Every now and then I pause from ministry-related thought to purge my brain of some of the things that bug me the most.  Little bits of pop culture that, at least for me, have over-stayed their welcome.  I’ve done this a couple times before and found it amazingly cathartic.  So, today I offer up four more things that I can’t take any more of.  As of this moment, they are officially dead to me. You may not agree with my list.  You may have other items to add to the burn pile.  Feel free to chime in either way.

1. “It is what it is.”  Ok, so this was kind of clever for a while.  It reminded us that some things have to be accepted for what they are, which is not entirely without merit.  But, this little phrase is on a perpetual downward cultural spiral.  It has become a verbal pause badly disguised as philosophical wit.  It is the domain of athletes who cannot articulate an answer to interview questions, a blanket justification/explanation called upon by musicians and actors who have no real logic or value system to back up their behavior, and the baby-boomer trying to sound hip.  Time to let this one go, team.

2. “Keep Calm and…”  All due respect to her majesty, this phrase drives me bloody crazy!  It was kind of cute during the London Olympics.  For a time, it was kind of clever to see every blessed t-shirt, bumper-sticker, and Facebook image maker put their own little twist on the “Keep calm and carry on.” idea.  That time has passed.  I feel obliged to give props to her majesty however in the sense 200+ years later, she has found away to oppress America once again. Well played your majesty, well played.

3. Just __ being __.  Pick your high-maintenance, socially inappropriate, self-imagined diva and insert their name (twice).  Just Kobe being Kobe.  Just Miley being Miley.  Just Genghis Kahn being Genghis Kahn.  Somehow, we all stopped even trying to hold people to any standard of acceptable behavior and collectively decided to agree that jerky people are allowed to be jerky people because they are jerky people.  The logic is dizzying.

4. The Harlem Shake. I’ll admit it, I drank the Kool-Aid.  I bought into the hype.  I watched a few of the zillion or so viral videos on YouTube.  Our youth group made a version (which actually never entirely made it out of the editing room).  But, the thing with viruses (video or otherwise), is you really only want them to hang around if they’re useful.  The Harlem Shake has outlived its entertainment value already.  I don’t need to see your school band, your co-workers at Denny’s or your nine cats doing it.  The moment has passed.  Find a new dance to have your finger puppets engage in.

That’s it for me.  Anything to add?

P.S. Gangnam Style…you’re next.