Life and culture is cyclical and vintage is fabulous. Often the things we love rise and fall in popularity. We sometimes forget that certain cool things of the current state have just faded.... much like musicians and the "It" creatives of our time but more often than not, all those things haven't gone anywhere. They're around, just lingering waiting for a revival.
Redditor u/BlupHox wanted to discuss a few things we may have not thought about recently by asking.... What was a huge trend that everyone forgot about?
Alvin Sings....
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That era during the 2000s/early 2010s when every popular song got an Alvin and the chipmunks cover. Still can't believe we survived that.
thetwitchingone
No PB.
Jelly shoes.
Using 20 to 30 tiny butterfly clips to accent hair styles. Those little clips did nothing but become hazards once dropped on the floor.
EmmalouEsq
CHANGE THE WORLD!!!
Segways were going to CHANGE THE WORLD!!!
wastingtoomuchthyme
Even though Segways didn't, the guy who formed the company behind the Segway (Dean Kamen) has, even though he's not normally recognized for it.
You know Coke Freestyle machines were invented by him? They were based off one of his many medical inventions.
thehomiesthomie
Sticky Things.
Those sticky rubber strings with a foot or hand on and you put it on your finger like a ring and throw the foot or hand at a wall and it would stick. You could get them from 20p machines in the early 2000's.
heymanmaniac
All the Colors.
Rainbow Loom. Everyone had like, a gazillion different little rubber bands, I still find them around my house.
spicy-apple-strudel
Oh god, I worked at Michael's when these first hit the market and people went BANANAS. They were super strict about how many each store could get, when they could be on the floor, never using coupons on them... and naturally by the time supply caught up with demand the trend was dying and we couldn't get rid of them.
cassalassa
Spread You Wings....
Butterfly clips, cucumber melon bath and body works spray. Dream or grass spray from the Gap.
cutestdreamer
Gap Heaven was my middle school scent. I found some at an outlet a few years back and was instantly reminded how shitty middle school was. Scent memory is intense lol.
Jordan818
Playing Games.
Gaming websites in general.
Barbie.com (pollypocket, myscene), coolmathgames, Poptropica, Webkinz, Stardolls, girlgogames (although I'm pretty sure that last one game my computer viruses).
I don't have any kids and my little sister is 14 so maybe its just that I'm not around it, but I feel like kids don't play gaming websites anymore.
eLlARiVeR
FarmVille.
FarmVille. All of my aunts let their young children create Facebook accounts just so they could send themselves gifts through them. My Facebook feed used to be full of pictures of everyone's farms.
scarletwitchlasagna
Make it Personal.
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Personalized ringtones. I rarely hear anyone with custom ringtones now
Bluetooth ear piece for calls.
AdditionalExcitement
My wife's name is Brittany. Therefore she has her own ringtone on my phone. It is the intro to Britney Spears 'Gimme More' and just says 'it's Britney b.' Or did until my kids started repeating things.
gtg930r
I'm gonna go with Cabbage Patch Kids.
Being older, I'm gonna go with Cabbage Patch Kids. I remember seeing moms about to brawl with each other over those damn things. Remember, each doll was different so it wasn't just grabbing one off the shelf and being satisfied that you got one, people wanted to pick through every one on the shelf and find the one they liked the best. If two women saw the same one at the same time, oh boy here we go.
8beers
The Grapevine.
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The California Raisins were freaking HUGE for about a year, like 1988 or 1989. "I Heard it Through the Grapevine" (as "performed" by the Raisins) was on the radio, and Hardees did a promotional thing with their kid's meals where you got these cool little figurines of the members playing their respective instruments. I had quite a few of them.
ScientistAsHero
The Call.
In the 1950s there was a fad that was teens seeing how many of themselves they could stuff into a phone booth.
LEGITIMATE_LEMN
In the early 2000s, my brother and his friends found a phone booth at the dump and brought it to my parent's house. They used it for all kinds of shenanigans (including cramming people in) while they were in high school. It was the highlight of the decor of his first apartment. I think one of his roommates took it when they moved out.
a_marie_z
Bump what?
