It Was Hip to Say Back Then, But Which Generation's Slang Really is the GOAT?

FACT CHECK

KATE NEELEY contributing writer

Clayton, a 14-year-old student at Spring Creek Middle School in Providence, has the skinny on what’s cool to say if you’re a Gen-Z-er like he is. And, according to him, you really need to be qualified to use current slang phrases. He relates, “When older people or adults say things like ‘That’s gucci’ [meaning that’s really cool] or stuff like that, it just seems weird, like they’re trying to be a teenager.”

Top slang terms and phrases Clayton likely hears in the hall every day include: • GOAT (abbreviation for Greatest Of All

Time) or GOATED (In a sentence: He is SO goated!) • Stop the cap! (What you’re talking about is unimportant OR You are kidding me!) • Yeet (To throw something is to “yeet” it) • Flex (To show off) • Lit (Similar to GOAT — if something is ‘lit,’ it’s basically the best thing)

There are plenty more of those terms, but as slang goes, it won’t be long before it changes or becomes so mainstream that you don’t think it's slang at all.

For example, do you really even think twice when you use words like “cool,” “awesome,” or “OK?” In the late 70s in America, “awesome” started to become popular to use for describing something really great — but previous to what most understand as its meaning today, it was understood to mean something more along the lines of “awful.”

‘Awesome’ isn’t the only word that got a glowup over time. It seems to be a trend for words that mean something in everyday conversation to become slang and in the process gain a new meaning exactly opposite to what it meant before.

Lauren Wood, a Cache Valley resident and a millennial (born between 1980 and 1996), in

conversation with her mom Kathy Allan, a baby boomer (born between 1947 and 1964) explained that the word ‘sick,’ was a slang term that started in her generation and means ‘extremely impressive.’

Another millennial from Northern Cache Valley, Kate Oldham lists some of her favorite slang memories from her high school years, “These made me laugh thinking of them,” she said. “Cool beans (awesome), booyah (super awesome), peeps (my people), and dissed (disrespecting someone).” Do you remember any of these? If you do, chances are you’re a millennial or maybe even Generation X (birth years 1965 to 1980).

Kathy remembers when this started to become popular to use among her kids’ generation and how it was so confusing to her. “I always understood ‘sick’ to mean gross and yucky, and when I would hear people exclaim with excitement that they thought something was ‘sick,’ it took me a while to catch on that it was a positive thing,” she said.

You might not need to think very hard to recall some of the things even your grandparents would say. Expressions like ‘dag gummit!’ or ‘Well, I’ll be jiggered!’ or any number of similar phrases can even be endearing as a memory. Cache Valley seems to have a knack for coming up with ‘substitute swear words’ that have become everyday expressions among old and young alike.

Things like ‘What the heck?,’ ‘dang it,’ and ‘frick’ have surely earned places in the Cache Valley Slang Hall of Fame — if there was one.

As much as slang has less value in the ‘proper English’ category, it seems of high value to the generations who claim certain words and phrases. The Gen-Z-ers want to claim their words and the Millennials have fond memories of the phrases they used in high school, but they’re not up for grabs for other generations to claim.

Blake Webster, a Baby Boomer whose kids live in Cache Valley, spouted off some words he remembers from his growing years — things like ‘far out’ and ‘groovy’ take him back, but his kids might’ve not wanted to have been caught dead saying those things at school.

You might find it a fun way to connect with friends and family members alike by asking them about the slang terms they remember. It’s a great way to have a conversation that almost anyone can relate to and one that definitely lightens the mood — and who wouldn’t go for that? IF YOU CAN ACE THIS GEN Z SLANG QUIZ You Might Just Be Very, Very Cool

1. What does “no cap” mean?

A. The person is not wearing a cap B. “No lie” or “For real” C. Someone lost the cap to their drink D. “No guns allowed”

6. What does ‘high key’ mean?

A. A loud noise B. A whispered message C. To make something obvious D. A quiet noise

2. What is ‘tea’?

A. A soothing drink B. A small golf accessory C. A generous tip D. Gossip

3. What is a “bop”?

A. A sport in Sweden B. Something that is vintage in a cool way C. A really good song D. A tap on the nose

4. What does it mean when someone says “facts”?

A. They are receiving a fax B. They are referring a medical questionnaire C. Truth D. It is an acronym for Families Acting

