1998 early zoomer here.
I had a great childhood growing up in the 2000s and wouldn't trade it for the world. It was such a unique period to grow up in as consumer technology rapidly got better and better. I have great fondness for the era between 2003-2013. I do know that my parents suffered trying to provide for us, however.
Last night I had a dream where I was walking inside a mall in the year 1992.
>"What year is this anyway? 1992?
>"Yeah"
>"I was spot-on? It is 1992?"
>"Yup."
The way that people lived there -- fully socially present in the moment. Something I caught the shadow of in my upbringing was life in this era. I especially noted how many adults were working in this mall. Grown-ups who were making an actual living on such simple service jobs. I felt such a profound mourning of never having experienced this period for myself.
How do I cope with this truly? How do I cope with knowing that things are not shaping up to get better, despite my generation supposedly being the "strong men creating good times"? What good in the world is there for my small children?

>>33395527 (OP)
>How do I cope with this truly?
Be grateful you weren't around while John Major was prime minister.

>>33395527 (OP)
>The way that people lived there -- fully socially present in the moment.
That has not been the case at least since the introduction of television.

>>33395543
You're probably right. But it is also true that there was a communal nature to the media consumption of the time that is not present today.

>>33395527 (OP)
>zoomers think that a literal dream he ahd represents the 90s
no
>The way that people lived there -- fully socially present in the moment.
nice meme, and it's not even half true.

If people wanted to ignore you or whoever they would just bury their face in a newspaper or magazine or rock out with their giant walkman and uncomfortable headphones.

and the worst part is if that you were a nerd/loner/shut-in etc then you were truely completely alone. No strangers you keep you company until 3AM on the internet. No endless funny meme videos on youtube. Just you alone with your thoughts

>>33395527 (OP)
>How do I cope with knowing that things are not shaping up to get better, despite my generation supposedly being the "strong men creating good times"?
Who in the world told you this? I think zoomers get way too much shit, as do millennials (1991 here), but zoomers are by no means the strong men who are creating good times. Boomers, Gen X, Millennials, Gen Z, likely Gen Alpha, all of us are the weak men creating hard times.

>>33395566
>You're probably right. But it is also true that there was a communal nature to the media consumption of the time that is not present today.
This is true though. Back then, everyone knew who Jennifer Aniston was, whether they watched Friends or not. There was a shared mono-culture which connected people to one another. It may have been a shallow connection, but it was a connection nonetheless. With every passing day, it seems people in general are just getting more and more divided, and personally, I think this is by design.

Also, gaming peaked between the early 90s and mid 00s. People who say that 2007 was the best year in gaming are objectively wrong. Maybe the last good year, but certainly not the best year.

>>33395573
>zoomers think that a literal dream he ahd represents the 90s
A dream built around my concept and comprehension of the era based around media and strangers' testimony. It's all I've got.
>and the worst part is if that you were a nerd/loner/shut-in etc then you were truely completely alone
How common was this really though? It seems like that kind of person would be antithetical to the times.

>>33395527 (OP)
Nigger you were 8 at max during the 90s, you did not live in the 90's, you were barely self conscious

>>33395625
>Boomers, Gen X, Millennials, Gen Z, likely Gen Alpha, all of us are the weak men creating hard times.
This is a great point. The economic and societal decline showcases that perfectly. Unless things magically swing around, it will take a literal societal collapse to transition to the next phase. I was speaking more relatively, however. The 1990s was a hell of a lot better than the 2020s. Even with no first-hand knowledge, of that I am certain.
I agree wholeheartedly with the rest of your post.

>>33395635
Here ya go, little buddy. Take your time :)

>>33395527 (OP)
Also, for a perfect glimpse into the 90s mindset, watch the movie Face/Off. It's like a time capsule. Great movie, loved by audiences and critics alike when it came out, yet widely looked back on as a silly product of its time already in the 00s, yet I disagree. Face/Off is still great, and if you disagree because you think it's too corny, you have allowed modernity to kill your soul. Watch the final scene of that movie. Can you even imagine a movie today, especially an action movie, ending on such a blissful, tender note? No insincere quips, no cynical cliffhangers setting up a possible sequel, just pure, feel-good catharsis.

This is what we lost. This is why I will never let it go.

>>33395663
Appreciate this, will add it to my watch list.

>>33395626
>the era based around media
that's hardly ever an accurate reading of the times, like that whole thing about house parties. No normal person actually lived in a Hollywood-tier mansion for 4 floors and 7 bedrooms with Sum 41 playing on the roof with naked midgets wrestling a donkey in the backyard and all the epic tropes of house parties you'd see in movie or TV house parties.

>How common was this really though? It seems like that kind of person would be antithetical to the times.

what makes you think nerds and bullying and social ostracization and autism didn't exist before the 2010s? or whatever.

Especially if you were the kind of nerd or loner who wasn't into dungeons & dragons or MtG and that sort of crowd.

00's had most soul yes,

>>33395527 (OP)
Yea

>>33395527 (OP)
1992 was a shit year.

'93 wasn't too bad.