Each generation of kids is different - from the toys to the clothes and everything in between. So when I look at today's kids, what do I see?
1. Newer technology
Kids now get excited over iPhones, iPads and apps. Hell, they're basically being born with a cell phone in hand. Meanwhile, when I was younger, I loved playing with my Bop It and making sure I kept my Tamagotchi alive; there was no Kardashian app or touch screen nonsense. AIM instant messenger was how I talked to my friends. My first phone was a silver and blue flip phone whose picture quality was something children would scoff at now. Was it a picture of a person? A potato? Your guess was as good as mine.
2. Twenty-something middle schoolers
Thirteen-year-olds are starting to look more and more like 20-year-old adults. Oh, you contour? Your eyeshadow is blended? Is that perfectly winged liner I see? These girls look older than me, and I'm in college. What happened to the braces and ugly eyeshadow? I want to start seeing some bad hair days and sparkly lip gloss; enough of this middle school 'Toddlers & Tiaras' nonsense.
3. No more playing outdoors
When I was younger, playing kickball or box ball outside after school and on the weekends was a must. You'd pick a spot on the street and hear someone yelling "Car!" every couple of minutes, at which point you'd all scramble to the nearest sidewalk so you wouldn't become road kill. Now, kids are the ones creating the road kill, playing video games like Grand Theft Auto instead of running around outside.
4. Hoverboards?
Razor scooters used to be the creme de la creme of child-approved equipment, but hoverboards are now on the scene. Apparently, exerting energy to move from point A to point B is a dated thing.
5. Dodgeball is dead
Everyone knew it was going down when they walked into gym class and saw the red balls lined up in the middle of the room. Screw the long division you were just forced to endure, you were ready to kick some ass. Everybody got excited for dodgeball, even the gym teachers. But today's kids will never know the thrill of this beloved game because schools have pretty much outlawed it. RIP.
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If you ask me, our generation had it the best. Sure, we had technology, but it didn't consume our childhoods. There was a balance between playing Nintendogs (RIP to them, as well) and spending time outside. Schools weren't suffocating with their safety measures yet, and yeah, maybe we looked like trolls compared to kids now, but that just meant there was room for improvement. We didn't grow up too fast, and it seems like that's exactly what kids are doing now. So put down the phone, put that contouring brush aside (after you give me a quick tutorial, of course) and go be an unattractive, dodgeball-wielding, scooter-riding child.