Crazy Together Seriously

5. When something “slaps,” that means:

A. They were hit across the face B. Something is so good C. A plant is dying D. Something fell

7. Define “Sus”

A. Modern way of saying S.O.S. B. A popular shoe brand C. What Gen Zs call a person named

Susan D. Abbreviation for “suspicious” or

“suspect”

8. What does ‘extra’ refer to?

A. A brand of gum B. Something over the top C. Extra credit D. Extraterrestrial

9. What does ‘bet’ mean?

A. Wanna make a bet B. I dare you C. A term for agreement D. Yeah right

10. If someone responds “mood,” what does that mean?

A. They are in a bad mood B. Same here C. A cow mooed at them D. They want a mood ring

Lyndsay Peterson

North Logan’s First Female Mayor

EMILY BUCKLEY editor in chief

North Logan wrote a line in its history book when residents elected Lyndsay Peterson as their first female mayor in November. She was inaugurated last month.

Mayor Peterson felt a wide range of support from women and men throughout the community when she made the decision to run for the position, and it continued throughout her campaign. “I watched a broad swath of our community rally and support me,” she said. “I had contemporaries who had never been involved in politics who jumped into my campaign and who continue their civic involvement. I also want to acknowledge community leaders, men and women, who encouraged, supported, and endorsed me. Cache Valley is a place that prioritizes community and family, and I think that electing leaders who are women is an extension of that value system.”

As for why this piece of history matters, Mayor Peterson says that she hopes that her service validates all of the ways women lead: as coaches, on PTA boards, and volunteering in causes about which they feel passionately.

“Women in our community contribute in so many ways,” she said. “Having a diversity of perspectives is so valuable as we make decisions that impact the families in our valley.

Growth and its attendant issues were among the main themes of Mayor Peterson’s campaign. “[North Logan] as a city has to figure out ways to grow deliberately and to provide our citizens with the necessary infrastructure to accommodate that growth,” she said.

She added that North Logan’s offerings are a benefit to Cache Valley as a whole. “North Logan has a robust recreation program that has the most participants in all of the valley,” she said. “We have an amazing library and we love being a place that draws people to our area for amazing programs. We have some other projects up our sleeves that will hopefully continue to bring people to [North Logan].”

Mayor Peterson’s campaign platform revolved around the idea of building for the future while preserving community values. She says that her grandfather was a fourth-generation rancher who fostered a feeling of responsibility for strengthening the community in which she lives.

Since moving to Cache Valley in 2016 with her husband, Erik Peterson, DO, an orthopedic surgeon, at Alpine Orthopaedic Specialists, she has done everything she can to honor the wisdom of her grandfather and strengthen her community.

Soon after arriving in the valley, Mayor Peterson attended a Friends of the North Logan Library book sale, signed up to become a member of the board, and later began serving as president, in 2017.

“We’ve been working for years in tandem with city leaders on a new city complex, including new city offices, a community center, and a library expansion,” Mayor Peterson said. “I’ve been passionate about seeing that project to its conclusion and feel fortunate that I’ll be able to continue my participation in the city center construction as mayor.”

Mayor Peterson also served on the North Logan planning commission for many years where she says she got a real taste of the issues North Logan is faces. “Nearly every area of Utah is experiencing profound growth and I’m hoping to guide North Logan in growing in a deliberate, responsible way.”

Mayor Peterson will balance her new civic responsibilities with her ongoing duties of a mother. She and Erik are parents to three children: Daphne (12), Henry (10), and Theo (7).

“We came to Cache Valley having no connections to the area, but we’ve fallen in love with this valley very quickly and understand why people are so motivated to settle down here,” she said.

“We love being able to go to Bear Lake on a whim in the summer, ski at Beaver and Cherry Peak, kayak at First Dam, hike in Logan Canyon, and play soccer, volleyball, basketball, football, and baseball.”

Mayor Peterson earned both an undergraduate degree in finance and a law degree from Brigham Young University and worked as an environmental litigation attorney in Ohio for over a decade. She informally retired from her law career before moving to Utah.

“I’ve transitioned from private practice to public service roles, putting my legal background to work analyzing ordinances and bylaws,” Mayor Peterson said.

“When I asked my kids about whether I should file for mayor, Henry said that he’d like to have the kind of mom who runs for mayor.”