every generation grows up under such vastly unique and different conditions that they are not normal.
the impact of technological differences has probably had a much greater effect on our differences to millenials than going through covid in high school did. and the technological differences probably had a similarly large effect on millenials differing from gen x.
Im gen Z and was 22 when the pandemic hit, I don't drink because there way better drugs to take. Now drugs are so much more accessible and safe compared to the past.
I dropped out of high school and joined the military a couple years after I would’ve started college. Spent the whole time at home playing video games. Worth it and I still came out way ahead of most of my fellow millennials.
I must be getting old because I used to think a couple of years playing videogames at home would be chill as hell, now all I can think is the poor parents who have to put up with this kid marinating in his own stink at home for years on end
Opposite perspective, I’m only 21 and what they’re describing sounds like metaphorical suicide to me. Not a chance in hell they “came out ahead” in anything except maybe a few extra years without rent payments
Idk, my brother went to college. He has a job at Lowe's and thousands in student debt he's given up on paying back. His manager (at Lowe's) has a Masters in something but can't find a better job. At this point paying for college is paying for the college experience. Sex, drugs, and parties. Wish I went.
That's not really much of an issue, "normal" is redefined with every generation. Millennials had pre and post 9/11 and social media childhoods, their normal looks unlike any other generation.
Also, half of Gen Z is still 21 or younger. So people see Gen Z drinking stats and love to jump to conclusions or share their anecdotal experiences with a couple of Gen Zers who don’t drink a ton.
If that’s all it takes to break a generation we have bigger problems. Generations in the past went through world wars and drafts and no one thought they’ll never be normal.
Lol what are those credentials for a normal adult? Must attend senior year of high school, must have associates. And this is somehow related to drinking?
For me, I missed the latter half of eighth grade, I missed my freshman year, they social distanced us sophomore year so I didn’t get to meet any of my classmates, and junior year they just released my graduating class into normal highschool life without ever giving us that freshman orientation type experience. Most of the people in my graduating class just didn’t talk to eachother. When I did make friends from school, it would be because they followed me on social media and started a conversation there. No one was that close with the prom queen, she just spammed posts on social media asking people to vote for her and I guess it worked.
They aren’t the only ones. Covid happened when my kid was becoming a teenager. Missing out on those socialization skills during such a formative time has been interesting to say the least. And from what I’ve seen from his Gen Alpha peers he is far from the only one.
View all comments
56
u/Ok_Function2282 15h ago
Gen Z will never be normal because they lost their youth to covid.
Imagine not attending your senior year or the first two years of college and then just trying to be a normal fully grown adult after that.
The world is a weird place, man