I'm one of 8 kids from a blended/ divorced household, I've attended 13 schools (including boarding school), lived in 10 different houses, three states, currently raising my 12 year old sister and 10 month old nephew all within my 19 years of life. I've seen, done, said/ heard a lot. I've been around the block a few times, but I'm only 19 years old. Throughout my life, few things have remained the same. The most common is the usage of colloquial (slang) terms and social action.
These slang terms, change from city to city, school to school, families to families, etc and yet stay the same. I realize that contradicts, but it's the essence of the inside jokes and funny verbiage that makes each place unique. Which in reality makes us all the same. Social action, defined, by dictionary.com, as "individual or group behavior that involves [the] interaction with other individuals or groups, especially organized action toward social reform." In layman's words the behavior patterns you see from people, whether apart of a group or not. Most often including colloquial phrases/ gestures. I've always appreciated that no matter where I am, who I'm with or what I'm doing I can always spot these behavior patterns. The sense of familiarity is comforting and essential, I believe, to the human race.
As a kid, I was "tested" and found out I have an above average IQ, as well as an equally split brain. I use the same amount of my left and right brain at all times. As a result my mother says "I have the brain of a scientist" because I always seek out patterns and I think in terms of numbers, very logical but also involved and emotionally attached. I guess that's why I sought out a communications degree. The ability to make connections by using numbers and body language is my own version of pattern recognition. We're surround by patterns yet few notice them directly. Everything around us is made up of numbers, the mathematical equations needed to produce the table, coffee cup, shoe, house, you name it and it has a mathematical equation. The same can be said if communication replaces mathematical equations. Communication is all about patterns, and simulacra.
Social media is a huge platform for simulacra, as is any exchange system, capitalism (in all forms), the urbanization/ expansion and ideology of life. I've learned that all good things must come to an end, and there is a healthy skepticism and cynicism tied to each action we have. According to Washington post'd David Broder, cynicism is an epidemic, but I believe it can be developed from experience, the active and informed tend to have the most cynicism in their tone. In today's world the way you represent yourself on social media is "all that matters" since you can alter how people see you. Maybe that's why America is so cynical/ skeptical, is anyone really who they say they are?
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