Wednesday, January 8, 2014

14 Pop Culture-y Things That Turn 10 This Year

Britney Spears Kevin Federline
source: breatheheavy.com
... just to make you feel old (or just very confused), let's make a list of 14 pop culture-related things that will turn 10 years old in 2014. And ... go!

1. Facebook
And are we any better for it?

2. "Mean Girls"
Which also means that it's been 10 years since Lindsay Lohan was considered an ingenue, a good actress, attractive, and reliable by most. Tell me the truth -- do you still quote this movie?

3. "The College Dropout"
Kanye West releases his debut album and becomes a megastar instantly. Things haven't changed too much.

4. Britney Spears gets married ... twice
Within a span of 12, nay, 10 months, Britney Spears gets married in Vegas, has her marriage annulled, then inexplicably gets married to Kevin Federline.


5. Ashlee Simpson gets caught lip synching on "Saturday Night Live"
... and then does a weird jig. I can't believe that was 10 years ago. I remember watching that live, crammed into an uncomfortable corner of an eerie corner kitchen of my basement dorm hall. I didn't think she deserved all the hate then, and I still don't now.

6. "The Notebook"
And yet, I can't seem to imagine Ryan Gosling or Rachel McAdams a day older than they looked in "The Notebook." And I don't think they do look a day older now. If you're a bird, I'm a bird, right?

7. Paris Hilton's popularity
Ugh, I do not miss the era of celebrity gossip when all that mattered was what stupid thing Paris Hilton, Nicole Richie, Lindsay Lohan, and Mischa Barton had done that week. But do you remember the phrase "That's hot"? And how Paris successfully trademarked it? The rockbottom of pop culture.

8. Massachusetts and same-sex marriage
The state of Massachusetts, then under the watchful eye of future presidential candidate Mitt Romney, became the very first U.S. state to legalize same-sex marriages.

9. "Laguna Beach: The Real Orange County"
The reality show that spawned a new style of "reality" shows made its debut on September 28, 2004 and became arguably bigger than the show from which it drew inspiration: "The O.C."


10. "Nipplegate"
Justin Timberlake "accidentally" exposed 80% of Janet Jackson's star-covered breast at the Super Bowl. The pair consequently begin backpedaling with the lamest PR excuses I've ever heard in my life. I didn't think it was that controversial ten years ago, but now I just think it's plain stupid. Why would you end a song by ripping off a pocket of a woman's shirt to expose a sparkly star-covered boob? Like, what's the point? If it was purely shock they were after, I guess they succeeded. Also: ten years on, and people are still treating Justin Timberlake like he's some sort of demi-legend. Still don't get it.

11. "Napoleon Dynamite"
Now this is something that feels more like it happened 20 years ago, maybe even 30. And that probably makes "Napoleon Dynamite" a classic. Or incredibly dated when it was released.

12. "Friends" ends
Good riddance.

13. The Curse of the Bambino is lifted
The Boston Red Sox beat the New York Yankees to win their first World Series in 86 years. Yeah, I'm New Yorker born and raised, but I still know all about the Bambino. I happened to be living in Boston at the time, and it was madness. Pure madness.

14. The Olsen Twins turned 18
There was a countdown and everything. Sick. Especially since they still look underage, ten years later.

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