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

By Louise Burgers, Retailing Africa Editor. ‘Dumfungled’ is a word from an previous Scottish dialect for being “mentally and bodily worn out, applied-up and strung-out”. Appears about ideal for the close of 2022. I’m definitely experience like that. WTAF 2022? Like severely? Where do I even start writing a humorous column to sum up this 12 months in memes, when my default location is ‘stunned’ these days, like most other South Africans. It’s been A Good deal fellas!

These were being just some of the lowlights: Parliament burnt down Russia invaded Ukraine, resulting in meals charges and petrol skyrocketing community energy blackouts then switched off any possibility at financial recovery this 12 months KZN was hit by devastating floods in April fascination charges began escalating Twitter became the initial major social media community to implode cash in a sofa brought about a constitutional crisis additional power blackouts will make this a darkish Christmas… and as a result of it all, South Africans retain building jokes and memes.

We could all be really dumfungled, but we can even now help each and every other during the tough occasions, and we do however crack a joke during the worst of instances. That by itself, should really give some hope. These are some of the memes that described 2022, especially in our neighborhood retail and brand sector:

JANUARY

When someone mentioned 2022 was going to be ‘lit’, they really should have specified, as our historic Residences of Parliament burnt down early January. Supplied that items only acquired even worse in 2022, I locate these memes instead prophetic, in retrospect!

FEBRUARY

So, there we were being, worrying about our beloved Fish Paste staying discontinued, when the world economic system was about to blow up, as Russia invaded Ukraine with 1 of the fishiest excuses ever.

MARCH

And so, it began… the war impacted on gasoline and foodstuff charges globally, as very well as the provide chain. There wasn’t much to chuckle about, but rely on Saffers and their darkish humour to continue the meme factory.

APRIL

KZN was strike by devastating floods  – and the insane continued, with the Trolley Bandit earning headlines all-around the earth, as he hitched a ride on a petrol tanker when in a grocery store cart, in the rain, and on just one of our busiest Joburg highways. Observe the movie below.

May perhaps

Elon Musk’s mid-calendar year bid for Twitter was the subject of many memes. It was funny for a time, but that moment didn’t very last. Manufacturers and staff continue to exit Twitter as 2022 finishes and Musk clips Twitter’s wings.

JUNE

Tough relate to this meme. Ah nicely, they also make excellent shoe luggage excess baggage for stuff needed at faculty bags to carry library publications baggage to organise charitable donations and all the things BUT the damn groceries, because I neglect. Every. Time!

JULY

Just after the completely nonsensical story about Ryan Air introducing a ‘test’ for South Africans to show, they were, properly, precise South Africans and not nefarious criminals with faux SA passports, the memes came quick. It all appeared a little bit of an Irish Joke, really, in moments when the truth is truly tougher to think sometimes than phony news.

AUGUST

Some of our models grew to become meme targets as the economic system ongoing to squeeze budgets, and top quality makes in individual, have been singled out.

SEPTEMBER

Stage ‘I don’t know what the hell stage it is’ electricity blackouts from Eskom. At this stage we had to share memes, as what extra could we say about ‘loadshedding’ at this level? We have no extra text – but this is our selection of loadshedding memes, if you however have a feeling of humour remaining.

October

At minimum in Oct, we could all marvel at the spray-on dress debuted by Paris-centered style designers Sebastien Meyer and Arnaud Vaillan from the Coperni vogue household, in a dwell demonstration with supermodel Bella Hadid. The ‘spray-on dress’ movie immediately went viral and every solitary big information network, trend and leisure media, company media, and way of living publication ran with the tale and video clip.

NOVEMBER

November was a very long month, with our President’s Royal Tour, The Cyril Sofa Expose, and Musk’s Twitter Takeover, which was a fascinating social cleaning soap opera, delivered one crazy tweet at a time. I believe we all need to have to consider additional natural vitamins and have far more naps. Billionaires provided.

DECEMBER

It’s going to be a darkish festive season for a lot of South Africans, in a lot more strategies than one particular, following the economic woes in our nation and the continued disintegration of infrastructure and alleged sabotage at Eskom, our countrywide power utility. But, we are fortuitous to reside in a state with weather conditions that isn’t that excessive and a social, braai lifestyle. No lights. No problems. We make hearth.

Joyful Holidays and see you in the New Yr!

Calendar year IN Assessment

2021: https://retailingafrica.com/developments/2021-the-calendar year-dumbfckery-reached-amount-5/

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

Principal impression credit history: Unsplash.com.

Louise Burgers is the Publisher, Editor and Co-Founder of RetailingAfrica.com. She has used more than 20 a long time crafting about the FMCG retailing, advertising, media and promoting marketplace in South Africa and on the African continent. She also lectures put up-grad students in Advertising and Advertising and marketing Communications. Specialising in neighborhood and Africa consumer tendencies, Louise is a passionate Afro-optimist who believes it is Africa’s time to rise all over again and that the Africa Continental No cost Trade Arrangement (AfCFTA) will be a worldwide gamechanger this decade.

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