It's true. The older I get the less pop culture matters to me. When I was in high school, I knew what albums were #1--Elton John, The Police, Michael Jackson--I knew the names of everyone on Cheers and Mash and One Day at a Time. I knew that the jeans I was wearing were NOT the right Levi's or Lee's. I knew that when I got my first bomber jacket, I was momentarily cool.
But with each decade, I've gotten less attached. In my twenties, okay, I still knew the stars in the big movies, but maybe I didn't watch the Academy Awards, and maybe I still knew who the big singers were, but I didn't have to see the Grammy Awards. And as for style, well, in university I don't think I wore anything other than a sweatshirt most of the time.
In my thirties I went through my "ignore culture entirely" phase. I stopped watching TV, I stopped getting haircuts, I let my ear piercings grow in, I only shopped in Thrift Stores, and I stopped shaving. When I told my grade ten class that the other day, they were mortified. First, who wants to know anything personal about their teacher in the first place. Second, OMG, she didn't shave her armpits??? In the end (of my thirties, that is), as I told them, I'd let go the idea that it's a good idea to ignore culture completely. I think they were relieved to know that the legs under my teacher slacks were probably not extra-hairy.
What I discovered from my little foray into the abyss was that pop culture does matter. It does play a role in grounding us in our era, at least a little bit. I don't think I was as good of a teacher as I could have been during those years because I couldn't make references to the water in which my students were swimming. I didn't get their references to Seinfeld. I didn't know who any of the up and coming rap artists were--and so I still don't--I missed a whole generational movement. Now, I do know who Kanye West is, and although I don't like his music, by me knowing who he is and what his appeal is, I am understanding more fully the world in which I live. And the better I understand the way my world works, the more useful I can be in it.
Oh, and for those women out there who've never let their leg hairs grow out--it's a great way to cool down in the summer--man's greatest secret.
But with each decade, I've gotten less attached. In my twenties, okay, I still knew the stars in the big movies, but maybe I didn't watch the Academy Awards, and maybe I still knew who the big singers were, but I didn't have to see the Grammy Awards. And as for style, well, in university I don't think I wore anything other than a sweatshirt most of the time.
In my thirties I went through my "ignore culture entirely" phase. I stopped watching TV, I stopped getting haircuts, I let my ear piercings grow in, I only shopped in Thrift Stores, and I stopped shaving. When I told my grade ten class that the other day, they were mortified. First, who wants to know anything personal about their teacher in the first place. Second, OMG, she didn't shave her armpits??? In the end (of my thirties, that is), as I told them, I'd let go the idea that it's a good idea to ignore culture completely. I think they were relieved to know that the legs under my teacher slacks were probably not extra-hairy.
What I discovered from my little foray into the abyss was that pop culture does matter. It does play a role in grounding us in our era, at least a little bit. I don't think I was as good of a teacher as I could have been during those years because I couldn't make references to the water in which my students were swimming. I didn't get their references to Seinfeld. I didn't know who any of the up and coming rap artists were--and so I still don't--I missed a whole generational movement. Now, I do know who Kanye West is, and although I don't like his music, by me knowing who he is and what his appeal is, I am understanding more fully the world in which I live. And the better I understand the way my world works, the more useful I can be in it.
Oh, and for those women out there who've never let their leg hairs grow out--it's a great way to cool down in the summer--man's greatest secret.
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