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My Timeline is All F'ed Up

Ghost of LL

By Ghost of LL
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Ghost of LL

Ghost of LL 15664

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. . . and I don't think I'm alone on this.

Talking this weekend with @Brisketexan and @Pescado_Rojo, I made the observation that whenever I hear about something from the '80s, my internal timeline is that "Oh, yeah--that was like 20 years ago."

But then I heard this past weekend that Saturday was the 15th anniversary of the election of Barack Obama.  And my reaction was, "that was only 15 years ago?  It seems like it was closer to 50."

And both Brisket and Fish agreed.

So what the fuck is going on with us old men that we think 1983 was 20 years ago and 2008 was 40?  Is it a symptom of just being old and nostalgic?  Or is there something deeper about all the shit we've been through over the past 5-10 years?
 

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Fudge Nuggets

Fudge Nuggets 19407

Posted
Posted
9 minutes ago, Ghost of LL said:

. . . and I don't think I'm alone on this.

Talking this weekend with @Brisketexan and @Pescado_Rojo, I made the observation that whenever I hear about something from the '80s, my internal timeline is that "Oh, yeah--that was like 20 years ago."

But then I heard this past weekend that Saturday was the 15th anniversary of the election of Barack Obama.  And my reaction was, "that was only 15 years ago?  It seems like it was closer to 50."

And both Brisket and Fish agreed.

So what the fuck is going on with us old men that we think 1983 was 20 years ago and 2008 was 40?  Is it a symptom of just being old and nostalgic?  Or is there something deeper about all the shit we've been through over the past 5-10 years?
 

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South Austin

South Austin 53151

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Posted
9 minutes ago, Ghost of LL said:

So what the fuck is going on with us old men that we think 1983 was 20 years ago and 2008 was 40? 

That's some fucked up Loki shit.

My disbelief at aging is pretty constant across the board.  I refuse to believe that anything that happened in this millennium was more than 15 years ago.  When someone tells me that an event in the 1980s happened 30 or 40 years ago, I tell them to fuck off.

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atomheartbevo

atomheartbevo 90542

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51 minutes ago, Ghost of LL said:

So what the fuck is going on with us old men that we think 1983 was 20 years ago and 2008 was 40?  Is it a symptom of just being old and nostalgic?  Or is there something deeper about all the shit we've been through over the past 5-10 years?

It's weird as hell, because I'm in the same boat.  In the 80s, we were 40 years out from the end of WWII.  Now here we are, 50 years out from the end of Vietnam.  When I was a kid, I had a WWII vet as my elementary school principal, and in jr high and high school, I had some Vietnam vets for teachers.

I've watched a lot of shows about 70s and 80s music, TV shows, etc., on YouTube, but when watching that stuff, I don't feel like it's that long ago, even though it is. It's got to be a bias of that stuff being right there at my fingertips making it seem like it wasn't that long ago.

When my 20th high school reunion came around (around a decade ago) I didn't feel the need to go because Facebook was already a thing, and I was connected with everybody from high school that I wanted to connect with.  They aren't even bothering with a 30th reunion.

I don't know where the fuck I'm going with this, but yeah, I don't really feel my age, and in thinking about my dad when he was my age, it's like "oh yeah, he was actually still young back then".

It's like when pointing out that the actor playing Archie Bunker was in his early 40s when it was going on, and he looks 15 years old than me.

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Biff Tannen

Biff Tannen 46060

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37 minutes ago, atomheartbevo said:

It's weird as hell, because I'm in the same boat.  In the 80s, we were 40 years out from the end of WWII.  Now here we are, 50 years out from the end of Vietnam.  When I was a kid, I had a WWII vet as my elementary school principal, and in jr high and high school, I had some Vietnam vets for teachers.

I've watched a lot of shows about 70s and 80s music, TV shows, etc., on YouTube, but when watching that stuff, I don't feel like it's that long ago, even though it is. It's got to be a bias of that stuff being right there at my fingertips making it seem like it wasn't that long ago.

When my 20th high school reunion came around (around a decade ago) I didn't feel the need to go because Facebook was already a thing, and I was connected with everybody from high school that I wanted to connect with.  They aren't even bothering with a 30th reunion.

I don't know where the fuck I'm going with this, but yeah, I don't really feel my age, and in thinking about my dad when he was my age, it's like "oh yeah, he was actually still young back then".

It's like when pointing out that the actor playing Archie Bunker was in his early 40s when it was going on, and he looks 15 years old than me.

It trips me the fuck out to think that my dad was my current age in 1991. 

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Aqua Buddha

Aqua Buddha 14782

Posted
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1 hour ago, Ghost of LL said:

. . . and I don't think I'm alone on this.

Talking this weekend with @Brisketexan and @Pescado_Rojo, I made the observation that whenever I hear about something from the '80s, my internal timeline is that "Oh, yeah--that was like 20 years ago."

But then I heard this past weekend that Saturday was the 15th anniversary of the election of Barack Obama.  And my reaction was, "that was only 15 years ago?  It seems like it was closer to 50."

And both Brisket and Fish agreed.

