Do I Really Need to Read Another Top 10 List?

Abso-fuckin-lutely. What do you think this is? Some sort of progressive blog where I don’t resort to clichés and actually talk about stuff with substance and meaning? Well, if you answered yes or no, you’d be correct – nobody truly knows the answer. However, the point of this blog is to go ahead and play into the popularity of the time and give my analysis on not just the year, but really the decade.

I feel honored to be able to fully analyze a decade with a cognitive mind (Let’s face it, half of the 90s, we were focused on trying to be tall enough to ride the fast rides at amusement parks and debating the reality of the tooth fairy. Sadly, some of us had to wait till the 2000s before we were allowed to ride everything. Damn PETA activists and their desire to get our animals “natural” and “growth-hormone-free.” I could have used some of that you know.)

Anyhow, especially the second half of the decade, it was interesting to see what it is like to be a true consumer. In all honesty, you learn about yourself a lot through the things you’re willing to spend money on. Therefore, I have compiled a Top 10 List of things I spent my money on this decade, and while I know that I am not a great perspective for the whole, I am just going to pretend that I am. In naming things I might stop and give a brief elaboration – for examples listing clothes might elicit a few ramblings out of my mind, but I hope you enjoy.

TOP TEN THINGS THAT ROBY CHATTERJI (aka “30 and under Society”)
SPENT MONEY ON THIS DECADE

10. DVDs
I remember the day we got our first DVD player at our house – it was probably 2000. I remember because I asked to borrow the new Matrix DVD that day from a friend to test out the speakers and sound quality. Much more than CDs, I think discs for movies have been huge this decade. CDs were cool but then came mp3s and really it didn’t matter whether you had a CD player anymore, because all you needed was speakers (therefore we have #9 on the list), but DVDs hold their own because most of still like TV to remain stationary in an ever-growing portable world. It’s one of the few last bastions of sitting around culture. DVDs have been great, especially since they put TV shows on them as well, but I do worry about their longevity. Hookups between computers and TVs becoming easier and easier, and with things like Hulu and instant Netflix, we might be entering the last decade where DVDs are big.

9. Audio Accessories:
DJ Rob can’t deny his place in this list. Speakers, headphones, armbands, more speakers, and of course iPods have definitely been a large part of my spending this decade. What can I say, the ADD tendencies I have mixed with a sincere appreciation of music makes the iPod like crack to me. Also my guilty sense of pleasure at being flattered about playlists or music selection makes me even more tempted to buy nice outlets to let out my musical tastes.

8. Energy Drinks/Coffee:
The Redbull era is far from over. It is just beginning. Welcome Monster, Rockstar (my personal favorite), and of course now the ultimate: Coffee + Energy beverages, and you have of course one of the great icons of these last ten years – instant energy in anywhere from an 8 to 24 ounce can. I must admit, I am extremely guilty of giving into these when I know most people refrain. I hated the idea of these at the beginning, plus I thought Redbull tasted like bad sweet tarts, but now I am a pretty regular consumer of Rockstar Zero Carb, and of course my love for coffee has only gotten stronger as this decade transpired. From lots of sugar and cream in my early years to pretty much all Espresso and a couple packets of Splenda these days, I have a fond appreciation for the almost subconscious cure of coffee – the feeling of the warm beverage going down your through and warming you from the inside out, and the “ahhh” you say sometimes after a good brew is almost automatic for me. I hope that my teeth don’t get badly stained in the next ten years.

7. Jeans:
Well let’s be real. If you don’t like or own jeans, you’re forsaking the most versatile piece of clothing we have. They can be used for going out to the bar, to get milk and eggs, and even on Fridays to work. Sneakers, fancy shoes, sandals all can adorn their lower end, and they are great for times you want to show off your ass. All in all, just a good piece of fabric that will likely be timeless. Definitely could have been written in any decade’s big buys for the last 40 years.

6. Shoes:
From the early 2000s when I was really into Nike basketball type shoes, to the whole easy looking Saucony/Puma phase, to the organic New Balance phase, to my “old man” phase because I enjoyed my sneakers to have little design and be plain, to fancy adult shoes that are square at the end – I think my shoes are a nice corollary for my mindset at a given time. They can be a fashion statement, they can simply be a tool to get you from one place to the other, but all of us deep down (male or female) know that we do like to make sure shoes look good to us, and perhaps others. If I had written this blog 10 years ago, I would have definitely mentioned Vans and skater shoes, but it seems that their heyday has ended.

5. Computers:
I’ll keep this one short and simple. Laptops and phones – which really are mini laptops – have taken a chunk of our money and culture this decade. Think about how necessary they’ve become for whatever purpose – working, music, communication, and it’s easy to see why this is one gadget that will continue to icon-ify our generation and lives.

4. Alcohol
Ahh! Where to begin? Definitely something that consumed my bank account in the second half of the decade –a growing realization that we are using tools to enhance our feelings. I know that not everyone drinks, or that other people have their tool of choice, but this is the blanket beneath most of our adult fun. Generally the terms “going out” or “party” have become synonymous with drinking in some shape or form. It may not be the focal piece of your evening, but it’s rare that we go out or go to a party where there is no alcohol. Weddings, birthdays, Thursdays, and of course “New Years” – all seem to point to the fact that we spend a fair amount of time/money on the hydrophilic beverage that eases our tensions, makes it easier to put up with our family, and makes our memorable moments filled with stories.

3. Mexican Food, but really the burrito:
This might be a Roby thing, but really, I think the explosion of big burritos and the whole “wrap-it-up” culture was a big thing to take off this decade. Coming from all angles – expansion of Mexican culture into American, the health conscious idea of vegetarian and wheat bread/wraps, and the ease of which you can consume a burrito – made this the perfect decade for the burrito. Fast, cheap, healthy, flavorful – it’s everything we are striving for, and you can have endless hours of fun going, “buuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuurrrriiiitooooooooo.”

2. Books:
Well going along with number 1 on the list, it only makes sense that after tuition, we spent a fair amount of money on books. Throw in Harry Potter and Da Vinci Code phenomena, and those weird periods of time throughout the decade where you tried to be more well-read, and you have a fair amount of time and cash going towards words on paper that you may or may not have read. Books are slightly becoming obsolete because of the internet, but I would think that in some weird analogous manner, the internet is our new library – a very fun and adult library at times. So, I would say we have spent a fair amount of our money on tools that will hopefully increase our wisdom.

1. Knowledge:
Think about it. Most of us that have been through colleges or graduate schools this decade have spent money or owe money for the fact that someone instilled us with knowledge. Meaning we spent thousands of dollars to hear someone tell us their theories. Essentially we visited an educational consultant for however many years we did. I completely agree with why I did it also. I wanted a pre-set system of talking points for conversation as well as strategies for balancing different aspects of my life. Oh yeah, and that whole specializing in a subject area, because that made a lot of sense. Was it worth it? Time will tell.

Overall Themes
We have the capability of being a very well-informed generation, but the choice on what we want to be informed on in completely up to us. We have lots of ways to amp up, to be entertained, and to be educated. I can’t tell whether we are creating separate segments of our life – the work side and the play side or trying to mesh them into one. Work fashion is actually a good indicator of how we are starting to see if the two worlds can mix – casual Fridays, less need to be formal – while they seem like a good thing might point to the idea that we are less interested in applying our education and instead using it for entertainment, which is what I hope this becomes for some of you. The New Year awaits. Happy regards to all of you.