Did you know the emoticon of a smiley face that is laughing so hard it is crying (officially known as Face with Tears of Joy Emoji) is now considered completely uncool by younger people? Me neither, but that’s what I read on the internet.

Personally, I’ve never been too fond of that particular emoticon since it seemed to be trying a wee bit too hard, like a hostess patting herself on the back for the meal she served at her dinner party. I tend to stick to a plain old smiley face whenever I choose an emoticon. Someone once said you can get away with just about any comment in an email or text as long as you follow it with a smiley face, although I don’t think that would be the case for the woman I know who received an out of the blue text from her husband asking her for a divorce. I can’t think any emoji he might have used that would have made that chicken-hearted text more palatable, although I can think of one she might have sent back to him.

Anyway, you might be wondering why young people think the laughing until it’s crying smiley face is uncool. The answer is obvious: because their moms use it all the time.

Whenever moms hop on board, it’s a one-way ticket to the land of flood pants and mom jeans. Or, worse, mom jeans that are also flood pants. Just look at Facebook. When it first started, it was all about young people and their lives, which made perfect sense since it was thought up by a college student and marketed to the same age group. Finally, all those sweet young things must have thought, a place where we can post pictures, jokes and questionable song lyrics and only our friends can see it.

Then the moms and grandmas heard about Facebook and the party was over. I’m guessing as soon as the first mom sent her first friend request to one of her offspring, the bloom was off Facebook’s rose as everyone under 25 jumped ship faster than a rat sliding down a greased firepole. The youth flocked to Instagram, Twitter and Tik Tok, whatever that is, while their moms and grandmothers inundated Facebook with pictures of their kids, their grandkids, and themselves going to their junior prom.

Oh, and let’s not forget all those photos of the dog posing with a sign telling the world what naughty deed it did or the cat ignoring its owner. And moms everywhere almost wore out their forefingers hitting the laughing so hard its crying emoticon over the jokes they posted. Honestly, those young people who deserted Facebook didn’t know what they’d be missing.

Or maybe they did, and that’s why they’re still staying away.

I have to say it’s a real blessing to have been uncool for as long as I can remember, long before I became a mom. When you know you’re uncool, so uncool you still played with your Barbies in the sixth grade and went to a Shaun Cassidy concert when you were a senior in high school, there’s nothing for you to feel bad about when people wince over your choice of emoticons. Besides, what’s so wonderful about being cool? Can you imagine the cost of maintenance for the upkeep of a cool persona? Neither can I, but I’m guessing it’s up there.

But back to the laughing so hard it’s crying emoticon. So it isn’t cool, so what? I say if you like it, use it, because, as all those young whippersnappers will someday discover, the coolest thing of all is the day you stop giving a damn what anyone else thinks of you. Now that’s cool.