TRENDING: 2022 in Review – I’m dumfungled, and you?

By Louise Burgers, Retailing Africa Editor. ‘Dumfungled’ is a phrase from an outdated Scottish dialect for becoming “mentally and bodily worn out, applied-up and strung-out”. Seems about ideal for the conclusion of 2022. I’m surely sensation like that. WTAF 2022? Like significantly? Wherever do I even get started crafting a humorous column to sum up this yr in memes, when my default setting is ‘stunned’ these days, like most other South Africans. It’s been A Large amount guys!

These had been just some of the lowlights: Parliament burnt down Russia invaded Ukraine, ensuing in food rates and petrol skyrocketing community electricity blackouts then switched off any opportunity at economic recovery this 12 months KZN was strike by devastating floods in April desire charges started increasing Twitter turned the to start with significant social media community to implode cash in a sofa brought about a constitutional crisis a lot more power blackouts will make this a dim Christmas… and through it all, South Africans maintain making jokes and memes.

We could all be really dumfungled, but we can however support each and every other in the course of the rough instances, and we do nonetheless crack a joke in the course of the worst of instances. That alone, must give some hope. These are some of the memes that defined 2022, particularly in our nearby retail and model sector:

JANUARY

When somebody stated 2022 was heading to be ‘lit’, they ought to have specified, as our historic Residences of Parliament burnt down early January. Offered that matters only received worse in 2022, I locate these memes rather prophetic, in retrospect!

FEBRUARY

So, there we were being, stressing about our beloved Fish Paste being discontinued, when the planet economic climate was about to blow up, as Russia invaded Ukraine with one particular of the fishiest excuses ever.

MARCH

And so, it began… the war impacted on fuel and foods rates globally, as properly as the source chain. There wasn’t a great deal to laugh about, but belief Saffers and their dim humour to proceed the meme manufacturing facility.

APRIL

KZN was strike by devastating floods  – and the outrageous ongoing, with the Trolley Bandit earning headlines all-around the world, as he hitched a journey on a petrol tanker while in a grocery store cart, in the rain, and on one particular of our busiest Joburg highways. Watch the video clip right here.

Might

Elon Musk’s mid-calendar year bid for Twitter was the issue of numerous memes. It was funny for a time, but that instant didn’t previous. Makes and employees continue on to exit Twitter as 2022 ends and Musk clips Twitter’s wings.

JUNE

Challenging relate to this meme. Ah nicely, they also make good shoe baggage excess luggage for things needed at college baggage to have library guides bags to organise charitable donations and all the things BUT the damn groceries, since I neglect. Just about every. Time!

JULY

Right after the utterly nonsensical tale about Ryan Air introducing a ‘test’ for South Africans to verify, they ended up, effectively, real South Africans and not nefarious criminals with pretend SA passports, the memes arrived quick. It all appeared a bit of an Irish Joke, truly, in times when the reality is in fact tougher to believe often than fake news.

AUGUST

Some of our makes became meme targets as the economy continued to squeeze budgets, and quality brands in distinct, were being singled out.

SEPTEMBER

Phase ‘I really do not know what the hell phase it is’ ability blackouts from Eskom. At this phase we experienced to share memes, as what a lot more could we say about ‘loadshedding’ at this point? We have no more text – but this is our collection of loadshedding memes, if you nonetheless have a sense of humour remaining.

October

At the very least in October, we could all marvel at the spray-on gown debuted by Paris-based fashion designers Sebastien Meyer and Arnaud Vaillan from the Coperni vogue household, in a dwell demonstration with supermodel Bella Hadid. The ‘spray-on dress’ video right away went viral and each solitary main information community, fashion and enjoyment media, small business media, and way of living publication ran with the tale and video.

NOVEMBER

November was a lengthy thirty day period, with our President’s Royal Tour, The Cyril Sofa Reveal, and Musk’s Twitter Takeover, which was a captivating social soap opera, shipped 1 insane tweet at a time. I feel we all need to have to get far more nutritional vitamins and have much more naps. Billionaires included.

DECEMBER

It is going to be a darkish festive year for several South Africans, in a lot more means than one particular, immediately after the financial woes in our region and the continued disintegration of infrastructure and alleged sabotage at Eskom, our national power utility. But, we are lucky to are living in a state with weather that isn’t that intense and a social, braai society. No lights. No problems. We make fireplace.

Happy Vacations and see you in the New Calendar year!

12 months IN Assessment

2021: https://retailingafrica.com/traits/2021-the-yr-dumbfckery-achieved-level-5/

2020: https://retailingafrica.com/traits/trending-2020-summarised-in-memes/

Primary impression credit score: Unsplash.com.

Louise Burgers is the Publisher, Editor and Co-Founder of RetailingAfrica.com. She has put in around 20 years writing about the FMCG retailing, advertising, media and promoting sector in South Africa and on the African continent. She also lectures article-grad pupils in Internet marketing and Advertising and marketing Communications. Specialising in area and Africa shopper tendencies, Louise is a passionate Afro-optimist who thinks it is Africa’s time to increase all over again and that the Africa Continental Free of charge Trade Settlement (AfCFTA) will be a world gamechanger this 10 years.

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