As we grapple with the relentless perpetuity of 2017, our memes have become both more eccentric and more wholesome. In the aftermath of the random hilarity of the “plums in the icebox” meme based on the classic William Carlos Williams poem, Twitter has latched onto a new joke about all of the things in this world cooler than sex.
As Teen Vogue notes, the meme actually originates from joke account Pakalu Papito‘s iconic 2015 tweet: “sex is cool but have u ever had garlic bread” (a worthy point). In its latest resurgence, people are naming experiences that are at face-value much better than sex (“yeah sex is cool but have you ever stepped on a crunchy leaf,”) praising their musical and pop culture idols (“yeah sex is cool but have you ever heard Lana Del Rey,”) and calling for political change (“yeah sex is cool but what if we impeach the fool”).
In its lifespan, the original tweet has racked up 12,000 likes and over 9,000 retweets — but several of the new tweets have garnered even more viral attention. The only rule is that each tweet must begin with “yeah sex is cool,” and go from there.
https://twitter.com/pakalupapito/status/571508595554164736?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fhellogiggles.com%2F%3Fp%3D2148562%26preview%3Dtrue%26preview_id%3D2148562
Many people are using the meme to highlight the little pleasures in life.
https://twitter.com/lexiberube/status/937876224805830657
yeah sex is cool but have you ever found a scholarly article that provides the exact evidence you need to support your argument
— amanda (@amandanormann) December 5, 2017
yeah sex is cool but have you ever walked up to a stray cat and instead of running away it rubs its head on you?
— YOUNG AND HOT! (@tayallard) December 7, 2017
yeah sex is cool but have you ever stepped on a crunchy leaf
— chris melberger (@chrismelberger) November 28, 2017
Others saw an opportunity to highlight significant moments in pop culture.
https://twitter.com/seriaIkillar/status/938939960194994176
https://twitter.com/bassbrittanyy/status/938664247298420737
yeah sex is cool, but have you ever had a dream that, that you, um, you had, you'd, you would, you could, you'd do, you wa-, you wants, you, you could do so, you, you'd do, you can, you want, you want him, you want him to do you so much you can do anything
— STEVIE WONDER FAN ACCOUNT (@The_1st_String) December 8, 2017
And, being 2017, several people turned the meme into a call for political action.
yeah sex is cool but have you ever fantasized about an infrastructure renewal program funded by the taxes of billionaires
— giabuchi (@jaboukie) December 5, 2017
Yeah sex is cool and all but have you ever dialed (+1) 202-759-7593 to let your senators know that you oppose the repeal of net neutrality
— tay (@BeefedUpBaddie) December 5, 2017
Then, of course, there’s this.
yeah sex is cool but have u ever disappointed ur parents
— nedarb (@NEDARBNAGROM) December 6, 2017