Each decade in the past 150 years has its own set of trends that make it unique. From the Flappers of the 20s, leather jackets of the 50s, or spandex from the 80s, each decade contributed something to the advancement of mankind. For better or worse, each new generation gets to carve out their legacies in the annals of time to be ridiculed by future generations. It’s the circle of life that makes history amusing and fun. Not all trends have been cool--anyone remember Lisa Frank notebooks? Some, on the other hand, have been awesome. This list is dedicated to the wonderful and weird trends from the 2000s that we like to remember, but sometimes wish
we could forget. Some of these things are still around, and some crashed and burned faster than Chumbawumba’s popularity. You don’t have to admit that you participated in any of these trends, but deep down inside, you’ll know the truth.
10. Boy Bands
Even though boy bands were on a popularity decline in the early 2000s, nSync and co. still dominated the charts when the decade kicked off. Boy bands are bands in the same way that
YouTube stars are true artists--only tangentially if you define it loosely, and it’s fun to make fun of people who claim otherwise. Props to J-Tim for using his boy band as a catapult to stardom.
9. The Patriots Winning All the Time
The 2000s is when the dark Lord himself, Bill Belichik, took over the New England Patriots and transformed them into a perennial powerhouse. Ever since, we’ve been able to kiss parity in the NFL goodbye. Almost 20 years later and we’re still waiting for his reign of terror to end.
8. Emo Proliferation
The 2000s gave us a chance to embrace our inner angst and let it out in the form of long bangs, dyed black hair, and eyeliner. Who doesn’t remember locking yourself in your room with a Dashboard Confessional mixtape (on CD of course) and belting out one melodramatic acoustic song after another? Nobody? Me neither…
7. Band Shirts
The 2000s were a time when you wore your favorite bands on your sleeves--literally. Band t-shirt usage was higher than it had been since the 80s, and you could identify where and with whom someone hung out by their shirt alone. It sure made meeting new people easier.
6. Frosted Tips and Hair Streaks
Each gender had a way to brighten up their locks, and each one was equally abysmal. Dudes would just dunk the tips of their spiked hair in bleach, while ladies got the zebra treatment. Bleach might be the perm of the 2000s. Our kids will never forgive us.
5. Baggy Boot Cut Jeans
The Jyncos of the 90s made way for the boot cuts of the 2000s. Not quite as extreme as these abominations, boot cut jeans paved the way for slimmer cuts of the 2010s via an awkward in-between phase. Slimmer in the thigh, the leg opening was still wide enough to drag on the ground and get the coveted back fray.
4. Affordable College Tuition
Ouch, this one hits a little too close to home. The early 2000s was a time when college was affordable, and completing your degree actually meant something. Jobs were abundant, and morale was high. Darn you, Great Recession!
3. Atkins Diet
This one was a doozie. Everything became low carb overnight. Want a burger? Put it on a wrap and suddenly you were dieting. This culinary trend died off pretty quickly, but for a time, it reigned supreme. Worst of all, no fast food restaurant was safe from it's carb-free grasp. What’s wrong with a regular sandwich bun anyway? Sheesh.
2. Flip phones
Man, these things were the coolest. The
brick Nokias of the 90s were out; super sleek Motorola Razrs were in. Flip phones were a status symbol. Stephanie from the cheer team had a flip phone; Greg, the quarterback of the football team had a flip phone; everyone who was everyone had a flip phone. I totally had a flip phone too…
1. Dial-up Internet
Thank goodness this one is a thing of the past. Dial up
internet was the
greatest invention ever....at the time. Page load times were in the minutes. The entire dial up song was an earsore, and you’d better pray nobody called your house when you were trying to download your favorite Blink 182 song on Napster. It’s almost a wonder that the internet survived.
