The Lost Generation

This afternoon I came downstairs to a rather interesting scene. It took me a while to understand what was going on, but this is what it came to:

Mom: Well, I am just surprised by that grade. It seems like you need to study.
Joel: What exactly does that email say again?
Mom: Look, right here: "Your child will be receiving an interim report. Please look over the grade and review missing materials or the assigned work and discuss how you can do better. There's always room for improvement : D." (read, "colon, D!")
Celeste: Joel has a D? In what class?
Mom: Spanish. I told Dad, and we both agree that he really should be studying more.
Heather: wait a second. Isn't that just a smiley face?
Joel: Yeah! Mom, that's just a smiley face. Marie uses those like, all the time!
Celeste: She does? Really?
Joel: Oh, well, sometimes.
Mom: What do you mean it's a smiley face?
Celeste: An emoticon
Heather: Look: :P :D ;) :-)
Mom: No way. So if you do a ... : l it's a straight line face? Like...I'm mad?
Celeste: or like I'm mad at your grade.
Mom: If you do it with a c, does it.... :C a frowny face! Oh, I get it!
Heather: Yeah, look at this one! >:/
Mom: That looks really scary. OH! All this time I was thinking it said, "Colon, D.... that's his grade." I'd better call Dad.


The thing I love most about this entire ordeal is that my Mom was totally right, and Heather and Joel are technically correct as well. So to speak. I'll leave you to figure out which of these generations is lost.

But, to paraphrase Gertrude Stein again, "A colon is no longer a colon, is no longer a colon, is no longer a colon."