(Who isn’t nostalgic for 90’s neon?)

Hezah, 26

Recently, I have been thinking a lot about nostalgia, and how we twenty somethings seem to LOVE it. We delight in anything and everything 80’s and 90’s. Reminiscing on childhood pop culture has become first date fodder, drinking games, viral videos, and road trip playlists. What’s the deal? Do we want to keep one toe in the kiddie pool as long as we can? Maybe that makes growing up a little more bearable.

Last night I saw the new and “improved” Muppet movie. I enjoyed every minute of the film, but I was keenly aware that while this was a new adventure for the Muppets, it was fueled by a series of hints at nostalgia and references to prior Muppet escapades and jokes. Could we really not have appreciated The Muppets without all the throwbacks? From the dial-up functioning “80’s Robot” who served only TAB, to Kermit’s inability to conjure a celebrity host whose fame had long since petered out with permed hair, it all felt like a Muppet resuscitation rather than a revival.

A couple months ago, I received an email from Urban Outfitters (no rants, I promise) that was advertising all the pop culture nostalgia they had for sale. The subject line was “Back in the Day,” and it asked me if I wanted to “Shop Throwbacks.” Nothing they promoted was original, vintage, or even old and crusty. These were brand new “vintage inspired” products that were supposed to make us go gaga. Of course it caused me to let out a few mental “oohs,” “ahhs,” and even some “omg, I forgot about that.” However, I didn’t want to buy any of it. But why did I love looking at it, and taking a moment to remember Pac-Man, sliding utility bracelets, and a Kelly Kapowski tee?

I brought the topic to a very wise thirty something Gen-Xer, inquiring if she felt that his was a specifically Gen Y/Millenial obsession or a general twenty-something characteristic. After a long discussion, whilst sitting in the Crate and Barrel showroom (how Gen X), we decided it was a little bit of both. After considering the issue, she explained that her generation had a hard time with nostalgia in their twenties. She clarified that in her twenties, openly liking Belinda Carlisle was considered embarrassing…not cool. Everything they purchased in their twenties needed to be current to be considered acceptable and cool in any circle; vintage was just considered to be “old.” However, as her generation entered their thirties, the coolness factor of their nostalgic youth increased. Contrary to today, contemporary twenty-something girls have no problem rocking old school Britney at any time of the day.

In the midst of our generational conversation set in the yuppiest of settings, it dawned on me why twenty somethings gravitate towards youthful nostalgia. We’re at an interesting age where the distance between childhood and the scarring teen years are far enough away to have perspective, yet still close enough for us to remember how it felt and relate on some level. We covet the television programs, musical acts, and fashion of that time because all the growing up junk has made us lose the ability to recall them at the drop of a hat, but once reminded, we remember every character, episode, lyric, and hypercolored t shirt.

Four years ago, my best friend and I bought tickets the Spice Girls reunion tour because we thought it would be silly and fun. I had vague memories of Spice World, and could maybe hum a tune or two. When we got to the show, I realized that I knew every damn word to their entire catalogue. I was shocked; where the hell had that information been stored all these years? Something else struck me that night; the high volume Staples Center wasn’t filled with little girls, but rather former tweens of yesteryear (late 90’s) going apeshit over some former famous women creeping on middle age.

I wonder when this wave of nostalgia will pass. Perhaps it will be gone when we feel absolutely ready to let childhood go, or the distance from that time in our lives becomes too great. Maybe that doesn’t happen until you have children of your own, or maybe it never goes away at all. The only think I do know is I am probably going to still be singing N’Sync at the top of my lungs in the car with my girlfriends on the way to the bar for a few more years. Oh, and I am still not ready to accept that Lance Bass is, in fact, gay.