In the fall of 2006 I was a freshman in high school. Back then my favorite places to shop at where, Spencers, Hot Topic, and Nirvana. Three things were a mandatory purchase every month: black hair dye, black eyeliner, and a bag full of Bubblicious bubble gum. I remember arguing with my parents about the possibility of getting a lip piercing but seeing as I was fifteen that wasn't going to fly. My friends and I used to spend our free time listening to Evanescence, Marilyn Manson, AFI, Zephaniah, and Bowling for Soup. We were the kids with the Tripp pants, Converse shoes, and hoodies pinned with memorabilia from various concerts we went to. This is my secret, I was a Gothic Punk.
Fishnets, finger-less gloves, chain paints, ridiculously puffed up layered hair, my style guru was actress Rose McGowan. In every high school clique there are a list of unspoken rules and customs that need to be followed in order for an individual to belong. The music video Punk Rock 101 by Bowling for Soup reflects that to be punk (originally edgy) is to follow a stereotype. For teenagers who put in a lot of effort into their identity when someone mistakes who they are it can be very upsetting.
In 2008 a blow was dealt to the goth clique of my school. The movie Twilight. I heard about the book before and knew some people who had read it but I didn't think to much into it. Suddenly my classmates started wearing clothes from the stores I shopped at. My friends and I were no longer edgy and our social identity was being warped. One person even asked me if I was involved with black magic or knew anything about the supernatural. It was frustrating and after a few months we decided to change our look. Like in the article "The Conquest of Cool" there is a switch between what is popular culture and the counterculture. Once Gothic apparel became the popular culture a new form of counterculture was made to compensate.
South Park came out with the episode: Ungroundable which humorously mimicked what happened to the goths of our school.
http://www.southparkstudios.com/full-episodes/s12e14-the-ungroundable
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