Anyone else fed up with all the Millennial and Gen Z chat?

[Duvetstay]

Anyone else sick of this whole Millennial/Gen Z thing?

I'm 44 and have teens... all of a sudden everything that I do is "Millennial". Skinny jeans binned ages ago, side parting gone. Now they want my winged eye liner. The way I dance is "soooo millennial coded".

Everything online/with my kids seems to be tailored to laugh at me. Even when I try to get it right (by not wearing trainers socks) I get it wrong (apparently trainer socks are ok)

I get I should just suck it up as technically I am middle aged and the youth will always want to be different and mock the square oldies but it feels so defined with this generational chat everywhere.

Obviously I should just wear/dance/do wheat I want but it's getting me down!!!!

@WhatATimeToBeAlive "I'm Gen X so don't get pulled into this generational crap very often as everyone has forgotten about us, however it does seem to border on very nasty sometimes. I didn't take the piss out of my parents clothes when I was younger, it didn't even occur to me to care about what they wore. And if I had I'd have had a rollicking for being so rude."

I'm in my late 60's (so one of those god forsaken boomers) but could've written most of that. When I was a teenager in the 70's and a 20 something in the 80's we didn't care or particularly notice what the older generations wore. And if I'd taken the piss out of my mum's clothes it would've ended very badly for me.

A bit left field, but I do wonder if inclusivity is so ingrained in younger generations and they are constantly on guard in case they trigger someone, that the only outlet left is ageism which seems to go completely unchecked.

Edited to say I'm not bashing inclusivity!

Can you turn it around into banter? I love ribbing my kids and they me though they are slightly younger so perhaps a bit different. Especially if your kids are being actively rude and mean rather than trying to have a laugh with u?

No I’m not “fed up” because it’s something I’m not aware of.

You have rude teens who seem to make you feel small

and you spend way too much time on SM

I'm gen X and the worst clothing insult when I was a teen was "that's so 70s" said with a cringe. Same thing just a different way of labelling it.

As for millennials not being criticised - who do you think is going to be inheriting most of what the boomers leave behind? Once the millennials with rich parents hit wealthier middle age, the generations below them won't care that those millennials were once struggling to get on the housing ladder while evil boomers had all the money and houses and final salary pensions. That will be irrelevant, just like millennials now moaning about boomers see the way those boomers may have struggled when they were young as irrelevant.

To be honest, day to day life, and people I personally know, it’s elder millennials and Gen X and ripping into the younger generations about what they wear and how they live, the slang they speak. I find it quite funny because these exact same people thought they were cool and trendy and took the piss out of middle aged grooming and fashion. They’d also be ok the receiving end of “your generation is so soft” and now they’re the ones calling young people snowflakes and as well mocking the fashion of the young, they are pretty judgemental and sneery about the struggles young people have. They sound exactly like the middle aged and older people from our own youth. Circle of life innit.

Agree with this. Instead of ‘not all Boomers are rich’, people will be saying ‘not all millennials inherited’.

I am so sorry your teens have turned out this way. Cheeky brats.

Considering young people these days seem to think white sports socks pulled up and worn with sliders, mullets and rodenty moustaches are the height of fashion I really wouldn’t be worried what they think! 😉

IKR 🙄 Rodenty moustaches made me laugh. My friend's husband (who's a Millennial so should know better) recently grew a moustache and a mullet. My friend is mortified and it's become a really awkward topic, we all want to say 'WTF is going on with Nick's hair?' but no one dares to ask 🤣

I can't remember a time in which teenage fashion was so dull and uninspired as it is now.

Don't try to join in, embrace colour and pattern whilst they skulk about in their monochrome tracksuits and hoodies.

Just wait until they introduce you to the obscure 90's bands they've just discovered.

"They're called Nirvana, Mum. You won't have heard of them".

I’m Gen X. I don’t even see our style being sneered at on Instagram, it’s so far beyond the imaginings of the digital generations. But then we were all on clothing coupons and dyeing our legs with instant coffee, so maybe it’s not seen as fair to mock.

ha yes. I had one politely tell me "this is a song by someone called Kate Bush".

Some of the 'fashion' of today is the worst fashion I've ever seen in history. Faces full of filler and lips like daffy duck. Streets are full of tracksuits and gym wear. I'll keep my winged eyeliner and handbag thanks.

Tell them to fuck off because you've decided to identify as Gen X and you no longer give a shit what they think!

I've no idea what Gen X/Z actually means and tbh I don't really care. I've managed all these years without every age group having to be given some title or other.

We wore flares in the 70s then they were out of fashion. We never thought those baggy monstrosities would make a comeback.

I do find it really fascinating how obsessed people are with the generational labels at the moment, is it social media? People seem to make being Gen Z or millennial their entire personality. I personally love all the millennial throw back stuff as I’m a nostalgic person, but I don’t remember ever hearing people talk about being Gen X or even boomer, the only time I ever heard the term boomer was when people were talking about house prices!

But to answer your question it’s not really an issue at home. My teens never bring it up. They’re not on TikTok etc though so not even sure they know what generations we all belong to. They wouldn’t be caught dead in trainer socks!

A teeny tiny minority

I have given it bugger all thought, and I have never had any discussion about it with friends, colleagues or family.

So sadly I think the Op has spent too much time on SM and got sucked in to it. And her teens aren’t helping by taking the poss out of and making her feel small

Most of the fashions gen Z are wearing look objectively terrible. If you find it hurtful, tell your kids you've had enough and that they should keep their opinions to themselves - I don't mind a bit of good-natured ribbing, but there's a line.

Mums aren't supposed to dress like teens/twentysomethings, and it looks weird if we try. In 10 years your kids will look at photos of them now and cringe at all the terrible fashion they were wearing.

I don’t understand this - surely you’ve reached an age where you’ve worked out life is too damn short and you do you? Wear the skinny jeans, they are still available in every shop so clearly are being sold in plentiful amounts but even if they weren’t so what? Wear what YOU want on your feet. Do your make up how YOU want to. Respond “and?” to any comment from your teens. Society’s obsession with youth is capitalism and misogyny based, it gets you buying things and diminishing yourself. Tell them that too. Change your algorithm.

What were we teenagers of the 90s known as, with our summer style being Reebok Classic trainers without socks?

I'm fed up with a lot of stuff that goes on on line, and the way it influences people into group think. It is a pernicious influence especially on the young and impressionable. Ageism and misogyny have both been completely normalised by people who consider themselves to be both intelligent and kind.

Seems to be a trend to bash the older generations especially mums. I wouldn't worry too much what they think

If you were born 1965 - 1980 you are Gen X. If you’re a bit younger you are Millennial.