You know when you see kids saying how much they like a certain TV show, a band, or just time period in general, when they may have been really young to have remembered that time period or weren’t even born yet? 

You have the sticklers - who’ll stick with the “you weren’t there then, you can’t love it or even begin to know what it was like.” 

And you know what, I argue those people with this.

Oh, I can’t like Nirvana? I can’t like Jimi Hendrix? I can’t like the fashion staples of the 1920’s? I can’t like grunge? I can’t like the 70’s punk movement in England? I can’t admire the art, literature, culture, music, of another time period simply because I WASN’T there? 

That’s just like saying you can’t say President Lincoln is your favorite president because you weren’t around during his term. But hey, that doesn’t disrupt the fact that he was a damn good president. 

That doesn’t hold back the reasoning that Nirvana is a great band, Jimi Hendrix is an amazing guitarist, fashion in the 1920’s is beautiful, grunge is cool, the 70’s punk movement is dope, and that the things from different time periods that STOOD OUT then will CONTINUE to stand out now, and anyone at whichever age can admire them.

Yes, truth be told, kids my age can never have the full affect Kurt Kobain had on the world, or what Woodstock was really like, or be able to experience a certain way of dress in whichever time period. But that doesn’t help the fact that people like what they like.

You can’t just turn to a 13 year old wearing a Hole T-Shirt and be like “Hey - you don’t deserve to wear that because you weren’t there.” Yeah, no shit that 13 year old wasn’t there - but you should be impressed on how that 13 year old cares enough about music to appreciate the old just as much, if not more, than the new or whatever is on the radio. 

Secondly, for those who yell at kids born in 1996 or 1997 at calling themselves “90’s kids” then you’re an asshole. Because yeah, maybe technically they were only 3 or 4 living in the 90’s, but actual 90’S CULTURE didn’t end in 2000! It ended like around 2003! Just because it didn’t have a 9 in the year doesn’t mean it wasn’t the 90’s! What, do you think everything changed dramatically right when 2000 rolled around? Of course not! Cultural change is gradual, and doesn’t rely on a specific numerical set of years. You could have still witnessed the 90’s passed the actual 90s. And even if you didn’t? Who gives a shit. You can still watch 90’s Nick cartoons and wish they still made cartoons like that nowadays. Or wish those Wonderball candies come back. 30 years from now, I want my kids to watch Hey Arnold and learn all the morals that cartoon has taught me, and they are completely allowed to love it as much as I did, even though it will be way beyond their time.

So here’s a tip: stop concerning yourself and others with time and years. It’s just a number. The legend, culture, and the ups/downs in history live on from years and years to come. 

If anything, I’m a fan of history. And I’m not going to let me being born in ‘94 change anything about that.