I do, it's to give even less of a f**k. Stay Gen X, my friends."

The comment section lit up, at least as much as a group of Gen X-ers can. Many of the comments are pure self-compliments. "None of us aged a day," one person writes. "We were all 30 the day we were born." Another adds, "We grew up on hose water and neglect. We were feral. It was glorious."

Generation X, Gen X, childhood, summer, water hose A Gen X kid drinks water from a hose.Photo Credit: YouTube, Null Parade

So many feel totally seen: "Scrolling through the comments here and it feels like I totally made it home." This YouTuber astutely adds, "The happiest person is one who accepts who they are. Warts and all. That's Gen X. We're not worried about the future, because we've already imagined and accepted all the negative possibilities, and made peace with them."

And perhaps the most Gen X comment of them all? "I'm 57. I approve this message, but I really don't give a f#$%."

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Voice actor demonstrates how teen girls in TV and film have evolved from the 1950s to the 2020s

They sound drastically different in every decade.

tawny platis, teen girls, voice actor, voiceover work, women's history
Courtesy of Tawny Platis/Instagram

Teen girls in film and TV have changed a lot over the decades.

Voice actor Tawny Platis has become a viral sensation with her wide range of voiceover talents and videos demonstrating a variety of different voices. But one video that explores the evolution of teen girl voices in television and film over the last 75 years has people praising both her voice acting talent and the history of female representation she's providing.

Platis describes her video as "A very brief and at times hyperbolic look into the evolution of how teenagers have been portrayed in film and tv from the 1950s until today." Some of it is from her own experience and observations in the industry, but she shared that she also referenced more than 30 different academic and media sources to explain what contributed to the differences between the decades.

The best part is that she explained each vocal shift while actually using the stereotypical teen girl voice of the decade.

"Teenagers in the 1950s had higher-pitched, perky, breathy voices that signaled they were squeaky clean and conformed with traditional family values," she said. "Post WWII prosperity had created a generation with disposable income and leisure time, which had never really happened before, and sure does explain an awful lot."

A classic example of this 1950s teen girl is Gidget.

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A big shift happened in the '60s, though, and the girls' voices took on a whole different tone, a much deeper one.

"By the 1960s, teens were either partying on the beach or really into counterculture, man. It reflected two distinct responses to social upheaval, either living in a bubble of upper-middle-class wealth or rebelling against the status quo by embracing far-out but groovy ideas like peace and love," she said.

The '70s saw the teen girl voice drop even deeper, as "disillusionment and a loss of innocence due to counterculture failing to change society" led to jadedness. "Nobody was trying to be good or revolutionary. They were either trying to survive or embracing disco hedonism."

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Then came the Reagan-era '80s, where teen girl voices went back up an octave, added "like" every other word, and reflected the "conspicuous consumption" that led young women to "perform vapidities as a form of privilege." Rich and safe again, "we're just going to act like nothing bad ever happened." (Think "valley girl.")

The '90s saw the angsty Gen X teen girl, "materialistic and largely privileged, but self-aware and ironic," which dropped the voice way down again. Vocabulary from the '80s spilled over into the '90s, but was delivered "with an eye roll instead of a giggle." Alternative and grunge culture arose in response to things like the fall of the Berlin Wall. This decade was marked by "aimlessness and detachment, but genuine care."

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Then came 9/11 and soon after "a return to superficial concerns after brief unity." Reality TV replaced the "90s sarcastic speak" with the dreaded vocal fry, "which was often used to sound more authoritative and professional." (Platis points out that this came about after girls and women had been criticized for "uptalk.")

As the 2010s rolled in and social media became popular, a voice that indicated authenticity came along, partially in response to "a growing backlash against fakeness." Platis said, "Teen girls stopped trying to sound like reality stars and started trying to just sound like themselves." A class consciousness also came into play that made conspicuous consumption less attractive.

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And now the 2020s, in which we've seen a shift from "authentic vulnerability to hybrid performance that reflects the generation's unique position as digital natives who've seen all previous iterations of teen culture archived online and can literally consciously choose elements from each era, as well as just hijack any words they like from AAVE and the drag community." The isolation of the pandemic years also resulted in a "hyperaware and genuinely expressive" tone. That sounds about right.

People love Platis's breakdown, but one of the best comments came from Amanda Palmer, who described how all of these changes reflect some of the real-life expectations women often feel surrounding their voice:

"Can we just talk about the incredible value to women and girls, period, about understanding how much of what we consider our 'authentic' voice really is a construct of so many inputs and cultural norms and expectations. I was so shocked when I went into vocal surgery (for nodes) in 2007 and was told that I was 'pushing my voice' down. And indeed I was. And I still have to constantly try to wrestle myself away from the habit. But years on the road with men and in a male industry has definitely left its mark. Finding my true voice, the one without weight on it, and damage wrought by using it, is a lifelong goal. Always working towards it. Amazing work, thank you so so much. 👏👏"

You can follow Tawny Platis on Instagram and TikTok.

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