Is she a fan of Jersey Shore?
Does she want to talk to my manager?
Neither.
She's just trying to attract the most desirable male in the group by having the biggest pouf.
3rdCoastTexasToast
"Crackberry"
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When I started college in the mid 00's, almost everyone had a blackberry (the "crackberry" era). We'd be messaging each other on BBM all the time and all that crap.
By senior year those phones weren't even a passing thought on our minds. It's impressive how quickly it changed.
Corporate-Asset-6375
Jewel Flirting.
Those rubber bracelets teenagers would wear that apparently had to do with sex. I hope someone knows what I'm talking about.
hockeyxfight
The trends that old people think are going on are always far more exciting and dramatic than the actual trends.
Kids today are drinking a lot of orange juice, so we need to figure out what they're trying to communicate to each other about their sexual and narcotic preferences with their orange juice selection... maybe we should just ban orange juice to be safe.
Legit_a_Mint
The "explorer program".....
Google glass was the next big thing, then it just died.
Super_Duper_Lazy
It was never properly released as a consumer product, only as dev kit. The "explorer program" was interpreted to be the legit device release and people raged about the cost and how unfinished it was.
Eventually Google just decided enough was enough and pulled the consumer facing Google Glass project completely, choosing to instead focus on business use and research. New version came out just a few months ago.
chaosfire235
Good Ole Ed....
Ed hardy clothes.
mahomatik
I went to Vegas for a bachelorette party in 2007 and there was an Ed Hardy Convention at Caesars Palace. I kid you not, thousands of guys looking like Jersey Shore.
bigliser
Take a Dive.
Water beds. Watching media from the '80s and you'd think they were in every home.
i_killed_hitler
My parents still have one and have slept on that same one longer than I've been alive (31 years).
They last a long ass time if you take care of them.
sockpuppie
AOL?
AOL Chatrooms with strangers and the teen chat. Also, AIM and putting up intricate away messages that included your friends and googling aim away message templates and crap. Damn. I feel old as heck now. Y'all remember the Sidekick with AIM preinstalled?
iamlarrypotter
Snap and Pop too...
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Crackle nail polish lmaoooo.
chickennugget103
WOW. I really forgot about this! I think I still have some of that stuff!
cpayto3
There are a ton of jobs or favors that don't require much skill, experience, or labor, and people who are fortunate enough to get hired walk away with a king's ransom.
Looking for those kinds of "jobs," however, is like finding a teardrop in the ocean.
Few who struck gold, at least temporarily, shared their experiences when Redditor NikTheNerdBoy asked:
"What's the dumbest thing you were paid to do and how much were you paid?"
Good luck finding these well-paying tasks.
Running Errands
"Had a WFH gig working sort of as a personal assistant for a rich guy on the opposite coast from me. I did all kinds of wacky sh*t for him. For example, one time I had to break up with my boss's girlfriend because he was too wimpy to do it himself. That was literally my job."
"One day, I bought him a new pickup truck. Meaning, I negotiated the deal and paid for the truck with his credit card. All in all, I'd say the process probably took about two weeks, for which I was paid my usual wage at six hours per day. No big deal."
"Somehow, his dad found out about the new truck and he decided he wanted a new pickup truck too. He called me about a week after I bought the truck for my boss and said he'd pay me $2,000 to buy a truck for him. I called the same dealership back, spoke to the same salesman, told him what was up and basically said give me another truck, same price as before. The salesman was only too happy to comply."
"It took ten minutes to make the phone call and then a day or two to get the title and other paperwork sorted out. So, depending on how you look at it, I made $2,000 for just ten minutes worth of 'work.'"
"Somehow, my boss's rich friend found out about all this. He decided he wanted a new SUV. 'OhYeahThrowItAway, you have to buy it for me!' I told him the last time I bought someone a vehicle, I got paid $2,000. The friend was basically like F'k it, I'll pay you $3,000, just get it for me' and then he emailed me his wish list."
