There was a different pang of nostalgia amid the New Year’s celebrations as 2019 came to a resounding close. With the end of the decade came the end of a significant chapter in many of our lives. As the babies born in the early 2000s face the coming stages of adulthood, we take this time to reflect on all the defining gems we leave behind. 

The Old Disney

Many hours of our youth were spent attempting to draw the revered Mickey Mouse ears with imaginary wands. As we have graduated to more mature forms of entertainment, the Disney Channel has gone through its own evolutionary journey. Although still popular among the new batch of children, the older ones cannot help but notice how the channel has strayed from its roots. Beloved shows such as The Suite Life of Zack and Cody and Phineas and Ferb are now relics of a bygone era. The shows’ impeccable humor and lovable characters have been retired to the vault, giving way to a bubblier, if not oversaturated persona. But never fear, these defining childhood shows will forever be a shared bond we carry into forthcoming years. 

No iPhone No Problem

Before personal iPads were an expected gift upon entering elementary school, there was a time when televisions were the only form of screen entertainment. There was a time when imaginations, uninhibited by artificial colors and algorithms, were free to run wild. A time where playdates could be arranged through parents and only through parents. Starting somewhere around middle school, having your own cell phone became more and more normal. Although, at that point, trusting preteens with hundreds of dollars worth of technology seemed preposterous. The result was often a semi-functioning chunk of plastic, with real buttons and sometimes even a keyboard that one could slide out all on their own. The power went straight to our heads and the taste of independence was ever so sweet. Nowadays, there are more screens in the building than people. Despite this, we remain humbled by our experience before the Apple takeover.  

Silly Bandz

There is the black market, and then there are Silly Bandz. These rubber bracelets came in nearly every color and every shape you could think of. Recesses were spent comparing the accumulating piles of bracelets on our wrists. They became a currency of sorts. Kids would trade them, vying for the most appealing option. Having the most impressive Silly Bandz meant taking the top dog spot in playground hierarchy. Perhaps there are still some out there, collecting layers of dust under beds or shoved into drawers where they serve as reminders of a simpler time. 

Tutti Fruiti 

Behold, the mothership. A haven for all gangly middle schoolers. We found security among the row of frozen yogurt dispensers, dumping every available topping and scrounging for quarters in back pockets. No one could tell whether the attendant dreaded or anticipated the flock of prepubescents descending on the little shop every Friday, neither did they care. The bright room served as the host of shrieking laughter and awkward first dates. We outgrew it eventually, as teenagers always do, but the loss of this chain store weighed on our hearts nonetheless.

Toms

There was a pair of these quintessential shoes in nearly every closet just a few years ago. The versatile footwear had the ability to be dressed up or down, and was suited to the active lifestyle of adventurous elementary schoolers. With a wide spectrum of colors and patterns, each owner could express a little piece of their personality through them. Toms shoes were the height of fashion for a stretch of the mid-2000s, and whether or not we still find them fashionable, they will always have a place in our hearts.