A nice big bowl of Kevin Bacon-Os

Please show how the following items relate to one another: increasing divorce rate, cable television, the space shuttle Challenger disaster, the popularity of South Park and instant messaging.

The consumption of cereal. Hear me out.

a) Couples that take the time to make and prepare dinner together are much less likely to argue; thus also less likely to get divorced. And if said divorce should happen neither person is likely to be up for cooking elaborate meals. Their only option: to eat a bowl of their favorite cold cereal.

b) And what do people do when they’re alone? Park themselves in front of their television set. Maybe some History Channel, a little Bravo or whatever’s on ESPN2 these days. And so as to not miss the exciting conclusion to Flava of Love, they pour themselves a bowl of Special K.

c) The majority of people I know were raised in the halcyon days of the 1980s. And be it elementary or grade school, most of these people were situated in front of a television set to watch history be made, as a teacher was set to fly aboard the space shuttle Challenger. A teacher, someone a six-year old kid could relate to.

Now I don’t know exactly how much of an impact the resulting explosion had on my generation. Maybe thousands subconsciously dedicated their lives to aviation and science or perhaps they turned towards other more earthbound endeavors. But if you poll them about their all-time favorite television show, there’s a good chance that Seinfeld would make the cut. And as any good fan of the show knows, when the eponymous named character was not engaged in trivial banter over coffee or sharing a “meal” with Banyan, he was often times eating a bowl of cereal.

d) Another television staple of my generation is South Park, which as we all know is the flagship program of Comedy Central. Which has a core demographic of 18-25 year old college students, whose diet consists of at least 35% cereal. I’ve seen/experienced it myself. Whether it’s tuna ravioli night in the dinning hall or just another ravenous munchie-induced night of Lucky Charms, cereal is and always will be a staple of any Cartman-watching undergrad.

e) And finally, for most people cereal has and always will be a breakfast food; something that is consumed because it is quick to prepare, filling and somewhat nutritious. But for others it has an emotional connection. The simplicity of eating a bowl may conjure up lazy Saturday mornings watching cartoons with a sibling or perhaps time spent all day in bed with that special someone. Either way, cereal can be seen as a return to a happy moment where you’re connecting with someone.

Nowadays we are all so busy, that we rarely have time to call those special individuals in our life. Instead we turn towards writing a quick email or an IM. Often while enjoying a moment to collect our thoughts and enjoy a bowl of Frosted Flakes.