science

Vamping or "The One where I get under the Covers with a 15-year-old"

Man I love my job.  In what universe is it your job to hang out with a 15-year-old boy in his bedroom at night while he makes beats on his laptop?  Mine. Thank you Owen Lanahan, for letting me invade your haven of teenage mystery.  For whom else but teenagers could come up with the term #Vamping?  And who else but the New York Times would cover it?  Well them and TeenVogue. As Owen so eloquently put it, "“Sometimes I look up and it’s 3 a.m. and I'm watching a video of a giraffe eating a steak,” he said. “And I wonder, ‘How did I get here?’ This my friends, is Vamping. Teens up to all hours of the night on social media.  I remember in college calling it, "Riding the Vampire Express,"  where you would stay up working or partying all night and sleep all day, never seeing the sun.  But Vamping is just so much better.  And just in case you're thinking this blog contains zero informational material, here is a recent poll conducted by the National Sleep Foundation.  Look, I just made you smarter.  You are welcome. 20140701_Vamping_023 20140701_Vamping_014 20140701_Vamping_008 20140701_Vamping_010

PORTLAND, OR - JULY 1, 2014: Owen Lanahan, age 15, make beats, watches Youtube video, and texts his friends in the evening in his room.  He says he will stay up until around 2am once or twice a week doing this.  Currently there is a term for this called "vamping" where kids will stay up all night on their computers and social media. CREDIT: Leah Nash for the New York Times