“Netflix And Chill” & Other Innocent Things Millennials Have Ruined

Millennials are a much-discussed generation, and for good reason — the lifestyle we embody is different than any generation that has come before us, since we’re ruled by technology, social media, and a pretty crappy economy we inherited from our parents and theirs. We’ve also earned a not-so-flattering reputation for ruining many long-held social traditions and creating some of our own that are just as iffy. Here are six things millennials have managed to ruin.

  1. Netflix and chill. I don’t care what anyone says, Netflix is one of the best things that happened to everyone. (OK, maybe that’s a bit extreme, but it’s pretty rad, to say the least.) We coined the term “Netflix and chill” as a way of describing our couch parties in our VS Pink sweat pants and a bowl of munchies. Occasionally a snuggle might accompany our chill out session. But nope, we had to make it code for “let’s have sex” instead. Because no one can just ever watch a movie in sweatpants without losing the pants and ending up horizontal.
  2. Breakups. Once upon a time, in a far-away land, people used to break up with each other face-to-face. Sometimes it was a crappy ending, and sometimes there was a thoughtful conversation; nonetheless, you got real closure. Now you either get a breakup text or even worse, ghosted.
  3. Selfies. The original selfie of our time was picture day in grade school. You had one shot — one single chance to smile, look your best, and pray that you didn’t blink at the wrong moment and have to reschedule for the dreaded re-take day. So basically, you had TWO chances at taking the perfect solo picture to share with friends and family. Now you take 27 before you pick the right one for just a random #motivationalmonday on Instagram and heavily think about what inspirational message you should caption with it. Don’t forget the filter!
  4. Real life apologies. Not just with regards to breakups, but apologies and accountability for hurting someones feelings are things that millennials have changed thanks to text messaging. Now, you can send a text message or leave a comment on someone’s Facebook page that’s hurtful and not have to worry about dealing with the face-to-face result of how you’ve made that person feel.
  5. Dating. It’s no surprise that millennials are primarily responsible for the mess that is modern dating. The thing is, we weren’t bad at this in high school. When we met someone we liked, we were like, “OK, want to be my girlfriend?” and that was it. Instant relationship. Then we got technology, text messages, and Tinder. In other words, we got options. Everyone is horny and available, making fewer people interested in commitment.
  6. Sex. It used to be that we only slept with someone when we wanted to have a relationship with them— well, usually, anyway. Casual sex and random hook-ups have always been a thing, but they were pretty frowned upon at one point, and rarely spoken of so freely. Now it’s practically all the rage among millennials. Ever since sex became easy to get, love became harder to find.
  7. Phone calls. Heaven forbid someone actually phones you on your, uh… well, your phone. When we hear our phones ring, we cringe at the thought of answering it. And instead of calling that person back, we text them instead. We’ve completely forgotten how to communicate verbally, and that’s sad.
  8. Expressing our feelings. When did having real and authentic feelings that we want to talk about become a taboo subject? It seems like millennials are pretty big on not wanting to say how they feel, not because they might be afraid, but because showing that you give a stuff isn’t “cool.” We’re the “get over it” generation, which is a shame.
  9. The ability to disconnect. We’re so connected by technology these days that we don’t know what to do when we have to be without for any amount of time. Our phones are pretty much glued in our hands and we communicate via hashtags and left or right swipes. What would happen if we just disconnected for a while? Most millennials are afraid to find out.
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