high school teenage girls memories

10 Things That Were A Very Big Deal (For Some Reason) For Aussie Teen Girls

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Growing up is tough for everyone but it’s whole different beast for teenage girls.

Between the pressure to be popular and conform to societal beauty ideals, juggling school and a social life, getting your first period, having your first sexual experience, and grappling with your identity and sexuality — it’s a lot!

But I’m not here to talk about the big issues that affect teenage girls (which are, of course, absolutely valid), I’m here to discuss the petty things that were a very big deal when we were younger… for some reason.

10 things that were very big deals for Aussie teen girls:

1. Owning cool school shoes.

School shoes were often the only way that teens could express their individuality, as shoes were usually the one item of clothing that wasn’t part of a uniform. Depending on whether you went to private or public school affected how strict the guidelines were on what kind of shoes could be worn. For me as a public school bb, we could literally wear any black shoes, which meant that the pressure was on to own shoes by brands perceived as the coolest at the time.

In the ’00s, it was all about Converse skate shoes, Dr. Martens, and chunky Colorado loafers.

2. Hugging your friend group every morning, despite seeing them five days a week.

No one is more dramatic than teenage girls who haven’t seen each other for 15 hours. Every single day, you would hug your friends hello and goodbye. Hell, I think we even hugged every time we departed for a new period.

I can’t imagine as an adult ever hugging all my work colleagues once a week — let alone once a day.

3. The bag you carried your P.E. clothes inside.

Like school shoes, a P.E. bag was another way to wield some individuality at school. While the boys tended to bring their sports clothes in grocery bags, or the looser units would simply carry them in their hands, the girls made P.E. bags a whole new genre of fashion.

The preferred clothing vehicle in the ’00s was, of course, Supré’s trademark pink canvas bags — you simply could not get any cooler.

4. Returning from a tropical vacation and making sure everyone knows.

If you come back from Queensland and don’t have beads threaded in your hair or shoulders so badly burnt you leave peeled skin everywhere you go, did you really even go to Queensland? “Looks like Sarah has just been on holiday! Where was my invite?” that one weird teacher would inappropriately joke in class, as you smile smugly to yourself like you were a celebrity.

You probably also brought little souvenirs back for everyone in your friend group and gave them out at recess in full view of the rest of the class, milking every last second of it.

5. Getting your first boyfriend/girlfriend… by any means.

There was one mission as a teenager and one mission only: no, not doing well in school, it was to get a boyfriend or girlfriend. Despite it being perfectly normally for most teens to never have a proper relationship until they reach adulthood, you don’t want any of your fellow teens to think you’ve never had any sort of romantic relationship.

This meant that every day was focused on either asking out your crush or hoping someone would ask you out. It didn’t matter too much about who it was, as beggars can’t be choosers. It could be your sibling’s friend, it could be someone from another school you’ve only met three times, it could be a stranger on MSN — you had to find someone and ASAP!

The relationship itself would usually only last a number of days or weeks, but they would forever be referred to as “the ex” to all your friends.

6. Picking an outfit for casual clothes day at school.

Casual clothes day (or mufti day) at school was one of the most stressful times of the year. Outfit choice was everything and it was all about who was repping the hottest brands at the time. Considering that the ’00s were a real wild time for fashion, this was typically Ed Hardy, Keds, Paul Frank, surfer brands like Billabong and Roxy, or if all else fails anything Supré.

7. Someone bringing a camera anywhere.

Before everyone had cameras on their phones, digital cameras were all the rage. They were only pulled out on special occasions, then came the obligatory upload on either MySpace or Facebook, or if you were even more extra, you got them printed out to bring to school.

8. Talking to someone in an older year level.

This gave so much street cred. Whether it was your older sibling’s friends, or someone you knew from dance class or did afternoon sports with, being friends with someone in a higher form was a huge flex in high school.

And dating someone in an older year level made you instantly more popular.

9. Any teacher that was remotely attractive.

Hotness in high school was all relative. When you’re surrounded by the same people everyday, someone who might not be that conventionally attractive can transform into a goddamn supermodel when they’re the best of the bunch — and this is never more true than when it came to ‘hot teachers’.

Most of the teachers we had crushes on were probably barely a 6/10 in the real world, but in high school they became the most perfect specimens imaginable.

10. Buying your first g-string.

Women talk a lot about buying their first bra, or purchasing pads or tampons for the first time as a rite of passage into womanhood, but what about building up the courage to buy a g-string? This probably came a little later in your teens, but it marked something equally important: feeling like hot shit.

You know the vibe. It probably began when you noticed that one of the popular girls was wearing a g-banger when she leaned over in the locker room. All of a sudden, your whole world opened up. It probably took a few tries to actually buy a g-string, but sliding on your first pair was a real act of teenage defiance, even if it did just feel like a glorified wedgie. I am woman and I am rather uncomfortable!