Yesterday I heard a kid use "trending" to mean popular. This was at a carnival, referring to a ride "trending" in the sense of having a long line. Feel like this is the modern version of LOL and OMG escaping into conversation.
by Zach Weinersmith at https://bsky.app/profile/zachweinersmith.bsky.social/post/3lsr2cs55jc2h
I keep thinking back to Abe Simpson's quote, "I used to be with it, then they changed what it was. Now what I'm with isn't it, and what is it is weird and scary to me."
What I'm with definitely is no longer it, but what is it is novel and curious to me.
I 100% understand "chat." If you've ever heard someone address a real or imagined audience as "sports fans" it's that same psychology, mimicking radio, television or now internet streamers. I'm not going to adopt it but I fully get how it works.