Contributed by Devynn Maclure
It’s 12:01am. Here I sit, cross-legged on the floor of my pink and purple bedroom watching Spongebob Squarepants, dining on a meal of microwave pizza on my favorite Ninja Turtles plate. The beady eyes of worn stuffed animals atop my flower-painted dresser stare over towards me from the corner of the room. The TV goes to a commercial, and I notice that the gazes of these cherished toys are practically looking down on me. It’s almost in a way that says, “Oh my gosh, this loser still lives here.” I shrug off the judgmental stare of my childhood toys and take a sip of a half empty Moosehead lager. Just one minute ago, I reached a chronological milestone and turned 21 years old. And yet, here I am: drinking alone in the same bedroom I’ve been in since toddlerhood, eating soggy pizza and actively watching an animated sponge who’s constantly faced with the looming dilemma of loving Krabby Patties too much.
If this is any indication of where I am moving with my life, then I have a sinking suspicion that it is anywhere but forward.
Growing up, I always thought that my twenties would be the absolute best time of my life. I anticipated a magical world full of staying out late, kissing members of the opposite sex and making all kinds of new friends. Fast forward to now, where I instead find myself in bed by ten, regretting just about every ugly mug I’ve pressed my lips against (at least the ones whose mouths stopped running long enough for me to do so) and avoiding social interactions like the plague. What the heck, ten year old Devynn, why did you make this out to be so good for us?
As it turns out, I am not alone. I mean, I am currently physically alone, but not in the notion that sometimes being a millennial freaking blows. Tell that to any older generation and you will almost always get an earful of, “When I was your age…” and, “Well, if you’d get off that darn phone of yours,” (I will as soon as you stop sending me casino game requests on Facebook, Aunt Brenda). However, being a twenty something is nothing like it was when our parents or grandparents were getting down with their bad selves. We’ve found ourselves in a modern society where unrealistic social expectations are shoved down our gullets at lightning speeds, the idea of being able to afford an average apartment or car is but a dream, and recklessly crossing the busy streets of your college campus in hopes you’ll get hit by a car and be granted a full ride with total loan forgiveness in return becomes just another part of your daily routine. In other words, it is not easy.
Straight up, the purpose of this column is to discuss the various issues and successes that millennials face today in hopes to make others in my generation feel understood and represented. Anything from mental health and social movements to apartment life and college struggles are fair game. You may not like what I’ll have to say (that’s cool with me), but then again you may totally get what I’m putting out there.
Either way, my intention is to formulate topics that will make our community think about and discuss the lives of the younger generation in a way that is both revealing and compelling. In turn, we can then begin laying a solid foundation for our future generations and gain a stronger sense of trust and respect for the beloved and brilliant millennial population.