But for most Millennials, the proverbial rug was ripped out from under their feet and their futures disappeared in a blink of an eye, because somewhere between graduating high school and earning that college degree and racking up debt, the world around them changed, thanks to 9/11, economic crisis, a technological boom, a pandemic, and multiple wars.
Suddenly, there was a huge wave of people who couldn't find a job that covered their basic necessities—or couldn't find a job *period*—let alone one that allowed them to save up for that dream life they were promised if they just "worked hard."
Now, those Millennials are between their mid-thirties and mid-forties, facing the familiar midlife crisis that the generations before them addressed by changing their hair, their relationship, or their car. But these previous generations were stressed about the fact that their life was half over and that there was still so much more they wanted to do.
Some Millennials have pointed out:
@mikemancusi/Instagram
@mikemancusi/Instagram
@mikemancusi/Instagram
Millennials are stuck looking back, feeling grief for what they were promised and did not receive, but also feeling nostalgia for the life they grew up with that they'll never be able to replicate, because it predates the digital age and the pandemic.
Comedian Mike Mancusi addressed this in a recent video on Instagram, stating that Millennials are going to have to face their midlife feelings just like anyone else, but they're going to have to approach it differently than buying a Lambourghini.
Mancusi challenged Millennials instead to pursue something that brings them happiness, and arguably, this must be something that they can do for themselves, with or without residual income resulting from it, because if they're doing it from a place of joy, then it's something that society cannot take away from them.
Mancusi explained:
"We were told the blueprint to follow. We all followed it. And here we are, unfulfilled."
"We look back and go, 'Wait a minute. I was told to do all these things, I did them, and still, I'm not happy.'"
"That is a way different crisis."
"You have to find something else to do."
"Whatever you want to call it, a hobby, a passion, but it has to be something that's for you."
You can watch the video here:
Fellow Millennials agreed with Mancusi, and some shared what they were already working on.
@mikemancusi/Instagram
@mikemancusi/Instagram
@mikemancusi/Instagram
@mikemancusi/Instagram
@mikemancusi/Instagram
@mikemancusi/Instagram
@mikemancusi/Instagram
@mikemancusi/Instagram
@mikemancusi/Instagram
@mikemancusi/Instagram
@mikemancusi/Instagram
Millennials get blamed for a lot of things, like being lazy and eating too much avocado toast, but the generations before them would have little to say if they really pointed out how the world shifted beneath their feet as they grew up.
Now that they're a little older and can make decisions for themselves, it's best for them to focus on the things that will bring them joy, with or without money, and to really lean into the fact that even if they cannot depend on others, they can absolutely depend on themselves.
But Redditor XcuseMeWat posted on the "Mildly Infuriating" subReddit after they went through an activity book, perfect for kids in the springtime, and came across a very problematic word search.
The word search page promised fun, Easter-themed and springtime-themed words, including "Easter," "Rabbit," "Jellybeans," and "Sunrise," but when the Redditor attempted to complete it, they could not find a single word.
That is, not without a little finagling. The word "faith," for example, can be found by looking in two vertical rows. The "aith" can be found vertically three rows from the left, with the "a" being six letters from the bottom. To find the "f" to complete the word "faith," though, the person searching has to look to the right of the "a," placing the word in an L-shape, which breaks the rules of all words being horizontal, vertical, diagonal, or backwards.
The Redditor posted a photo of the word search and shared their suspicions:
"I defy you to find a single word in this 'kids' word search."
"This has to be a joke, or it's AI-generated and not checked by a human. There's no way a person could mess up this badly, surely!"
You can explore the word search here:
u/XcuseMeWat/Reddit
Fellow Redditors went on a wild word hunt, having to laugh at the ridiculousness of it.
"Kuarrot. AI made, and published without any checks." - bumbumwhat
"This is crazy, because aren't there existing word search generators that actually produce a proper word search? Instead, they used AI with no solutions. Pathetic." - despaseeto
"I wrote a word search generator over 40 years ago. They're not that hard to do. I'm assuming that this is either a trolling attempt or that the list and grid got mismatched somehow." - Old-Chesire862
"They have existed for a long time. I used to use them 20 years ago. It was one of the easiest things to do as a teacher when you just needed to have an activity to keep kids busy."
"Throw all the kids' names on a word search. Put the vocabulary words on a word search. Book characters. Places. I had a bunch of printed out for them to do anytime they finished something early." - Open_Bug_4251
"It's crazy to get AI to spit out a crossword when there are literally websites to generate one that’s actually functional. I had to make over a decade ago for a class and used a website." - Cherry_Flavoured_
"This and AI-generated colouring books will be something our kids will be discussing together on Reddit, like, in thirty years." - Upset-Nose-4016
"Here's our future:"
"Remember impossible word searches? As kids, did anyone else's lazy teachers hand out word searches that didn't have the words on them? What gives?"
"In case you didn't know, dogs only have two ears! I never had pets as a child, so I didn't know this. My coloring books always had three-eared dogs."
"Did you know, in the mid-20s, generative text technology was used worldwide as a child-care tool?"
"In the early 2020s, there was a trend where millions of households used a text generating software to give advice on tasks, make lists, and even take care of their children! Doctors even prescribed it as a mental health aid! Just another fun example of people making wacky choices with new technology!" - BLAZMANIII
"My mam bought me an AI-generated colouring book (she didn't know) for stress, and it's a f**king mess of a thing. Lots of random arms and legs and other bits like that that make no sense. Some of the pages are actually really stressful to look at." - Natural_Task9025
"This word search thing I find especially egregious because it’s like we’re going through some mass psychosis. I remember simple word search creation tools that actually worked back like 20 years ago."
"There’s literally no reason to do this. It’s not easier. It’s not more accurate, and it doesn’t cost less. Yet here it is." - AllieRaccoon
"I was looking at this picture and was thinking, oh, the words were in there. Then I saw at the bottom it said there were 20 words, but the list only had 11."
"That's when I looked at the original again to notice the list of words was replaced. I have been laughing for like five minutes. Thank you! 10/10!" - Smiling_Guy
AI-generated products are not totally new, but this word search is a great example of how "new" and "fast" aren't always "better."
The sad thing is that there are people in the world who are very talented at making complex and enjoyable word searches and crossword puzzles, and there are also computer programs that are highly proficient, both of which might be displaced, inappropriately, by AI.
