PJ Vogt

I was watching this documentary series the other day and caught this bit that felt at first like maybe the most normal scene in American life since the invention of the teenager. Sydney, who is 18 years old, is in her bedroom, sort of listlessly scrolling on her phone. She thumbs, she swipes, she puts it down, picks it up again, puts it back down, calls out to summon her mom.

I was watching this documentary series the other day and caught this bit that felt at first like maybe the most normal scene in American life since the invention of the teenager. Sydney, who is 18 years old, is in her bedroom, sort of listlessly scrolling on her phone. She thumbs, she swipes, she puts it down, picks it up again, puts it back down, calls out to summon her mom.

There's a vibe. If you've lived in a house with a teenager, their moods can feel like these mysterious rolling weather patterns. We can tell here that a storm front is coming in, although maybe we're not yet sure why.

There's a vibe. If you've lived in a house with a teenager, their moods can feel like these mysterious rolling weather patterns. We can tell here that a storm front is coming in, although maybe we're not yet sure why.

There's a vibe. If you've lived in a house with a teenager, their moods can feel like these mysterious rolling weather patterns. We can tell here that a storm front is coming in, although maybe we're not yet sure why.

Sydney's mom shows up from whatever she'd been in the middle of, asks her the question parents always ask when summoned this way.

Sydney's mom shows up from whatever she'd been in the middle of, asks her the question parents always ask when summoned this way.

Sydney's mom shows up from whatever she'd been in the middle of, asks her the question parents always ask when summoned this way.

She can't find an outfit.

She can't find an outfit.

She can't find an outfit.

Even I, a person who often misses subtext, can pretty much tell what's going on here. This is not about choosing the correct fabric. Sydney, who is pretty, is not feeling pretty. Her mom is trying to help her feel pretty, help her find the right outfit, the magical combination of clothes that might allow her to leave the house.

Even I, a person who often misses subtext, can pretty much tell what's going on here. This is not about choosing the correct fabric. Sydney, who is pretty, is not feeling pretty. Her mom is trying to help her feel pretty, help her find the right outfit, the magical combination of clothes that might allow her to leave the house.

Even I, a person who often misses subtext, can pretty much tell what's going on here. This is not about choosing the correct fabric. Sydney, who is pretty, is not feeling pretty. Her mom is trying to help her feel pretty, help her find the right outfit, the magical combination of clothes that might allow her to leave the house.

I grew up in a house with three sisters. This moody tug of war, does this look good? No, it doesn't. Yes, it does. Conservatively, I watched it happen probably 15,000 times. But here's what's different.

I grew up in a house with three sisters. This moody tug of war, does this look good? No, it doesn't. Yes, it does. Conservatively, I watched it happen probably 15,000 times. But here's what's different.

I grew up in a house with three sisters. This moody tug of war, does this look good? No, it doesn't. Yes, it does. Conservatively, I watched it happen probably 15,000 times. But here's what's different.

In this documentary series, which is called Social Studies, the director, Lauren Greenfield, has somehow persuaded a bunch of teenagers to record the contents of their phones for a year and share those contents with her. And so while this conversation's going on, you actually know for once what Sydney, the teenager, is really seeing.

In this documentary series, which is called Social Studies, the director, Lauren Greenfield, has somehow persuaded a bunch of teenagers to record the contents of their phones for a year and share those contents with her. And so while this conversation's going on, you actually know for once what Sydney, the teenager, is really seeing.

In this documentary series, which is called Social Studies, the director, Lauren Greenfield, has somehow persuaded a bunch of teenagers to record the contents of their phones for a year and share those contents with her. And so while this conversation's going on, you actually know for once what Sydney, the teenager, is really seeing.