I think about kid memes sometimes. The way they’re passed from grade-to-grade without any recorded media as a source–or any to perpetuate it–is a thing that grown-ups haven’t had in a long time in our culture, I don’t think, or not with nearly the same frequency. A totally oral tradition. Then kids outgrow it but they’ve already infected the littler kids with the meme.
I mostly think about the songs. Sometimes they had hand-clapping routines. Or I guess the jump-rope songs. The really bizzare thing is I remember the girls at camp (we’re talking around age ten at most) used to sing one of the filthiest songs I’ve ever heard, and the adult staff never batted an eyelash (because there were no curse-words, I guess. Come to think of it, it was probably regarded as harmless since they all sang it themselves when they were there–the camp had strong camper-to-counselor traditions.) “Minnie the Mermaid,” if you’re familiar, though undoubtedly there are variations.
It just seems like this really special thing that nobody ever acknowledges. Except Groening, he used to put 'em in Life In Hell.
