Things That Happened This Year To Actually Be Thankful For
Thanksgiving is a day dedicated to all of us coming together and celebrating the many blessings we have been given in life. Of course, there are many of the typical things we're grateful for—family, friends, Aunt Barbara's wicked-good apple pie—but there have also been a lot of great things going on in pop culture that we can be super thankful for.
Here are some of the things to be thankful for that happened in 2019.
The Jonas Brothers Got Back Together
The Jonas Brothers were the teen heartthrob boys of my youth, which is why it hit me and so many other young women so hard when they disbanded in 2013. Thankfully, they're back together and we're still suckers for them.
Low-Waisted Jeans Have Been All But Squashed Out Of Existence
Whoever decided that low-waisted jeans should have ever existed, let alone be a fashion trend, was seriously sadistic. Now that the infinitely more flattered high-waist is in style, society has found peace.
Ariana Grande Released Thank U, Next
Ariana Grande dropped her album Thank U, Next only six months after her last studio album, Sweetner, and delivered us absolute bops like "Break Up With Your Girlfriend, I'm Bored" to jam to for the year. Thank U, Ariana—we're ready for the next one.
We Got The Coolest Comic Book Crossover Fight Of All Time in Avengers: Endgame
The much anticipated sequel to Avengers: Infinity War hit us hard and fast in April and broke box-office records. Most importantly, it gave us one of the coolest fight scenes ever with the entire Marvel Universe taking on Thanos.
We Had A "Hot Girl Summer"
Rapper Megan Thee Stallion told us that it was going to be a hot girl summer from the start, and we followed her lead. "Hot Girl Summer" was a movement that had girls everywhere feeling fly and looking amazing all summer long.
Liam Hemsworth Is No Longer Married
While he is rumored to be dating Dynasty actress Madison Brown, he's still on the rebound and no longer married, meaning there is now irrational hope that I could end up with him.
The Keanu Reeves Renaissance
I'll admit, I didn't think of Keanu Reeves much after watching The Matrix until this year, when he was somehow everywhere. This strange, tall, handsome man suddenly was everywhere on the Internet, and we're all grateful for it.
Old Town Road Confused Boomers And Owned The Charts
When Lil Nas X was removed from the Billboard Hot Country charts, no one was prepared for him to come back with Billy Ray Cyrus and drop the remix that would proceed to own the charts and confuse boomers for 19 consecutive weeks.
Astrology Became Mainstream Cool
Even though there are a fair share of hateful idiots who love to mock people who like astrology, terminology and basic knowledge about how it works has become very popular in social and print media, and I dig it.
Rihanna Stepped It Up And Gave Us An Inclusive Lingerie Fashion Show
Rihanna saw the Victoria Secret Fashion Show and decided to one-up it with her own. The star-studded Savage x Fenty Fashion Show featured a diverse group of models and demonstrated what the future of fashion modeling should look like.
Fanny Packs Have Come Back In Style
Fanny packs are amazing: they're convenient for holding your items and they are comfortable to wear. The mainstream fashion return of the fanny pack trend has made life so much easier.
Harry Styles Dropped His Second Studio Album
Fans of the British singer rejoice as the former One Direction bandmate dropped his second solo studio album. We may be in love with his looks, but he also knows how to hit us in the feels and we love crying to his music.
Jennifer Aniston Finally Got Instagram
The actress may have been late to joining Instagram, which was originally released in 2010, but she did not join quietly. She dropped her first photo with her Friends co-stars on Oct. 15, and I for one cannot wait to insta-stalk her until I die.
Lizzie McGuire Is Making A Comeback
I fondly and vividly remember sitting down on the beanbag chair in front of my T.V. and watching Lizzie manage middle school life. This year, Disney announced that it would be rebooting the show (with Hilary Duff still in the cast) on Disney+ streaming platform, and unlike outfit repeaters, we love show repeaters.
"Storm Area 51" Memes And Event
It started out as a fake event on Facebook and then somehow turned into a real thing. It went from being a joke meme at the beginning of summer, to news reporters and government officials having to take it seriously, to a hilarious and friendly event. A perfect storm of chaos.
Lady Gaga And Bradley Cooper Made Us Believe In Love Again With Their Oscar Performance
Following the 2018 release of blockbuster film remake A Star Is Born, Bradley Cooper and Lady Gaga performed "Shallow" at the 2019 Academy Awards. Their intense and intimate performance, however, sparked dating rumors while making us believe that love might actually be real.
The FYRE Festival Documentary
It may feel like the documentary came out ages ago, but it came out in January this year. Apart from hashing up the mess of the attempted and fraudulent 2017 Fyre Festival, it also brought along a slew of memes (including the photo of Evian water hero, Andy King).
Taylor Swift Released A Perfect Wedding Song
Swifties rejoice! Taylor Swift released her much anticipated seventh studio album, Lover, this August. While there is a lot of buzz about the album as a whole, the title single "Lover" has gained a lot of attention as a love song that would also be perfect for a first dance. I mean, if any of us ever get married.
Megan Rapinoe's Unapologetic Pride In The U.S. Women's World Cup Win
We love an unapologetic woman who isn't afraid to take ownership of her accomplishments. After the U.S. Women's Soccer team took home gold at the FIFA Women's World Cup this year, Rapinoe's pride and loud celebration of the win was not only iconic, but also inspirational to other aspiring female athletes.
Hard Seltzer Went From Being A "Girly Drink" To The Cool Drink
I swear, men just love to mock the things that women enjoy for no reason. However, this year women got a huge win when White Claws, a type of fruit-flavored hard seltzer that would typically be associated with women, became one of the most popular drinks for all genders.
