Gen Z's Latest Victim: House Parties

One thing you realize as you get older is that it's very easy to find yourself saying some form of "back in my day" on a regular basis when you see kids doing something nowadays. I suspect every Friday at the Barstool Summer House down the shore we might find Dante circling up the kids to tell them how great music used to be or what summers were like in "his day." I'm allowed to say this about him because I think we are only 2 or 3 years different in age. That said, I think Dante being in that house is the best thing the rest of the cast has going for them because he can impart wisdom that will lead to them having a better time. 

Anyway, did an entire generation of parents ruin kids? Was it Steve Jobs' fault? Covid? 

Does everyone under the age of 20 think like this?

Oh how I can list the ways Dark Hyacinth! Maybe you've never been to a fun party I guess. (Go read the replies to these tweets. It's wild)

This guy nailed most of it:

Whether you were going to a party at a close friends house where you knew most of the people there or you were going to another town filled with kids from a different high school, parties were almost always a good time. The 90s movies like Clueless, American Pie, and Can't Hardly Wait actually nailed it when it came to what house parties were like "back in my day" of the late 90s early 2000s. It wasn't just Hollywood glamorizing the scene and I know this because so many people had the same experience. Was every party on that scale in terms of the amount of people? No, but large parties absolutely happened. If they didn't, then I am sorry your teenage years were lacking. 

It was also pretty frequent that these parties were happening too. All you needed was a friend whose parents either A)were going out of town or B)were cool with having a bunch of kids at their house. As a parent and homeowner now this second option seems wild and I genuinely wonder if I would ever fall into that camp. Besides this, so long as someone had an older sibling or again, crazy lax parents, alcohol was fairly readily available. Now, I am not promoting underage drinking, I am merely pointing out what happened. 

So what happened to house parties then? I asked and the answers make sense. 

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We can boil it down to a few things:

1. Technology 

2. Covid turning everyone into hermits
3. Decline of drinking

4. Fear

5. Social media

Thanks a lot, Steve Jobs. 

I'll tell you what…that stinks. The only one I won't argue is the decline of drinking and the one I fully get is technology. People are more health conscious these days so I understand how drinking isn't as prevalent at any age and security cameras aren't going away so I understand how it makes it difficult to have a party when your parents aren't home. 

Covid was 5 years ago - let's get over it kids.

Fear - it's ok to test boundaries within reason, it's part of growing up. 

Social media - stop putting your friends on blast for likes and clicks. Put your phone down and enjoy your friends. 

Tech - stop texting your friends and go hang out with them. 

I think there is the next wave of parents coming up that society didn't over-correct and it's on us to raise better kids. If you think that is me saying Gen Z isn't that great, you'd be correct. There are kids in Gen Z who think their generation largely stinks. You can call me names all you want or say I'm old but when your own generation thinks you need to improve it's high time to stop telling everyone how everything offends you and just start improving. I was recently at a high school graduation party at one of my neighbor's houses and I asked the grad why no one was playing drinking games. His friend said, "do you mean watching sports while drinking?" I had to explain to them what flip cup and beer pong were but then they were on their way.

So you see I think the point of what I am saying is that, I believe the children are our future. Teach them well and let them lead the way. 

By the way, if I had to rank the parties that looked the most fun/I'd want to attend from the aforementioned movies I would go:

1. Can't Hardly Wait

2. American Pie 

3. Clueless

Thank you for your time.