We’re almost five-sixths done with 2014, and I have yet to hear someone call the year by what it really is – the ten-year anniversary of 2004. When people talk about “the good old days,” I can’t imagine how they could be referencing any time other than 2004. Facebook wasn’t even around until that year, so there can’t possibly be good old days before that. Most of today’s collegiettes were in their prime – anywhere between third grade and sixth grade, ages 8 and 12. Old enough to tie our own shoes and wipe our own noses, but not quite old enough to be annoying, hormonal middle schoolers. And, most importantly, old enough to discover pop culture for the first time.
Music
My top 100 hits bring all the boys to the yard, and they’re like, 2004 was better than any other year. Ten years later, “Mr. Brightside,” “Yeah!” and “Hey Ya” are still principal elements of parties everywhere. “Toxic,” “Milkshake,” and “100 Years” may not maintain the same conventional popularity, but they continue to get the people going when the DJ hits play. 2004 also saw Janet Jackson’s wardrobe malfunction at the Super Bowl and Ashlee Simpson’s lip synching fiasco on SNL. The year is also responsible, I believe, for my inability to learn song lyrics – I’m pretty sure 100% of the song-lyric-memory portion of my brain is full of Relient K, who released their most popular album Mmhmm in November.
Movies
I don’t know how to put this, but… 2004 was kind of a big deal. Two of the most quotable movies to ever grace our planet were released that year – Mean Girls and Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy. It wasn’t a particularly mentionable year for the Academy Awards, with Crash taking home the Best Picture Oscar, but The Incredibles and Spider-Man 2 more than make up for it with their revitalization of the superhero genre (which, ten years hence, may need to be toned down). Hipsters can also laud 2004 for Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind.
Television
We have to go back! 2004 introduced us to the magnificence of shows such as Lost, Entourage, Veronica Mars, Drake and Josh, and Desperate Housewives. We additionally got to celebrate the successes of Frasier, Friends, Sex and the City, and every decent Nickelodeon show (Hey Arnold!, Rugrats, The Wild Thornberrys, and Rocket Power), all of which ended in 2004. Perpetual pop culture staples Arrested Development and The Sopranos took home Emmys for best comedy and drama series, respectively. This year also made history when Amy Poehler took over for Jimmy Fallon on SNL Weekend Update, making her and Tina Fey the first-ever female anchor duo.
Sports
The US won the most medals at the summer Olympics in Athens (Michael Phelps’s first games), the Detroit Pistons upset the LA Lakers in the NBA championship, the New England Patriots won the Super Bowl, Phil Mickelson won his first major, Roger Federer won three Grand Slam tournaments, and the Boston Red Sox ended their 86-year curse when they won the World Series. All was well in 2004.