Here you go. The most accurate meme.
Apparently we’re almost in the fall. I’m not sure what’s going on. The only thing I’ve tracked are Sundays so that I can send you some delicious content.
Here we are:
Lazy Questions for the Week
Who am I without my friends? How do I define myself without my relationships?
In which ways are productivity systems improving my life? In which ways productivity systems an excuse not to do the real hard work?
How do I use work, tasks, and “productivity” to avoid my emotions?
Seeds
To grow wonderful things in your mind:
One of my favorite artists of all time, Edward Hopper was (is?) apparently the patron saint of our social isolationist times. Guardian calls him the artist of the coronavirus age. Here are a few examples of why:
This week Paul LeCrone interviewed me on his podcast. He released a cool trailer (below) and I’ll be sharing the full podcast when it comes out. I had a super fun time talking to him.
As my love-hate relationship with social media continues, I think a lot about a quote from the Guardian article I linked above.
We choose modern loneliness because we want to be free.
Ironically, social media is the opposite of this.
I’m not a fan of Facebook or Twitter. It works for others but doesn’t always work for me. There is no doubt though that it’s a great way to create communities, keep in touch with friends, and meet smart, interesting people. Others seem to have all these benefits without any downsides. I want that too!
I want the benefits without the dumbing of thought, time investment, and validation seeking behavior social media seems to demand from me. Is this possible?
Is it possible to be free without the loneliness?
Till next time,
Pranav
Spot on. Social media feeds itself through our lazy and apathetic state of mind. This is the default setting for many. I believe you can extract the benefits from social media, but it's a constant fight to stay above the waterline without drowning. That means being intentional with your time, and your engagement with others.
In other words, the least optimal time to use Twitter/FB/IG is when you're feeling lazy.
Pranav! That was a great little read. Especially enjoyed those paintings. He captured what it's like to be in our own bubbles, our own filters, our own inescapable loneliness that we all feel from time to time. Even without other people around. We're all stuck in our own heads. Powerful stuff. Also seeing my trailer in here made me smile :) Looking forward to putting that out in the world soon!