So what the fuck is going on with us old men that we think 1983 was 20 years ago and 2008 was 40?  Is it a symptom of just being old and nostalgic?  Or is there something deeper about all the shit we've been through over the past 5-10 years?
 

ok-boomer-7b71823ce9.jpg?anchor=center&m

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Deej

Deej 77665

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34 minutes ago, Brisketexan said:

I'm still more inclined to this approach.  One of the all-time great poems, and a fucking killer recitation by a badass Welsh motherfuckre.  Old age should burn and rave at close of day.

 

 

Here's a better version

 

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G650

G650 14421

Posted
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3 hours ago, Ghost of LL said:

. . . and I don't think I'm alone on this.

Talking this weekend with @Brisketexan and @Pescado_Rojo, I made the observation that whenever I hear about something from the '80s, my internal timeline is that "Oh, yeah--that was like 20 years ago."

But then I heard this past weekend that Saturday was the 15th anniversary of the election of Barack Obama.  And my reaction was, "that was only 15 years ago?  It seems like it was closer to 50."

And both Brisket and Fish agreed.

So what the fuck is going on with us old men that we think 1983 was 20 years ago and 2008 was 40?  Is it a symptom of just being old and nostalgic?  Or is there something deeper about all the shit we've been through over the past 5-10 years?
 

I think this happens to everyone. At least that is what I tell myself.

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RDCanecutter

RDCanecutter 26851

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Canecutter Currency Corollary to all the @Ghost of LL Time Warping observations:

Somewhere deep in our brains, we decide that whatever things cost about the time we have our first "real" job, is what things should "really" cost, plus maybe 10%, forever. Example 1: in the 80s I was slapping together vector art on a bespoke computer for a modest but livable $16K. In the back of my irrational mind, I think 16K would still get you the same simple but OK lifestyle I had then. Rationally, I now that 1980s 16K is maybe 5K live-in-a-cardboard-box now, but I can't shake it. Canecutter Currency Corollary (CCC.)

Sheesh, Mama Canecutter got it even worse. She has an entourage of yard guys and tradesmen that must be working cut-rate for her, and she's convinced they are robbing her. (The plumber charged her 80 bucks.) "They think I'm made of money!" Mama, it's like he charged you 8 bucks of your 1963 paycheck.

Edited by RDCanecutter
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Wally Fairway

Wally Fairway 5663

Posted
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3 hours ago, Ghost of LL said:

. . . and I don't think I'm alone on this.

Talking this weekend with @Brisketexan and @Pescado_Rojo, I made the observation that whenever I hear about something from the '80s, my internal timeline is that "Oh, yeah--that was like 20 years ago."

But then I heard this past weekend that Saturday was the 15th anniversary of the election of Barack Obama.  And my reaction was, "that was only 15 years ago?  It seems like it was closer to 50."

And both Brisket and Fish agreed.

So what the fuck is going on with us old men that we think 1983 was 20 years ago and 2008 was 40?  Is it a symptom of just being old and nostalgic?  Or is there something deeper about all the shit we've been through over the past 5-10 years?
 

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NorthLoop

NorthLoop 14420

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To me, one of the reasons for this is that every decade prior to 2000 had it's own unique identity. Unique clothes, music, hairstyles, etc. You show me 6 pics of HS kids, one from 1973, one from 1977, 1984, 1989, 1993, and one from 1999, and I could tell you which one was which with 100% accuracy. I wouldn't even come close if you did the same thing for the last 23 years. That's mostly because I'm not young and I'm out of touch, but I bet you try the same experiment with someone younger and you'd get the same results. 

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F250

F250 29170

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24 minutes ago, NorthLoop said:

To me, one of the reasons for this is that every decade prior to 2000 had it's own unique identity. Unique clothes, music, hairstyles, etc. You show me 6 pics of HS kids, one from 1973, one from 1977, 1984, 1989, 1993, and one from 1999, and I could tell you which one was which with 100% accuracy. I wouldn't even come close if you did the same thing for the last 23 years. That's mostly because I'm not young and I'm out of touch, but I bet you try the same experiment with someone younger and you'd get the same results. 

The decades in the 2000's all blend together in my mind. So when I realize how long ago the early aughts were I kind of freak out because I associate with the 80's and 90's.

 

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Rimbo

Rimbo 26852

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I basically lost track of pop culture around the early 2000s. Music, movies, news events etc... having a job and being a parent took over and I just didn't pay any attention.

What's odd is that my son was never into pop culture. He was into the same music I liked, or underground/counter-culture stuff, most of which is good to me.

