I’m guilty of moving to a country called Sanity where I block out a lot of the noise of the modern world. I don’t do Tik Tok or Instagram. I don’t watch TV, except for certain news stations when it’s important, and I don’t listen to current music at all. Over the last decade, I’ve become a dinosaur, stuck in a different era on earth.

Occasionally, my kids will visit me in Sanity and bring me news from the outside world. They’ll suggest a few apps I might like, catch me up on the latest trends, and tell me what music they’re listening to. Sometimes I’ll adopt a few of their ideas if they appeal to me or seem useful.

I checked out Tik Toc for the first time recently and came face to face with the Cotsco Guys. Apparently, I’m the only one in the known universe not to know who they are. A father and son, named A.J. and Big Justice, are from Boca Raton, Florida, and they gained widespread popularity on TikTok last year. Their content features enthusiastic reviews of Costco products, where they rate items as a “BOOM!” for approval or a “DOOM!” for disapproval.

This unique and rather loud rating system, often referred to as the “Boom Meter,” is a hallmark of their videos. Their first viral TikTok last year showcased them shopping for meatballs at Costco. Their catchphrase, “We bring the boom to you,” became so popular that they released a hip-hop single titled “We Bring the Boom” which is a silly song that brought them a lot of attention. As their popularity grew, they expanded their content to include collaborations with other social media personalities, such as “The Rizzler,” a young influencer known for his unique ability to make charming faces. (I know, I don’t get it either.) The trio appeared on The Tonight Show in October, marking their late-night television debut.

They’re making lots of money, folks. They’re laughing all the way to the bank.

If, by chance, you’ve been home listening to Beethoven and reading American classics, you’re not missing a whole lot. But I told my husband we’ve been doing life all wrong. Attention seekers make a lot of money. We just need to put ourselves out there more. I wonder if anyone would like to see my husband fixing a hinge on a cabinet or vacuuming out the car.

But there were some things I enjoyed watching on these platforms, especially home makeovers. The Millenials, stuck in apartments they don’t like because they can’t afford to buy a house, or can’t afford the house of their dreams, are finding ways to bring character to their interiors, like crown molding, shiplap walls, Ikea built-in cabinet hacks, and self-tiled bathroom floors. What I love most is seeing how many women are doing the hard labor. They’ve taught themselves how to use saws and nail guns, and they’re creating things like built-in entertainment centers with such ease, it’s almost like they’re baking a cake.

It was absolutely fascinating to watch young women donning tool belts and creating their own coffee bars and wall molding. They’re cutting tiles for backsplash and putting in wood floors. And it’s not so much the fact that they’re women that intrigues me, but more this idea that people are teaching themselves to do things again out of necessity. That’s a good thing for the pampered people of Western Civilization.

I visited India once and saw a five-year old boy standing next to a campfire made of wood in his backyard. He was cooking a meal in several pots that straddled the fire. His two younger siblings were running around the dirt yard and he was minding them as he cooked, and I’ll tell you, I was blown away that this small child was so capable. A five-year old? Cooking and babysitting at the same time? It occurred to me that all humans are capable of a lot more than we realize, and that any limits we impose on ourselves are of our own doing. This Indian child was completely capable, his skills born out of necessity in his impoverished household. I remembered that recently, a woman in the United States was arrested for letting her ten-year old walk to the playground alone two blocks from their house.

YouTube and Tik Tok are teaching people how to do things–cook, garden, parent, build and tinker and paint. And while phenomenons like the Cotsco Guys seem to set us back in our evolution as human beings just a bit, I think the potential the Internet has for teaching us to be self-reliant makes up for it in big ways.