The 'Perfectly Good White Boy' meme originates from the 1985 cult classic dark comedy 'Better Off Dead'. The scene features the protagonist Lane Meyer, played by John Cusack, who has reached a comedic nadir after being dumped by his girlfriend. In a botched suicide attempt, Lane jumps off a bridge only to land safely but miserably in the back of a passing garbage truck. As he sits amongst the literal trash, a sanitation worker played by Steven Williams looks at him and delivers the iconic line: 'Now that's a real shame when folks be throwin' away a perfectly good white boy like that.' In the digital age, this clip is the gold standard for representing wasted potential, self-deprecation, or feeling like 'trash' despite having inherent value. It is frequently used to describe situations where someone is underappreciated or when a person is experiencing a period of intense personal 'rot' or laziness. Example captions include: 'Me after sitting in my room for 14 hours straight playing video games,' 'When you have a Master's degree but you're working for minimum wage,' and 'My parents watching me rot in bed on a beautiful Saturday afternoon.'