You don't hear awesome? Spend time around teenagers, especially from California. It is the only adjective they know.

What Teacher Lori said is interesting because I'm super young and ironically I never say "sick"; I would much rather say "cool" or "awesome", and there are definitely kids like me (below 25) that just don't like certain words/slang. Saying things like "sick" is just not the way I talk. So personal preference is something to consider. I think there is a frequent usage of "sick" among younger generations (where it's used that way), but not that that "awesome" is dated or falling out of use, y'know? Is it less commonly used? ..Slightly, maybe. Is "sick" used in favor of "awesome"? Yeah but I'm sure you can find cases of the reverse, so yes and no. This would be a fun thing to look into.

The use of “awesome” is still widespread. You should, of course, use “awe-inspiring” to convey the meaning of “inspiring awe”.

I was going to tell him about the word like but I didn't want to get him confused. The perfect teenage sentence is it's like awesome

In British English and for someone of my generation, it only means that something strikes you with awe, and not as a synonym for 'great'. Younger people do use it to mean the latter though. Personally, I find that a very irritating usage (because what is left for something genuinely awe-inspiring?), so if it is on its way out, so much the better :D