exactly. I’m reading only occasionally on here now and had been saving this one, & it reminded me what exactly drew me to put art on the internet in the first place.
This was so gripping and made me deeply nostalgic. I think, at the end of the day, all we want is to feel like other people care about what we have to say or show, even if it means screaming into the void for a little while. I loved this as always, so beautifully written 💗
Still struggling certain thoughts about Doskys beautiful Idiot book and where runs into kafka. this kind of goes there.... too.
showing up novel I am writing. as rhetorical pilgrimage, that idiocy is part of the plan, a way to let go of overriding horror and the issues pertaining to thoughts as object, movement as slippery and even a duality I call : impotent vs imp potent --
blahblah, as used in philosophy, wrt existential and truth... or even letting slip into miracle I think sometimes of softness and what being a softy brings to it
rather than hardship and the "hard ass" who balks as it walks... cheers.
hey at least we're all hanging out in this graveyard together, — like the best time to hang out in a graveyard is after dark with your friends drinking age appropriate drinks
I too miss when instagram was chronological and all you saw was posts from people you wanted to see, when they posted them. I was just thinking to myself when I found substack the other day how excited I was that it reminds me of late 2010's tumblr, when everybody I followed was posting about recipes they made and ideas that they had about their lives. I guess that's all on tiktok now, but that runs on the algorithm. I think there's a lot to be said about following individual people and seeing their lives, not the monolith of small bites of content packed together into one "for you page".
Thank you for sharing your grandfather's photography. It's a wonderful photo. I visited scotland for the first time this summer and took some photos on film. I did wonder a bit if it was shallow and pointless to take pictures of some of the most photographed sites (interspersed between pictures of highland cows and my sisters on the streets of edinburgh). it's not like anybody on my instagram feed is looking at them for looking than it takes to swipe. getting to go through them with my sisters after the trip and reminisce- that was the real pay off. the film did a beautiful job of capturing the general feeling of the places we went. one of them told me "this is exactly, exactly how I remember it."
i loved the simple nostalgia that you captured here! and i'm so excited for you and the progress on your novel!
i'm still optimistic about the internet; maybe it's an uphill battle, and it feels like by trying to embrace the aspects of it that we used to love we're actively fighting against the model that Big Social Media forces us to interact with, but there are still these hopeful pockets of calm and profound engagement. i personally have a few email threads going with friends back home in the united states, long paragraphs with maybe a month or two between responses, which is super nostalgic because it's the same thing i used to do with my online friends i'd never met in person when i was a teenager. i'm lingering a little longer than i need to in this comment thread — maybe that's praxis too, lol
> My dad spends hours in the evening scrolling through AI-generated YouTube shorts about the US election.
This may, strangely, be the most relatable thing I've read on here. Both of my parents become necrotically dormant auditors of AI sludge for hours on end. My father has even abandoned natural light.
your grandpa's photo was taken at Eilean Donan castle in north west Scotland! it's a beautiful picture of a beautiful place
oh wow - that's lovely to know! thank you so much!
yes, totally looks like Eilean Donan to me! the 3 arches on the bridge match. what a beautiful photo
exactly. I’m reading only occasionally on here now and had been saving this one, & it reminded me what exactly drew me to put art on the internet in the first place.
💗 thank you
This was so gripping and made me deeply nostalgic. I think, at the end of the day, all we want is to feel like other people care about what we have to say or show, even if it means screaming into the void for a little while. I loved this as always, so beautifully written 💗
thank you so much Mel! 💓💓
this is beautiful! it made me feel both forlorn and optimistic, and articulated all my own thoughts and worries about writing. thank you for this!
💓💓 thank you Ella
I love how you phrase early Instagram, it feels like what Substack is now.
your writing is so beautiful always + makes me feel like I’m sat right next to you
Eve thank you so much 💗 let’s catch up soon!
I beg!!!!
once again championing this novel!! I endorse!
💗💗 excited for yours too!!
Still struggling certain thoughts about Doskys beautiful Idiot book and where runs into kafka. this kind of goes there.... too.
showing up novel I am writing. as rhetorical pilgrimage, that idiocy is part of the plan, a way to let go of overriding horror and the issues pertaining to thoughts as object, movement as slippery and even a duality I call : impotent vs imp potent --
blahblah, as used in philosophy, wrt existential and truth... or even letting slip into miracle I think sometimes of softness and what being a softy brings to it
rather than hardship and the "hard ass" who balks as it walks... cheers.
oh this is SO beautifully written - the last lines made my day
💓 thank you so so much Elle!
hey at least we're all hanging out in this graveyard together, — like the best time to hang out in a graveyard is after dark with your friends drinking age appropriate drinks
v true. at least we’re all in it together 💓💔
that last paragraph rings so true!! something i've really been thinking about lately as i debate publishing my own writing on here. amazing piece :))
thank you maddie! 💓
tremendous as always
💓💓 thank you so much
I too miss when instagram was chronological and all you saw was posts from people you wanted to see, when they posted them. I was just thinking to myself when I found substack the other day how excited I was that it reminds me of late 2010's tumblr, when everybody I followed was posting about recipes they made and ideas that they had about their lives. I guess that's all on tiktok now, but that runs on the algorithm. I think there's a lot to be said about following individual people and seeing their lives, not the monolith of small bites of content packed together into one "for you page".
Thank you for sharing your grandfather's photography. It's a wonderful photo. I visited scotland for the first time this summer and took some photos on film. I did wonder a bit if it was shallow and pointless to take pictures of some of the most photographed sites (interspersed between pictures of highland cows and my sisters on the streets of edinburgh). it's not like anybody on my instagram feed is looking at them for looking than it takes to swipe. getting to go through them with my sisters after the trip and reminisce- that was the real pay off. the film did a beautiful job of capturing the general feeling of the places we went. one of them told me "this is exactly, exactly how I remember it."
thanks for such a thoughtful comment - I’m really glad you had a nice time in Scotland and got to take back such lovely souvenirs!
i loved the simple nostalgia that you captured here! and i'm so excited for you and the progress on your novel!
i'm still optimistic about the internet; maybe it's an uphill battle, and it feels like by trying to embrace the aspects of it that we used to love we're actively fighting against the model that Big Social Media forces us to interact with, but there are still these hopeful pockets of calm and profound engagement. i personally have a few email threads going with friends back home in the united states, long paragraphs with maybe a month or two between responses, which is super nostalgic because it's the same thing i used to do with my online friends i'd never met in person when i was a teenager. i'm lingering a little longer than i need to in this comment thread — maybe that's praxis too, lol
loved all of this, but especially the description of your commute - makes me wanna read your fiction!
> My dad spends hours in the evening scrolling through AI-generated YouTube shorts about the US election.
This may, strangely, be the most relatable thing I've read on here. Both of my parents become necrotically dormant auditors of AI sludge for hours on end. My father has even abandoned natural light.