But not my daughter. She's into all this modern poop music, and I'm not fixing that autocorrect. Right now she's all about the latest Spider Man movie soundtrack, and it's just... painful. No, dear, WE ARE LISTENING TO DURAN DURAN NOW, I BOUGHT THIS CAR, THIS STEREO, AND THIS STREAMING SUBSCRIPTION AND IF YOU WANT TO LISTEN TO "METRO BOOMIN" YOU WILL NEED TO BE MUCH MORE POLITE ABOUT IT AND NOT DEMANDING IT LIKE YOU'RE ENTITLED TO IT ARRRRRRRGH

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Helobious

Helobious 9755

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37 minutes ago, NorthLoop said:

To me, one of the reasons for this is that every decade prior to 2000 had it's own unique identity. Unique clothes, music, hairstyles, etc. You show me 6 pics of HS kids, one from 1973, one from 1977, 1984, 1989, 1993, and one from 1999, and I could tell you which one was which with 100% accuracy. I wouldn't even come close if you did the same thing for the last 23 years. That's mostly because I'm not young and I'm out of touch, but I bet you try the same experiment with someone younger and you'd get the same results. 

I graduated high school in 2012. There’s a very easily noticeable difference between how kids dressed back then and how they do now. Same with hairstyles. You’re just old. 

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ftf82

ftf82 488

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I went to my old frat house before a football game earlier this year for a mini-alumni reunion. Talked to a few of the current actives and pledges. Afterwards it hit me that if alumni my age had visited the house when I was a pledge they would have been a pledge in 1941

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Samson's Wig

Samson's Wig 3222

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19 minutes ago, Helobious said:

I graduated high school in 2012. There’s a very easily noticeable difference between how kids dressed back then and how they do now. Same with hairstyles. You’re just old. 

I think you're correct.  I'm also wondering why a youngin' like yourself is even reading this thread.  All of this will be relatable for you in another couple of decades.

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InkaUtexas

InkaUtexas 26794

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I have to remember what country I was living in when shit happened. My friends make fun of me all the time since I have no idea about US movies or pop culture from past 2000 when I graduated. Went right overseas after 9-11 with young kids, so none of that mattered. But global events? Where was I? Just need to remember where I was and it comes back. Now ask me what I had for lunch yesterday. 

And @Jameslaw121, yep, wife is 13 years younger. her memory of things are quite different. 9-11 is a good example. I was packing up a family and heading to the Middle East for 8 years, she was thinking about finishing High School. I hate when she drives since she gets to pick the music. Makes road trips rough. I want Marley or Tribe Called Quest. She has college radio stations on. 

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Helobious

Helobious 9755

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5 minutes ago, Samson's Wig said:

I think you're correct.  I'm also wondering why a youngin' like yourself is even reading this thread.  All of this will be relatable for you in another couple of decades.

Eh my conscious will probably be uploaded to some weird AI shit by then that lets you virtually time travel or go to other universes or something weird. 

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Jameslaw121

Jameslaw121 4485

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14 minutes ago, InkaUtexas said:

I have to remember what country I was living in when shit happened. My friends make fun of me all the time since I have no idea about US movies or pop culture from past 2000 when I graduated. Went right overseas after 9-11 with young kids, so none of that mattered. But global events? Where was I? Just need to remember where I was and it comes back. Now ask me what I had for lunch yesterday. 

And @Jameslaw121, yep, wife is 13 years younger. her memory of things are quite different. 9-11 is a good example. I was packing up a family and heading to the Middle East for 8 years, she was thinking about finishing High School. I hate when she drives since she gets to pick the music. Makes road trips rough. I want Marley or Tribe Called Quest. She has college radio stations on. 

I think we're about the same age and the technology gap between her and I is the big thing. My senior year in HS, I still used a typewriter if I couldn't get into one of the computer labs. Her senior year, they had the streaming version of netflix and she got her first iphone around the end of her freshman year in college.

 

Also, when we drive where that is over an hour, one of us has headphones on and whoever is driving gets the radio.

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InkaUtexas

InkaUtexas 26794

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12 minutes ago, RDCanecutter said:

Yep. Different states and countries. A stretch from Texas-France-Texas-Mexico-Virginia where I moved every 9 months seems like it took as long as the 19 years since.

Central and South America, lots of buses, from nice ones to real rural routes with chickens in the seats next to you. Then onto Austin and Europe. 

Life is divided into decades. And agree about buses. Client lives in Ecuador, family lives in Galveston, I am in San Marcos. he comes up a few times a year. Does the Greyhound run and his rule is just don't live the station. And yes, the Greyhound station in Houston seems like a den of nebulous activity. Was nearby a few months ago. We all went out to eat. Was quite nice place. two blocks away was the bus station and full of cops at 9PM. 

For that matter though, now do DC. 

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InkaUtexas

InkaUtexas 26794

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3 minutes ago, Jameslaw121 said:

I think we're about the same age and the technology gap between her and I is the big thing. My senior year in HS, I still used a typewriter if I couldn't get into one of the computer labs. Her senior year, they had the streaming version of netflix and she got her first iphone around the end of her freshman year in college.

 

Also, when we drive where that is over an hour, one of us has headphones on and whoever is driving gets the radio.

First UT class to have email required. Buddy went an entire semester without realizing that is where all his assignments were being sent. And yeah, my Brother Word Processor in 1993 was the shit. I had computers before (Commodore 64 and 128), but never internet until UT. I get on my interns ass all the time. Stop fucking working on your phone. Read the message, mark it unread, then go do your assignment in front of a real screen. 

So probably. got any 8 Tracs lying around? 

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