Imagine if you fell into a coma in the year 2010 and didn’t wake up again until 2020. You would have some serious catching up to do — FYI, Uber is an app that helps you get into stranger’s cars, you can talk to your TVs now, and Donald Trump is president.
Honestly, with all these changes that the rest of us have been gradually eased into, I think it’s safe to say someone coming straight from 2010 wouldn’t believe what we consider to be “problems” nowadays.
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Our world has changed, and whether it’s changed for the better is still kind of up for debate. But this is what we’ve got right now, and we’re all out here just trying to live our best lives in this brave new world.
So let’s all take a moment to appreciate our new normal and take a look at the everyday problems we tragically have to face.
Every millennial wants to be an online influencer.
People are really out there making a living posting photos and videos of themselves online.
We’ve reached a moment in time where celebrities aren’t just people on the big screen — they’re also the people who model fanny packs on Instagram and who teach us how to do the perfect smokey eye on YouTube.
Your online dating profile has to make a good impression in like, five seconds or you’re getting left-swiped.
Who would have ever thought we would one day get an app that would let you swipe through every available guy in a 10-mile radius, all from the comfort of your own bed?
Tinder isn’t perfect, but at least it lets you see which guys from your high school are suddenly interested in you after ignoring you for four years.
The little boxes in our houses are always listening to us.
Products like Alexa, Amazon Echo, and Google Home are little pieces of an A.I. technology that we willingly put into our homes.
As great as it is to be able to talk to them and tell them to do stuff for us, we have to also deal with the super creepy reality that these things are actually listening to us all the time.
Attention-seeking friends on Snapchat.
Also, while we’re at it, please don’t feel inclined to include me in those mass snaps where you send the same exact picture to like, 40 people. I can’t speak for the other 39, but I really don’t care about your cat.
Disney+ is out here making us all lose sleep in the name of nostalgia.
I don’t think I’ve gone to bed before midnight since I got Disney+. Every night I find something new to watch on this streaming service, and every night I find myself struggling to stay awake while Raven deals with being a psychic teenager.
Self checkout cameras like to remind us how ugly we are.
Not only do we actually have the option of checking out our own shopping, but we also have the option of subjecting ourselves to the ego bruise that is the self checkout camera.
You think you’re looking pretty good today? Yeah, think again.
Group chats can make or break any friendship.
I am personally part of several chats that have gradually trickled down from one bigger one, but I’m still in a constant state of worry that I’ve been left out of an even smaller group chat.
You don’t know pain until someone says, “Oh, I guess we talked about that in the other chat” and you realize you weren’t included in that one.
Amazon Prime has turned us all into impatient little online shoppers.
We can pretty much order anything to our house, and for the right price it’ll come within a day or two. But this power has not been without its consequences.
Look, all I’m saying is I don’t like the person I become when I’m watching my package on the online tracker. She’s a monster.
This is the future. It’s very sticky.
Today’s kids are growing up with touch screens. While most of us started with the standard no-touch screens on computers and phones, these kiddos have been able to manually swipe to their little heart’s desires their whole lives.
So you bet they’re going to touch every screen they see because that’s all they really know. So get ready for lots, and lots, and lots of damn fingerprints.
You can order food to your house with your phone, but sometimes you get a side of sass with your meal.
Some drivers just hand you your Taco Bell and move on with their lives. Some don’t. No two Uber Eats drivers are the same, and sometimes you find yourself dealing with someone who has no patience for you and your stupid questions.
It’s up to you how you tip them.
Everyone can play videos on their phones, and they *really* want to show you those videos.
If you want to survive in this world, you need to learn how to fake laugh and how to keep a smile plastered on your face while your friend makes you watch a 4-minute video of YouTubers “pranking” each other.
Oh, and better make it convincing because they’re watching your face while you’re watching their video.
Now it’s easier than ever to stalk people online, but you gotta be extra careful.
The fact that Instagram lets you “like” a picture by tapping it twice is cool until you’re looking at his 2014 summer photos and accidentally like one while trying to see who’s tagged as that girl in the bikini he’s got his arm around.
The only solution? Change your Instagram name, bio, and display picture, and delete all those photos because you are now going into the Witness Protection Program.
Online shopping somehow isn’t lazy enough for us yet.
There’s nothing worse than being all snuggled up in bed, ready to buy those corgi socks and a zucchini spiralizer, only to realize you need to actually go hunt down your damn wallet first.
Privacy settings are making it extremely difficult to creep strangers.
It took me two hours to finally hunt down the cute trainer from the gym on Instagram, and now you’re telling me his account is private ?
That’s just plain rude.
Fridges can be smart but I hope you’re not thirsty.
Just like with any other technology, your fridge has to update. And also just like other technology, it’s going to take a while. I guess you’re drinking tap water, sis.
We’ve all become ridiculously impatient when it comes to video loading speeds.
I remember a time when I would sit at the family computer and wait forever for a YouTube video that was longer than ten minutes to load.
Now I just decide to move on to a different video if YouTube gonna be like that.
Our phones now all have mobile data, but with great power comes great responsibility.
![Image credit: Twitter | [user deleted]](https://static.diply.com/yO6gdWxUoDP9dfLuE1Yu.jpg)
You need to keep a careful eye on that little symbol at the top of your screen. Just because you’re home doesn’t mean Wi-Fi is going to automatically connect every single time. This is not a perfect world we live in.
Robots will vacuum for us but it’s always an adventure with those guys.
My favorite part of owning a robot vacuum is when my phone notifies me it’s stuck somewhere in the house and I have to go hunt it down, only to find out it’s somehow managed to shut itself in the laundry room and knocked over my cat’s litter box while panicking.
We have easy access to online streaming services and now can’t eat without watching something.
I hope this one isn’t just me, but I’ve become so used to turning on The Office while I’m eating food that I will genuinely sit there and let my food get cold while I wait for an episode to load.
Trying to track down your Uber before they cancel your ride.
I never learned car breeds so beyond spotting colors, I’m basically useless at finding my Uber on a busy street. Oh, and good news is your driver can cancel your ride and charge you for it if you don’t find him fast enough.