"That deal took a little longer, maybe two weeks."
"I made $5k extra in just two months buying vehicles for lazy (or dumb) rich people."
Staying Out Of The Picture
"I was paid $300 to move my car for a movie that was filming by my apartment."
Pack It Up
"Got paid 10k to leave an apartment because it was sold and new owner wanted to move in. I was tenant (renter) under previous owner. I had 4 months left in my rental contract. This was in Spain (Barcelona)."
European Vacation
"I was flown to Paris to do a compliance audit, the systems weren't set up for the audit, couldn't get access so spent the week being taken to restaurants and shopping. On 1 of the days and at the last minute the company decided to send me to London for a meeting, literally just to meet people. I missed the Eurostar because I forgot my passport (totally blanked that I was entering another country), they had to rebook the Eurostar. Nothing was achieved out of this trip. No audit was completed. Nothing came of the meeting. The cost to the company 25k+ for me to do nothing for a week. Corporate money is ridiculous money."
Not much labor was required for these so-called "jobs."
Ten-Minutes Of "Work"
"I used to work for a PR agency. Every month one of our clients wanted a handful of photos re-sized for their website; nothing fancy, just setting the width to 500px in Windows Photo Manager."
"It was maybe ten minutes of work every month, but the contract said the minimum amount of time we would charge them for was one day - and this was for the full team too, not just me. It must have cost them several hundred pounds every month."
"I showed the client how to do it several times, and explained that they could save a lot of money doing it themselves. They didn't seem to mind."
"In the end I made sure I got it in writing that I'd informed them of their options and let them get on with it."
Thank You, Goodbye
"$175 to do some kind of user study at Netflix, I show up in the lobby and then they go, 'actually we got the data we needed from the studies earlier today, you're free to go!'. Still got paid!"
– Lycid
Hush Money
"I did an event for a national association for deaf people at which they did every presentation in ASL. I am an audio engineer, who specializes in live sound and concerts. I did nothing for 5 days of show, $450 a day."
– murter95
Paid To Play
"I got asked to do 2 hours of barrier watch (Guarding a barrier ribbon while a crew did x rays inside a power plant). This was asked last minute after a 12 hour shift so the bonuses of staying happening to be a Sunday, etc I was being paid $110 to stand and play on my phone and make sure sure nobody tried to pass all the DO NOT ENTER DANGER DANGER signs during a time of day with minimal personnel."
– Hotel29
Movie Scene Dance GIF by FandorGiphyGotta Have Wendy's
"I was driving for uber. Picked up a bunch of drunks at like 2 AM. They were like 'Yo we gotta grab some Wendy' I go 'I'm sorry this is my busy period' they go 'Can we bribe you?' I go 'Absolutely you can bribe me.'"
"One the guys said I'll give you $100...I was shocked it was that high, another guy said '$150' and finally his wife said 'F'k it I want Wendy $200 and we buy you Wendy too.'"
"I finally said yes, FYI I hadn't said yes yet because the reality is $20-$40 would have gotten me to stop at Wendy."
"So there I sat at Wendy as those 3 drunks bought me wendy and paid me $200."
Substitute Chef
"One time I was at this super fancy dinner party. I'm talking servers and everything, I was in a freaking tux! It was outside and catered by a professional bbq company. I mean these guys had won international competitions. Well get this, they were double booked and didn't show. The other servers didn't know how to grill, and this totally smokin server in her 30s is just staring at the grill like a deer in the headlights. Well I don't want to be a hero but I ask if I can help. The entire staff spend the rest of the night bringing me drinks as I make this bbq and NOBODY realizes the award winning chefs didn't show up!"
Where Do We Apply?
"Ok this wasn't a job or anything.... But I got 10$ to eat half a watermelon."
Some opportunities present themselves.
