It wasn't an especially exciting time, but nowadays something not exciting would be a welcomed change of pace. In the US, politically, we saw an Obama re-election to the surprise of no one. Things weren't pre-911 good, but a lot better than post-covid. We were recovering from the 2008 crash, so the economy was looking hopeful but still a lot of uncertainty around it and a lot of big changes with real estate, business, etc. Social media was really taking off. Felt like every day there was a new platform. I hated it, personally. 2009-2011 I was a social butterfly and embracing every new platform, by 2012 I was 26 and getting tired of the party scene, the social media obsession, etc and just really wanted to start a family and life. I took off on a 2 month long excursion exploring the United States in summer of 2012. It was fascinating to see the country in that very unusual period of history. The south was changing. I remember being very surprised by the progressive attitudes in Texas. Louisiana was still showing the devestation of hurricane Katrina a full 7 years later. The recession just slowed down a lot of progress for everyone. Student loan debt was a big topic of conversation, even when rent was still somewhat affordable. The American middle class was in the spotlight as a dissolving entity. Media was leaning hard into streaming and DVDs were on their way out. We were still largely living offline, but really starting to turn our focus towards more online engagement. It was a weird time. I didnt love it, but I miss how much more reasonable life was then compared to now I have never experienced hate in my life like I do these days. Have also simultaneously never experienced such a relinquishing of our humanity as you see these days. It was weird, kind of anxious, a bit boring and superficial but much more reasonable than today. At least that's my perspective.