I’ve lately been feeling burnt out with life. I couldn’t necessarily put my finger on why or what needed to change until I came across this amazingly said substack (creator @plumfield by Elisa) it really changed everything for me. Once I finished reading her writing, I knew what I needed.
I needed to say goodbye to social media. I started really thinking about it. I felt like I could no longer distinguish what I wanted vs what my algorithm was telling me I wanted. It was a fast and slippery slope. I felt like I had a grasp on my reality and knew that social media was “fake” but suddenly I woke up and realized I was no longer thinking for myself. In a world where the algorithms are so good it's hard to know are these my opinions or is it just what I am being fed? The lines began to blend gray.
Social media to me as it is for many people was my comfort. When I was anxious, I'd scroll. When I was sad, I'd scroll. When I was feeling uncomfortable in a social setting, I'd scroll. It became so natural, an easy reprieve. I feel like I don't know myself anymore because I never let myself just be. I can barely sit still longer than a few minutes without pulling for it. Like Elisa (@plumfield) newsletter said, it’s full of what we should buy, enjoy, wear, and eat. I started to feel like a robot or zombie being controlled by others incentivized by a paycheck and it was ruling my life.
It’s still my first instinct to use social media as a comfort tool. I don’t think I’ve worked through a lot of my issues/emotions in a really long time. It feels like coming up from water and taking a breath. I'm claiming this summer as introspective summer. A time to sit in silence, to take in the surroundings, being bored, picking up fun hobbies, and being off social media! The only things I am allowing are Pinterest and substack obvi :)
Things I’ve been doing with my new free time instead of scrolling
Reading- just ordered 2 new books
Listening to audiobooks/podcasts/music
Joined a pottery class
Spending more time with family
Getting dinner with friends and enjoying good company
Joined a volleyball league
Walking/biking
Tastes Like Summer
Everything about this Vogue article. Everything about the photographer Rebekah Campbell
A collection of photos that taste like summer
I’ve definitely been a lot more on Pinterest now with the free time
Click for more Pinterest fun
Movies/shows that taste like summer
Call me by your name
I always have to watch this movie once during the summer. Everything about this film screams summer
The Summer I Turned Pretty series- it brings back memories of me watching it with my sister on vacation last summer
The Florida Project- the joy of being a kid in the summer
Music:
Cattails: big thief
The bug collector- Haley Heynderickx
Juniper- Katy Kirby
Thank you for reading. I hope this can inspire or resonate with you in some way.
Cheers to the dog days of summer <3
oh my god devin for some reason i never got a notification for this i'm so so sorry. i can't believe my post inspired you that much, that made me so unbelievably happy. thank you! 🤍