Showerthought: My neighbor's kid explained the 'distracted boyfriend' meme to me at a cookout.

He's 14 and was scrolling through his phone while we were grilling. I pointed to a picture of the meme on a screen and asked what the joke was. He said, 'It's not about cheating, it's about how we all look at new shiny things online.' That hit different because I'd always taken it at face value. Anyone else have a meme they totally misunderstood until someone younger explained it?

3 comments

3 Comments

mitchell.val25d ago

Ever think about how memes get used wrong on purpose? Like when people took the "This is fine" dog from a comic about anxiety and made it a joke for any minor problem. The original meaning gets lost but the new one sticks. Or the "woman yelling at cat" picture, it started from a reality TV moment but now just means any confusing argument. The internet rewrites the story and we all just go with it.

patricia_schmidt1413d ago

Forget the original story, sometimes the wrong version is just more true. Like that dog in the fire, it really does feel like that when your coffee's cold. The new meaning becomes the real one.

cooper.linda25d ago

That bit about the internet rewriting the story is spot on, @mitchell.val. It's like a game of telephone where we all agree the new wrong version is funnier or more useful. The original context doesn't matter once the meme fits a vibe people want.