When I was a kid, I hung out at a Japanese summer festival booth where you roll a bowling ball on a track that had two hills. The objective was to push the ball hard enough to get it over the first hill but not too hard to get it over the second hill.
I was fascinated with the challenge and stayed there for a long time as my parents were over by the food booths with their friends.
It was a slow day, and the dude working the booth wanted to peace out for a bit, so he offered to pay me $50 to "hang out" in his stead.
Of course, I said "sure."
No one ever came, and I earned fifty bucks rolling bowling balls for an hour. Was it the dumbest thing I ever did for money? Maybe, but I laughed all the way to the piggy bank that day.
That guy really must have despised his post enough to give a twelve-year-old kid $50.
Food is for survival. That was the plan. But over the years it has become somewhat of a way of life. Some of the most annoying people are foodies. They get so uppity about the preferences of others. Like, let me just enjoy what I enjoy.
Mom No!
Mom Smile GIFGiphy"I don't like my mom's cooking."
"Livestock have refused to eat my mother's cooking. She's a terror in the kitchen."
Take them OUT!!
"I hate walnuts in baked goods. It tastes like wood shavings and completely ruins the flavor."
"I love walnuts but I feel this way about raisins in baked goods, raisins are fine by themselves but not in sweets, I once ordered cinnamon rolls at Hardee's and bit into it and found out there were raisins in it, and I was grossed out and didn't want to eat it. At least freakin' McDonald's serves real cinnamon rolls without freakn' raisins!"
The Fart Ingredient
"I don't like kidney beans except in chili."
"I don't even really like them in chili. I'd rather have pintos in everything."
Oh thew Crunch...
"Pickles and onion make the best sandwich. I make most of my own pickles from stuff I grow or get from local farms in the fall, but I responded to another comment with two different heinous concoctions I enjoy. Crunchy, salty, sour. I really like pickles and onions to begin with."
"I use more than pickled cucumber though. Like the last one I made, I used garlic naan, mayo, red onion, scallions, pickled garlic, green olives, Kalamata olives, garlic dill cucumber, and green beans. Shallot, sour pickled onion, sweet pickled cucumbers, and sushi ginger on sprouted 14 grain bread is also also a favorite of mine."
No Sizzle
bacon GIFGiphy"I do not like bacon."
"I've been learning this over the years. If I'm gonna do bacon I much prefer the maple bacon since it's sweeter and doesn't overpower with saltiness."
- truije15
Who doesn't like bacon? That seems like a sacrilege. Right? But to each their own. Though I will never understand not loving walnuts in comfort food. Y'all need more self love.
Love the Big M
"Fast food tastes amazing, yeah its unhealthy as hell but don't you sit there and lie and say it tastes bad."
"Pisses me off when people act like they're better then McDonald's. What the hell? McDonald's is incredible and billions of people buy their food still. The same can't be said for other restaurants."
Blasphemy!
golden girls flirting GIF by HULUGiphy"Cheesecake is disgusting."
"I don't find cheese cake disgusting. It looks good. Smell delicious. Has ingredients in it that I love. But i can not eat more than one bite. It is too rich. One bite and i feel sick."
Too Many Legs
"Lobsters and crabs are giant insects."
"I don't really think that's that controversial, in my area of the world we even call this creature a 'Moreton Bay Bug' even though some fisheries try to give it the more appealing name of 'flathead lobster'."
bad bones
"Boneless wings are vastly superior to bone-in wings. I think bone-in wings are a ripoff because when you get half a pound of them, part of that half-pound is inedible. It's like if you ordered a quarter-pound cheeseburger, but the restaurant considers the weight of the plate to be part of that quarter-pound and you end up with just a slider. Just give me some damn meat."
The Slime
man oyster GIFGiphy"Oysters are truly disgusting and absurdly overpriced for quarter sized pieces of snot that tastes like salt water and hot sauce."
- C_23_s
Ok, I'm trying to stay calm. I don't want to judge. But some of these opinions... are leaving me shook. Except the oysters. That is that work of the devil. Look away...
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