The 2010s - My Decade in Trends
It’s both the end of the year and the end of the decade. Which means that the internet and all forms of media are saturated with retrospectives of either era. But as the media and cultural powers that be sum up the trends, top cultural artifacts, and just the themes of the past 1-10 years, I realized something. No one, literally no one, can have done everything. While all of us have been involved in probably a couple cultural trends of the past decade, there is no way anyone, even people who do this for a living, have had the time and energy to be engaged with every single trend that has shaped the 2010s.
For my own retrospective, I decided to reflect on what major cultural trends of the decade that I embraced, and ones I entirely skipped. We all embrace and ignore different things – here’s where I came out trend-wise at the end of 2019 and the 2010s in general.
Listening to Music
Yes – YouTube
I love YouTube for many reason, but like many people, the main thing I use YouTube for is music. I don’t drive, so it’s one of the few places I have for finding and exploring artists who are new to me, watch music videos, and listen to songs tht I don’t currently own. I have maybe 8 YouTube playlists for various occasions and try to keep any of those songs from overlapping with the ones I own. It really is my default music option outside of my iPhone.
No – Spotify
For someone who loves music as much as I do, it’s kind of surprising I’ve never used Spotify. I love playlists and everything. But by the time I’d heard about Spotify, it was too established for me to feel comfortable saying “I have no idea what this is, or how it works.” So I ignored it and focused on systems I understood and that were unlikely to change. Honestly, I really don’t feel like I’m missing out.
Food
Yes – Rose Wine
The first time I had rose was visiting my French relatives in Marseille, which is just a great introduction to basically any type of food or drink – I learned to like blue cheese that trip as well. As a result, when rose hit the wine scene in the US hard around 2014, I was delighted and fully endorsed the change from rose being all but unknown to ubiquitous. Admittedly, at first I went all hipster “I liked rose before it was popular” when I ordered it, but now I don’t care. You can call me basic if you want to. Rose is awesome.
No – Avocado toast
I grew up in California with an avocado tree in my back yard, and I am still not a fan of avocados. I like guacamole sometimes, but just avocados? No thank you. The taste, the texture, it is just not my thing. So while avocado toast is now a brunch staple in many cities, I think I’ve had it twice ever, and then only when there are no other vegetarian options. I’m glad it’s a thing – I’m a vegetarian after all – but I’m also just as glad to never partake myself.
Mainstream Nerd Culture
Yes – the MCU
I spent the 2010s at least casually and often more than casually invested in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU). I’ve seen all of them at this point, in some combination of theaters, streaming, and watching on long plane rides. The MCU is far from perfect, but I honestly admire its ambition and scope, and many of its characters (and fight scenes). I don’t know if I’ll stick with it moving forward, but I was definitely in for the decade of the MCU.
No – Game of Thrones
I have never watched a single episode of Game of Thrones. Nerd heresy, I know. I read the first 4 books in college, and I enjoyed them, but basically forgot about them afterwards. I didn’t even bother with A Dance with Dragons when it came out. With the TV show, it was a combination of indifference toward the series and unhappiness with the plethora sexual violence in the show that kept me from watching it. That said, I did read the weekly recaps of the final last season to remain current and keep up with nerd culture.
The Digital Economy
Yes – Amazon Prime
I love Amazon Prime. I’ve had it since 2011, so effectively the entire decade, and between the fast shipping speed, how cheap Amazon’s books are, and now Prime Video. I cannot resist the juggernaut. It’s so convenient. And while I try to support indie bookstores and just, buy things places other than Amazon, the convenience creep is real. I feel guilty about it sometimes, but never enough to cut myself off. I’m completely hooked.
No – Uber/Lyft/Airbnb
I still use taxi cabs (I only use Lyft when I have no other options) and have never used Uber booked anything with Airbnb. To be honest, I don’t feel comfortable being in some stranger’s private space. Taxis are meant for public use, as are hotels. They are public spaces. The ride/home shares are not. And if they are then they need to have all the appropriate health, labor, and safety regulations we have for public spaces. But as it is, the ride/house share economy is effectively just paid hitchhiking or couch-surfing with strangers. And that does not make me comfortable.
The Internet in our Lives
Yes - Streaming
I am all about streaming. I don’t watch a ton of TV, but when I do, it’s streaming. I don’t actually own a TV, because who needs a TV when you have a laptop you can watch everything on? I mean, lots of people to be sure, but I am not one of them. But for me, I’m 100% content with my laptop and a online streaming services for all my TV/video needs.
No – Social Media
I don’t do social media. I stopped using Facebook for all intents and purposes years ago when I realized all it did was make me feel bad about myself. I stopped using it, and since then, have eschewed social media. As a writer, I know that this is effectively shooting myself in the foot, in terms of growing my audience or getting my stuff out there at all. Nevertheless, the pros really don’t seem worth the cons, so I remain as invisible on social media as one can in this day and age.
