[quote]By Sushmitha Suresh
Online Writer
Graphic by Sushmitha Suresh[/quote]

Since the year came to a close, it’s important that we reflect on what we had valued as a society often involved in pop culture trends to better ourselves and to continue with the topics that had been successful. Here are a couple of our highest highs and our lowest of lows.

Hit #1: Comebacks

Whether it be “Star Wars”, Adele, or Bieber, we had many comebacks in 2015. This will continue with “Fuller House” on Netflix and hopefully many more to come. Nostalgia has a strange but strong power over our happiness, so let’s keep the comebacks in 2016.

Miss #1: “WHAT ARE THOOOOOSE”

I will admit, the original Vine was funny, but for some reason everyone thought they would be more comedic than each other and still keep saying the phrase with different shoes. Stop saying this, it’s unoriginal and the joke died two days after the Vine was posted.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IK0t38Al4_E

Hit #2: Hoverboards

I usually talk about hoverboards with great distaste, but only because I secretly want one. Well, I’m outing my secret. I want a hoverboard so bad. This is literally all I’ve wanted as a child and now that we’ve created the technology, I want to use it. As much as I want one of these, I realize I have insufficient funds. So if anyone is willing to buy me one, that would be great.

Miss #2: Keys to success

How is it possible that this happened recently and the teens of our generation have already overused DJ Khaled? It was cool, it was fine, it was jokingly motivational. But, when I saw that Snapchat had made “Anotha One” as an end of the year filter, that’s when I lost it. It’s old and frankly, not as funny anymore because just like everything else, we overused and ruined it. We have to stop contributing to his online store and leave this in 2015. If I see “Anotha” key to success I will flip “Anotha” table.

Hit #3: Fitbits

Technology is doing great things for our health! Fitbits are an efficient and fun way of tracking your activity. The best part about it is that you can never forget about your physical activity because your reminder is right on your wrist. This is a great motivator to stay nice and healthy, so while you’re riding your hoverboard, you know when to take a break and maybe run for a bit. Technology interacting! Amazing!

Miss #3: Savage & “@ em tho”

This is not funny anymore, people are just mean. There is not a difference between being savage and being mean. This is one of the very things that makes our generation an unbearable one to be a part of. Can we please go back to retweeting emergency pugs rather than laughing at rude people attacking another person’s character publicly? We might be happier people that way.

Hit #4: The Dress

Some may disagree with me, but I think the enigma of the black and blue/white and gold dress was an amazing part of 2015. The world literally dropped everything they were doing and divided into two separate groups, fighting it out until one of us was proven wrong. Even though we were all divided, at least we were unified by this crazy topic that no one could understand. That dress was sent through so many group chats. That dress was sent through so many countries. That dress was revolutionary. Although it is black and blue, I will always be team white and gold.

Miss #4: Peanut Butter Baby

This was never cute. This was so unfunny it made my eyes hurt. I would have to close out of the app anytime I saw this infant on my timeline. Again, the original video is funny at the start, but we need stop remaking things because it gets very old and ruins the trend for everyone. Anyways, this baby needs to clean itself up and get it’s act together.

Hit #5: Baby gets avocado for Christmas

This baby was acceptable. This baby was adorable. In fact this baby is the complete opposite of peanut butter baby. This baby taught us how to open Christmas presents that we don’t like. This baby showed us how to take it like a champ. So thanks avocado baby, for showing us the true meaning of Christmas.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wFUAQPC4gFw

Miss #5: Challenges

The Don’t Judge Challenge, the Charlie Charlie Challenge, the Kylie Jenner Lip Challenge, and the list goes on and on. Stop this. These are all equally idiotic and go along with the fact that it’s unoriginal after the first person does it. But I guess this is what we’ve amounted to: monkey see,  monkey do.

Hit #6: Snapchat filters

Geofilters are nice, they’re a bit much when we have three “Aurora” filters, but it’s a cool touch in showing people where you’re going and all the places you’ve been to or are in. The Snapchat graphic filters were pretty fun for a while as well. Who could not love having a rainbow flow out of your mouth? I feel like that’s everyone’s dream. It would be cool if Snapchat wouldn’t make us pay for them now because no one wants to buy a Snapchat filter. Why can’t we just have nice things? Why must there be a medium of exchange? But in our day and age, I guess money buys some forms of happiness.

Miss #6: “Boolin”, “Yeet”, “Rip”, “Bruh”

We have enough words in the English language, why did we think that the new ones were necessary? We sound unintelligent when we use these words, and I am definitely guilty of utilizing them. Let’s leave this in 2015, and maybe use more words like “relaxing”, “goodness gracious”, “deceased”, and “kinsperson”. In fact, all of those words were synonyms to the header of Miss #6. Let’s take our first step into a generation that uses cognitive language!

I’m completely joking (not really), but seriously, let’s leave these words in 2015.

Evidently, we have some things to work on, but 2016 is just another year to fill with new topics and cringe-worthy trends.

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