Reports indicate that a large number of young people are buying old calendars from 1996 to celebrate the New Year, leading to a 30-fold increase in prices and a 600% surge in sales volume. How should we view this phenomenon?
Recently, some netizens discovered that the Gregorian calendar for the year 2024 is exactly the same as that of 1996, sparking discussions on the internet. According to Xiao Yang’s video news, both 2024 and 1996 are leap years, and New Year’s Day falls on a Monday, which means that the Gregorian calendar for this year is identical to that of 1996. Media investigations into the calendars of 1996 and 2024 revealed that the distribution of Gregorian dates in these two years is completely the same, but the lunar calendar is different. For example, the Spring Festival in 2024 is on February 10th, while in 1996, it was on February 19th. Although the lunar calendar is different, the coincidence of the Gregorian calendar being the same has sparked intense discussions among netizens. Many netizens expressed, “What a fantastic coincidence!” “This kind of coincidence is really worth commemorating. When will the next similar year be?” “Time forms countless connections with the years that have passed in its relentless journey, and it feels truly magical to think about.” Many netizens born in 1996 also sighed at how quickly time flies, saying, “Time flies, I was just born in 1996.” “It feels like a crossing of time and space.” “In the blink of an eye, it’s been 28 years, and I really don’t want to grow up.” This unique “time overlap” has led to a surge in the purchase of 1996 old calendars. According to a report by the Xinjing Daily, on January 11th, data from Xianyu showed that in the past week, the search volume for old calendars from 1996 had skyrocketed by 600%, and the transaction volume had also reached a historical high. Searches surged by 600%, and prices skyrocketed 30 times! Many young people are buying, and some have started hoarding… What’s going on? | China Business Network
Evident Fake News!
Sales volume surges 600% compared to which year? Were there any sales last year? Even if inventory is found now, there are only a few copies left. Unfortunately, publishers usually recycle these stocks as waste paper.
Prices skyrocketing 30 times? How much was a desk calendar back then? And a wall calendar? Wasn’t it less than 5 yuan? Isn’t the currency depreciation nearly 30 times by now?
Nowadays, such so-called news is used to promote certain products. As media, including online platforms, I personally find this inappropriate.
Emotional Value in Younger Generations' Consumption Choices
Personal view: A 1996 calendar, identical to the 2024 Gregorian calendar, seems useless but has attracted a large number of young people to purchase it. This reflects the younger generation’s focus on emotional value when shopping.
For young people accustomed to checking dates on smartphones and smart wristbands, a paper calendar has almost no “practical” value. However, the 1996 calendar, sharing the leap year and New Year’s Day falling on a Monday with 2024, has drawn significant interest from the youth, even causing prices to surge 30 times and sales to increase 600%. I believe this shows that young people are willing to spend money on such seemingly useless “coincidences,” essentially buying emotional value.
Emotional value, a somewhat “intangible” concept, was often overlooked in past eras of material scarcity. However, in this age of unprecedented material abundance, more people value emotional significance, willing to pay for it.
This is evident not just in shopping, but also in love and career choices.
There’s an old saying, “Marry a man, get clothed and fed. Marry a wife, get your cooking and laundry done.” For a long period in the past, many women married not out of love but for material needs. However, this saying increasingly doesn’t reflect today’s love, with more women preferring a less wealthy but more emotionally fulfilling partner over one they don’t love for material comfort.
In the workplace, the phenomenon of “Post-2000s reshaping the workplace” frequently challenges old concepts. Post-2000s individuals prioritize the meaning and value of their work. They seek not just material rewards but also personal mission fulfillment and social value, focusing on the emotional gratification from their work. They care not only about earning more but also about enjoying their work.
I believe this generation generally dislikes the past prevalent approach of treating people as “resources” in education and propaganda. They are not unwilling to contribute to the collective, but to motivate them, it requires more than just “discipline” or material means. A more diverse approach that fulfills their varied needs, including emotional value, is necessary.
Other answers by @LeZhouChuan on Zhihu:
Since the wealthy hold 80% of societal wealth, why not just encourage their consumption? Do Beijingers really shun outsiders? Is property tax good or bad? It’s said that Westerners, unlike Chinese, don’t indulge in personal connections but have a tipping culture. What’s the reality? Will the population eventually concentrate in big cities?
In a commodity trading platform with a population of 1.4 billion, the search by 400 individuals has become major news.
You can consider buying some 2024 calendars and selling them in 2052.
I want to know which poor guy is buying old calendars, and are there a lot of young people involved in money laundering or speculation?
If there’s no news to report, how about giving us yesterday’s weather forecast?
Young people generally don’t pay much attention to calendars because they can check them on their phones. The Zhihu calendar is pretty good; you can flip through it every day and gain some extra knowledge, which is quite interesting!
Newspapers, like calendars, Are issued on a daily basis. They possess a continuous sense of time, And can evoke people’s love for history and culture.
Every day is unique, And so are you. More and more people are embracing this idea.
