Like many of us twenty-somethings who have grown up with the Internet, I have recently come to a shocking revelation: I spent my youth idolizing and imitating and wanting to be the Harry Potter, the Luke Skywalker (or rather, Han Solo), the Aragorn. I wanted to be the hero. But now, after all this dreaming, I’m pretty sure I’m Squidward.
This guy?
Yeah, that guy.
…Are you sure?
Does this face look unsure to you?
Yeah. Not exactly who I thought I would be, either. I’m not exactly proud of it. But I’m not the only one either. Many of us internet-goers might be worried we’re Squidward. I know that, after a day full of traffic jams, frantic customers, and incompetent management, I find myself frequently saying:
And it’s not just my job either. If I try to take refuge in my friends, I end up on social media. Which invariably leads to actually reading your Facebook news feed.
And in the environment of hourly pay and stupid social media drama, you tend to lose your perspective. As an intelligent person, you might start to think you’re actually better than the people who drive you crazy.
But the truth of the matter is that I don’t actually want to Squidward. No one should want to be Squidward. He’s not the happiest person, or uh, squid.
So, although you might share Mr. Tentacles’ apathy and his love of sleep,
And although you may occasionally have trouble with motivation,
Or the never-ending romantic failures you’ve encountered,
You and I need to remember that we’re not actually Squidward, because if you start feeling like you might actually be him, you might end up thinking you are a Squidward forever.
And no one wants to actually be Squidward forever. He’s not exactly a winner.
So don’t give up! We all have good days, and we all have days where we feel like a Squidward.