Ageism

I believe I am an ageist. This doesn't mean I hate old people or young people, but I am quick to point out knowledge or gaps in knowledge that can be attributed to age or an age difference. Some examples/things I've learned here:

• Discovery: 80's and early 90's movies are huge among people who range from being slightly older than me all the way to practically my parents' age. It's unbelievable how many cultural references you miss out on when you weren't alive in the 80's and barely conscious in the early 90's.
• Lesson: When people ask, "Haven't you seen Sixteen Candles?" Or "Do you remember that line from Serendipity?" or "Doesn't he remind you of Patrick Swayze?" - the correct response is NOT "I wasn't alive when that was made." or "Is that a movie?" or "Is he that old dancing guy who died?" My new plan is just to nod knowingly. 

• Discovery: Life was VERY different back before email and cell phones. I learned that people used to FAX jokes to each other, yes, FAX. That old machine that  makes old internet-style noises. 
• Lesson: I should not try to understand the olden days. The more questions you ask, the more confused you will become and people tend to become a little offended when your jaw drops at their stories of yore. For example, asking "So you had to print out the jokes or hand write them and then walk them to the fax machine and wait for it to connect and type in individual phone numbers?!" with a horrified look on your face - that question leads to nothing good. Again, new plan: Nod knowingly.

• Discovery: The current teenage generation has about a million different classifications and abbreviations for things. I think in my high school days we had Sporty, Posh, Scary...we might have taken these names from the Spice Girls. I thought I was pretty in the loop though, I of course know what Emo is, but I recently heard some people saying this girl was pretty "hesh". I still don't get it...to the best of my knowledge it's someone who doesn't shower regularly, is kind of like a hippie without necessarily being into drugs, and has a cool vibe. 
• Lesson: Under no circumstances should you try to pretend you understand anything about a younger generationDo not attempt to use vocabulary you do not understand. You will not get it right. Passing a homeless person and saying, "Look, a hesh person!" is not only not the correct usage, it also makes people laugh and shake their heads at you, just like you do to your grandparents when they talk about the mystery that is the iPad.* New plan: Ignore teenagers where possible.

*Actually I have to say my grandparents are pretty tech savvy. My grandpa did call my brother Christmas morning and said, "Peter, I've awoken the iPad and I can't make it stop putting out music." After coaching him to the main menu and hitting the Music icon, Peter said, "Now hit the pause button." Grandpa responds, "There is nothing that says Pause." Peter replies, "The button with the two lines, when you hit it it will turn into the play button." Grandpa says, "I hit it but Play didn't come up, it just turned into a triangle." After that little hiccup, he did start to get the hang of it.