Stuck in the Past - Circa 1998

So graduation often sparks a feeling of nostalgia.  With this, comes reminiscing.  I've actually been thinking a lot lately about growing up in the 90's...  And I've come to the conclusion that it was the definitely best era to grow up in.

Just think about it, the TV shows alone were fantastic: Boy Meets World, Full House, Saved by the Bell, Fresh Prince of Bell Air, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Sabrina the Teenage Witch, Dawson's Creek, Wishbone, Recess, Doug, Rugrats, and the list goes on and on.  The fluorescently colored outfits (which were so ugly they were cute) worked well with the cheesy music, to produce episodes with semi-serious underlying moral themes... a simply magical combination!  Don't you miss the scrunchy, tie dyed t-shirt, overalls look?  I sure do.

And then there's the music.  Psh, forget about Justin Bieber or the Jonas Brothers, they have nothing compared to *NSync, Back Street Boys, and the Hansen Brothers.  And the 90s female pop stars?... Wow!  Britney, Christina, Mandy, and Jessica.  They don't even need last names.  They are all still around even today, which says something compared to our modern flash-in-the-pan artists which stick around for 15 minutes.  These girls were triple threats, with great, wholesome entertainment.  Okay, sure Britney and Christina had their slutty stages... but that was later on in the 2000s, so it doesn't count.

My all-time favorite thing to come out of the 90's was the Spice Girls. Hands down, my favorite group ever.  Two words for you: Girl Power.  July 8, 1998 was the night my 9-year old dreams came true; I saw them in concert with my mom.  Best. thing. ever.  I was obsessed - not only was it my favorite 90s pop music group, but it was my first concert.  Although I must admit I had favorites... Posh Spice, aka Victoria Beckham, was by-far the coolest one.  I even went so far with my crazed fan loyalty, that when Posh Spice cut her hair in a short bob style, I did too.  It wasn't so cute on me...

As I reflect, I realize that while I've grown up (in theory), some things remain the same, which is a reassuring thought; any sort of stability is appreciated in all this post-grad change and craziness.  I am still listening to music from all these artists (old and new songs).  While the music might have evolved from tape cassettes, to CDs, to mp3 music files, to i-Tunes, the artists are still fantastic and have been able to develop with the changing times.

Whenever a re-run of one of these TV shows airs, I watch it, still completely engrossed and emotionally sucked in to the plot-lines.  Will Topanga and Corey reconcile? What sort of trouble will Sabrina get into this time?  When will Zack and Kelly finally start dating?

And while the Spice Girls was my first concert ever, I'm still loving my girl Britney.  In fact, this summer's Britney Spears concert will be my most recent one, coming up this August....

And yup, I'm going with my mom.  Things definitely haven't changed much.

                                                                                                  Girl Power!

                                                                                                                   BB