In 1996, the calendar is in sync with this year, A 28-year cycle. Because according to the Gregorian calendar, Every day in 1996 corresponds to this year, It’s like time travel.
Exaggeration is also a form of spreading rumors, and the boring media is just spewing nonsense.
Is anyone still buying calendars these days?
When you go to the bank for some business, they’ll give you a wall calendar or a desk calendar.
Even when you buy a loaf of bread, they’ll throw in a desk calendar. For example, Luo Hong’s Holiland gives them out every year, and this year’s wall calendar features his photography.
When you dine out, some of the larger restaurants also give away wall calendars and desk calendars.
Furthermore, with calendars available on smartphones and tablets, who would spend a fortune on a 1996 vintage calendar?
It’s just a marketing gimmick.
Is it the same for other years? The calendar can be used for the past, but time cannot be turned back.
Furthermore, I believe some years are no longer available for purchase.
Drumming and passing hand grenades, what else can it be?
The Swift Passage of That Year
I never expected that the peculiar interests of young people would turn 1996 into a hot topic again, bringing back memories of those years…
1996, New Year’s Day, it was raining and snowing in my hometown. After more than a month of adaptation, I could now run nearly five kilometers in one go during my morning jog. This was probably the first time in my life that I had run such a long distance.
Waking up early and exercising actually helped me focus better in class. The pressure of studying in the third year of high school was intense. The main reason was that I had studied too simplistically in the first two years, and it wasn’t until the simulated exams in the third year that I realized I needed different textbooks for the college entrance exam (the “A-class textbooks”). So, my third year of high school was essentially like starting high school all over again. I had to revisit all the English vocabulary and grammar, and relearn all the subjects with increased difficulty. I woke up at 6:30 in the morning, went to bed at 11:00 at night, and didn’t have a lunch break. I had to complete an English test paper during lunchtime. It was a disciplined life that I had never experienced before.
In July, the college entrance exam went smoothly. There were no exceptional performances or major mistakes. After estimating my score, I applied to the school and major I desired. When the results were released, my score was one point higher than expected, and I was admitted to the university as planned.
Embarking on a New Journey
In September, after a 29-hour long-distance train journey and a sleepless night, I found myself unable to sleep again on the communal bed in the school’s guesthouse. The next day, September 16th, I took a double-decker bus I had only seen on TV before and arrived at the base of Liuhe Pagoda. Carrying a heavy suitcase of about 50 kilograms, I walked a long, long way in 39-degree heat before reaching the school. After completing the registration, I returned to my dormitory, made my bed, and fell asleep until dinner time…
The ancient campus by the Qiantang River had a tranquil and idyllic atmosphere, exactly how I had imagined a university to be, except for the rigorous study pace that my classmates sarcastically referred to as “senior year of high school.” The only closed-off group was the freshmen who had just experienced the college entrance exam, and their study habits were quite terrifying. It was the routine of waking up at six in the morning to reserve seats and returning to the dormitory after lights out at ten in the evening.
However, there was still a rich and diverse life that was completely different from high school. There were class reunions and performances during the Mid-Autumn Festival, and I heard female students from the School of International Economics and Trade singing “Yesterday Once More” for the first time. There were also weekends in the small auditorium watching big movies with Chinese subtitles and a year-end concert by fellow students who had formed a band…
1996, it’s been quite a while, but for me, it’s truly a year worth remembering!
Who uses paper calendars to check the date seriously? Do you?
It’s almost New Year, can news professionals please show a little restraint? Don’t give Zhang Xuefeng more experience points!
Actual search volume for salted fish has surged by 600%, and when you put it in the title, the transaction volume also surges by 600%.
This is the art of journalism!
The media also missed one difference between 1996 and 2024,
On New Year’s Eve in 1996, it was a holiday spent happily at home, having a reunion dinner together,
On New Year’s Eve in 2024, it was working overtime in the office, feeling frustrated and unable to eat.
Relevance: I am a farmer’s grandson, and when my dad was a child, he used to warm his feet by sticking them into cow dung when the weather was cold.
China has a population of 1.4 billion people, so even packaging some cow dung could be sold at a high price.
Young people are still the ones who know how to have fun.
Buying Isn’t About the Material Itself
Buying it isn’t for the sake of using it
It’s about the coincidence of time you’re buying
It’s about reminiscing across time and space
Speaking of reminiscing, in 1996, I just started high school, located in Hebi, Henan
Did anyone foresee time travel?
Welcome to splash ink and stay in your hometown
Standing on the timeline of 2024
We can no longer control the past
We can’t predict tomorrow either
The only thing we can do is…
Treat everyone we meet kindly
Take every task we encounter seriously
Hold onto the people we should hold onto
Don’t do boring things, don’t waste time
…
What year will be the next coincidence in time?
I don’t know, no time to check, it’s a waste of time.
Price Increase by 30x: Calendar in 1996 was 50 cents, now it’s 15 dollars.
Trading Volume Up by 600%: Last year, someone placed the wrong order, with sales of 1. This year, sales are 6, which is a 6-fold increase, equivalent to 600%.