Most of the people who know me really well know I grew up in a pretty sheltered house. I went to private Christian school until high school, and my parents were strict on movies and TV I could watch, etc. My parents weren’t as strict as some kids’ I know, but still. Nowadays, I grow more and more aware of the gap between me and my peers when it comes to common knowledge. Simple things like who sings “Cheeseburger in Paradise” and famous lines from the Karate Kid fly over my head, sometimes without my notice. In fact, since people have started pointing out how little I know of the 80s and 90s and even millenium pop culture, I feel anxiety when band names are mentioned or movie lines are quoted, and I stay silent on the subject, hoping not to end up on the wrong end of the joke. I think the last straw was when someone said, “You were homeschooled, right?” That was a low blow to my awkwardness. I knew at that moment something needed to change.
So, I’ve decided to remedy this situation by immersing myself in the culture I missed out on. I would love your input. I was born in 1986. What movies are must sees? What music would it be a shame for me to never have heard? What TV shows should I watch? Help, people.
Here are a few starters I have come up with:
- Karate Kid
- The Rolling Stones
- Jimmy Buffet and
- The Goonies (to the guy I pinky-promised in the hotel lobby at 4 a.m. that one night, this one’s for you!).
Go ahead, give me your list. As I go through them, I will share my thoughts and reactions.
