Post-Puberty

One of the obstacles in the face of updating this blog is that I can never decide what to write about; there are so many possibilities. For example, after Pat’s accusation of blog neglect I found myself torn between writing about religion, marriage in the twenty-first century or post-puberty. Although I plan on writing all of these, post-puberty has won out for now because it’s just such a cool term.

No doubt if you don’t spend any time around Casey or myself and have not had the pleasure of having us explain the concept of post-puberty to you, you’re probably going wtf? Never fear for I am here to explain it to you. Post-puberty is a concept borne out of a conversation between Casey and myself one boring Monday so the credit is not all mine.

Post-puberty is a condition that afflicts an alarming number of people in their early to mid-twenties. It is an epidemic indeed. And don’t think having a Y chromosome prevents you from suffering from the worst of it. Oh no, post-puberty does not discriminate between genders although females may experience more severe symptoms.

Now that I’ve got you all looking for strange rashes and other goodies (you hypochondriacs :o)), I should explain just what it is you are suffering from. Post-puberty is a sort of mental puberty. We all know what happens during puberty right? Hormones go out of whack, teen angst ensues and then eventually you’re an adult and life goes on it’s merry way. Or so you think.

Then you hit your early twenties and realize that it won’t be long before you’ll have to start really ACTING like an adult. This doesn’t just mean an increase in maturity but GASP responsibility. Soon you are faced with the dreaded question “what are you going to do when you graduate.” If you are like many a student, this question will inevitably result in the onset of panic and nervous twitches as you are faced with the reality that you will not be able to stay in school forever and will, not too long from now, have to go out into the real world, get a real job and stop leeching off of parents, the government or part-time employment for money. Quelle tragedie! At this point you may also realize that the chances of striking it rich in media studies, philosophy or basket weaving is rather slim and that a job probably won’t just be dropped on your lap when you graduate.

For members of the fairer sex it is even more difficult. I know, I know, we always get the short end of the stick but at least we live longer. Women are also faced with the question of when/if they are going to have children, if they are going to have a career or a family etc etc. And no matter what she chooses, there will be an arm of society that will think she is doing a disservice to womankind, her children, society and so on. We can’t win!

Ah life, sucks doesn’t it? But don’t crack open your collection of angsty-poems from your teen years just yet. All is not lost. Though I’m still stuck in post-puberty myself, I’ve heard rumors that just like its predecessor, this too shall pass. And look on the bright side, the next time you need to get out of gym class you can claim mental menstruation.