As a millennial, I can proudly say that the internet and I grew up together, hand in mouse. We conquered the world and developed into what we are today. We've spent the last twenty years spending time with each other and learning about one another. We're like old neighborhood friends, except, unlike Joaquin Phoenix, I probably wouldn’t really call the computer a friend (or a lover for that matter). What I'm getting at is, we go way back.
I can remember a time when some of my friends had to hang up the phone in order use the internet. A time before iPhones or iMessage, when AOL messenger (or AIM) was the go-to form of instant communication. LimeWire was the place for illegal downloads, anyone who was anyone was in your top on Myspace, and built-in webcams were just becoming the norm (Shout out to the crappy $12 Logitech external webcam I purchased from RadioShack in 2008).
Internet fads came and went, forums and websites were created and deleted, and the way the internet was used evolved rapidly. I was fortunate enough to watch the fate of the world wide web unfold before my eyes, taking it all in and grabbing it by the horns. I, like many others, were fascinated by what the little box of light could do for us, how it could improve our daily lives, and the resources that it could make available to us.
Like many other young millennials, the internet was simply a source of entertainment growing up. Games, forums, viral videos, and the like were at the touch of a button, as well as the ability to share it with our friends without having to be face to face.
I was definitely an internet kid, and most definitely a visual kid. I am and always have been drawn to pictures and video. Naturally then, I loved finding websites containing funny videos, including one called Flowgo (does anyone else remember those videos with babies singing about poop? Just me?). With not much else to do, I spent hours on end surfing through various websites and watching videos created for just that purpose.
Some time in 2005, my dad called me downstairs to watch a funny video he had found online. It was a video titled "Crazy Hamster Dance," in which poorly animated hamsters danced to the title song by Hampton and the Hamsters. The video was on a website called Youtube, which my dad explained was for people to create and post videos just like that one. It was love at first site (...get it?).
From that point on, I became obsessed, and maybe even addicted. What started as watching videos re-uploaded from the sites I had once used turned into watching vloggers who were uploading videos of themselves doing whatever they wanted for fun. I felt a part of a secret community of people, all not knowing what the future of it would be, but knowing it was something big. Eventually, vloggers became partnered with the site and even able to quit their day jobs to pursue it full-time.
Today, Youtube is one of the most searched websites ever. It has become one of the largest media platforms that can be used for a variety of reasons. Top video bloggers and content creators are the equivalent to celebrities, equipped with management teams, photoshoots, tours, and followers by the millions. With a paid subscription, you can watch streamed movies and shows on Youtube Red. It has evolved tremendously, and has stood the test of time.
I could shape this article in many ways. I could tell you the point of it is that the internet is constantly changing, and we'll never know what the future holds. It could be that with help from the internet and Youtube, I was able to feed my addiction to visual arts and influence my passion for it today. It could be me just being proud to be a millennial. It might have just been a trip down memory lane. To be honest, it's probably all of the above.
