How I Be Looking at
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About
How I Be Looking At is a phrasal template used in memes that depict a reaction, usually that of slight annoyance or being unfazed, to an unsuccessful attempt of thwarting a certain event that's often implied to be malevolent. Originating in mid-2020, the format typically uses Staring Animals images to illustrate the joke.
Origin
On July 16th, 2020, Twitter[1] user Lolist tweeted an image of an unsmiling muscular Asian man looking at the camera captioned, "how i be lookin at women when they hit me with the dollar store pepper spray," posting the screenshot of their tweet to their iFunny[2] account on the same day (shown below). The post gained over 2,400 smiles in one year.
Spread
In late 2020 and 2021, the caption and its variations were reused by multiple iFunny users, who combined it with various Staring Animals images. For example, on October 15th, 2020, iFunny[3] user Nate__Higgers posted a meme that gained over 40 smiles in one year (shown below, left). On November 21st, 2020, iFunny[4] user Sadilla posted a meme that gained over 50 smiles in the same period (shown below, center). On June 3rd, 2021, iFunny[5] user Scucc posted a meme that gained over 120 smiles (shown below, right).
The format achieved wider recognition online starting in September 2021 when versions referencing various video games and more mutations in the snowclone started to occur. For example, on September 14th, 2021, Facebook[6] page >Implying video games are fun posted a Skyrim meme based on the format that gained over 2,200 reactions and 390 shares in two months (shown below, left). On September 16th, 2021, iFunny[7] user mcpefun posted a meme that gained over 13,800 upvotes in two months (shown below, center). On September 29th, Redditor[8] TraditionPleasant477 posted a meme that gained over 1,500 upvotes and was widely circulated online in the following weeks (shown below, right).[9]
The format maintained notable prominence online in the following weeks leading into late 2021.
Various Examples
Search Interest
External References
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