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Ah, 'Perfectly Imperfect', and other projects that curate, gather, connect, or map out various cultural endeavors, are meaningful resources in this overwhelming era of information. Now, I may be the only one dumb enough to praise them in their own newsletter, even if it's just to the model, but hear me out: You—yes, you—should give it a try too. Do community and culture or whatever, let the culture, not the clout, be your compass, and who knows? You could be a part of something that makes the world a smidgen less vile, a tad less melancholic. Admittedly, I'm not sure how you should do it because it should tailored to your interests, start small, and cherish wherever it is. as or if it grows You may even make a few folks few special or more sane in the process but in focusing on community project you are likely to be the one most transformed by it. I'm still pretty cynical about this stuff, only half belief what I just wrote, but I wrote it nonetheless.
Aug 23, 2023
Related Recs
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I'm not apologizing for making a list within a list. Somehow this is the imagined side of the internet I occupy shared with people like Dana Dawud, Barrett Avner, Joshua Citarella, Angel Emoji, Shumon Basar, Will Sennett, Dean Kissick, Ben Ditto, Girlgod, Petra Cortright, Pool Honeys, Dagsen, Benjamin Bratton, Spiral Jette, Poorspigga, Adina, Emily, and hannah (mentioned above), NPCC, Jack Halberstam, postpostpost, wonderful cringe, Prada Horse Shoe, Charlie Baker, Marianne Williamson, Manifest Destiny Children, Michelle Lhooq, Corporate Kafka, Alex Tyson, Henry Williams, Rachellcells, Devon Young, Jak Ritger, Iceberg Anthro, Tey Meadow, Olive Kimoto, Taylor Scarabelli, Günseli, K-Allando Mcdowell, Megan Nolan, Taylor, Paige Emery, Caroline Busta, Serge, Brad, and my podmates Neoliberalhell and Anti-art. These are the people that I steal all my ideas from!
Aug 23, 2023
I find it boring when people only recommend abstract thoughts. (It's not like I'm above it, I've done it before and I'll do it again), but if that's the only thing you recommend, you might want to go to twitter or whatever place is replacing that site right now 😒. EDIT (2025): at this point, these are not even recs, it's just you displaying your thoughts.
I want to see things to read, listen to, watch, products, places. Go crazy. This is what this site is for.
In the spirit of this rec not being all that hypocritical, I leave you with the recommendation of a newsletter I'm currently loving. It's User Mag by Taylor Lorenz: A tech and online culture publication by Taylor Lorenz, featuring exclusive reporting, interviews, and insights about the online world.
Nov 18, 2024
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i think that while it had it's own host of problems it was really the ideal social media.
multiple media formats were supported. it was easily searchable. the ui was perfect; minimalist, iconic, but also customizable. while there was some kind of recommendation algorithm it really was just largely user-sourced: you followed specific blogs, specific tags, and that ultimately led to a super rich online experience where for certain the stuff you wanted to see was on your timeline and if you saw something you didn't recognize but liked (or something you recognized but didn't like) you could actually change your feed to include (or exclude) that new content, which more often than not came from people / tags you were already following
subculture on tumblr flourished in a way that instagram and twitter have never replicated; the fact that you could follow a$ap yams, frank ocean, et al and be tapped into this new moment in art and media or be in the pits of fandom tumblr or just be somewhere in the middle and constantly see cool photos, essays, etc. (where again, all of this is indexed on specific tags so people can post common stuff on the same thread) is just so much what the ideal digital platform is (for me, at least) - and unlike ig and twitter, you could be multi-faceted on tumblr; the algorithm (or your followers) didn't punish you for liking and posting about multiple things
instagram has carved its niche out by asking users "how monetizable can you make yourself?" twitter has carved its niche out by asking users "how disaffected and aloof can you make yourself?" tumblr was the only place where you weren't actively punished just for being earnest. it's still around but it absolutely isn't the same and the second someone can make a website with the exact same feature set without getting sued i'm so fucking there. pi.fyi is the first site that feels "tumblr-esque" in a while (honorable mention to are.na which i just haven't had the patience to figure out yet)
Apr 1, 2024
Top Recs from @matthew
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This could be one of those rare things that – somehow – reminds you who you are, or who you used to be, those parts you thought were gone. (And trust me, there will be threads. So many threads.) I’ve learned, too, that there are whole stretches of life where you’ve been a stranger to yourself for so long that admitting it feels terrifying, insane even. But without that one thing to confess to, to get honest with – to untangle the mess of ordinary, maddening thoughts – you might never know what’s actually there, buried under the static.
Nov 14, 2024
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Taking your time to increase the quality of what you are doing will improve almost every activity or outcome.
Dec 26, 2023
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It’s nice to log off TikTok, IG, and Twitter for a few days or a week and use much more low key socials to get a new perspective. I’ve mostly been into Letterbox and Duolingo. PYI also fits this vibe. Sipping some iced green tea on a farm in the Midwest not giving a shit about people’s online today. ❤️🔥
May 6, 2024