On any given Monday or Wednesday, you probably notice various Instagram posts with the hash tags “#mcm” or “#wcw” in the caption. By now, we are all well aware that these hashtags mean “man crush Monday” and “woman crush Wednesday.” We are also aware based on scrolling through our newsfeed that there are some users of Instagram that take these days seriously, routinely posting photos of their S.O. or their celebrity crush. As an avid user of Instagram, I was interested in finding out what others, users or “instaless” students, on campus thought about these themed days. Do people just “do it for the gram” or is it their way of showing appreciation for their significant others? Here is what some students had to say:
“I think it’s pretty cute! My boyfriend and I are long distance, and even though we constantly talk, it’s nice to know I’m on his mind (and vice versa). It’s also a nice self esteem boost when your S.O. still blushes over being your crush.”
“I think that it is lame because it’s all for show! If you are happy with your relationship, you wouldn’t be obsessed with showing it off every week; you’d be too busy enjoying the actual relationship. I knew a couple that never missed a #mcm or #wcw every week and they appeared to be super happy, but they had the nastiest break up ever.”
“I never saw man crush Monday or woman crush Wednesday as something you did for your significant other. I always thought of it as something that you did to gush over your celebrity crush or something.”
“I think it can be a fun, harmless way of giving a shout out to a friend or a crush who you want to let know that you care.”
“Why can’t we just do any day of the week we want?”
“I think it’s silly. It’s petty and kind of childish. If I see someone in college posting it, I would think less of that person. I would think they are immature. It’s generally not a positive thing to be doing.”
Well you have heard it straight from some of the students. Where do you stand on this argument? It all boils down to this for me: are you trying to prove to yourself you like the person you are with, or are you trying to prove to others that you are happy in your relationship? Perhaps instead of posting every Monday or Wednesday, we can use that time we spend creating clever captions and photos for appreciating our S.O.s in person! Who knows: it may open new doors in relationships.