25 Ways College Was Different in 2004

Half a score and seven beer pong tournaments ago.

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Complex Original

Image via Complex Original

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2004 was the year Kanye West released his debut album College Dropout and the year you declared "undecided" as your major. Sure you are older and wiser now, but the world around you is far different from the one you encountered playing hacky sack on the quad.

You've tossed your camouflage shorts and floppy belt, and no one cares about American Idol. Ten years ago, you were shopping for textbook deals on Half.com, meanwhile Jennifer Lawrence was still a tween dreaming of ways to win the Internet's heart one GIF at a time.

A lot has changed since undergrad. So, without further ado, let's look back at the decade and your scuzzy dorm room with these 25 Ways College Was Different in 2004.

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You could spot a douche by his multiple popped collars.

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Making sure Arrested Development didn't get cancelled was more important than homework.

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Sexy Spongebob and Sexy Spider-Man were common Halloween house party sights.

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Only Ivy League students could use Facebook.

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Every freshman dorm had a Boondock Saints or Fight Club poster.

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You thought it was funny to call your fashionable friend "metrosexual."

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It was acceptable for men and women to wear velour track suits to class.

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No unlimited Netflix streaming to distract you from studying.

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Campus radio DJs couldn't stop talking about a movie soundtrack.

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Your girlfriend didn't hate Anne Hathaway yet.

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Your phone wasn't nearly as good a lecture distraction.

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You didn't know who to vote for because there was no Colbert bump.

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Your frat brother who always quotes Anchorman felt original.

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You protested torture instead of drone strikes.

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The one conservative kid in your class could get away with denying climate change.

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Co-eds wore capri pants and not yoga pants. (those were dark days.)

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Every bro wore a Livestrong bracelet with pride.

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Only rich kids and nerds brought laptops to class.

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Sorority girls were on the Atkins Diet, not that juice cleanse.

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Ain't It Cool News mattered more to film studies kids than the A.V. Club.

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Your classmates weren't ashamed of driving SUVs.

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If your gay friends wanted to get married after graduation, they'd have to move to Massachusetts.

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Campus Dems supported a more disappointing candidate.

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Your dorm-room fantasies involved Tara Reid because there was not yet a Megan Fox.

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You were watching Paris Hilton's sex tape, not Kim Kardashian's.

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