i’m pretty interested in the internet, but i’m not really interested in weighing the pros and cons of it. we can all agree there are some sincerely evil aspects to being online. but it’s also a pretty fun place to be if you do it right.
for starters, it’s useful as fuck.
examples:
maps helps you find the fastest route to a chicken restaurant near you.
texting makes it easy to tell your friends you love them every day.
tinder helps you find other people who are available and looking for dating or sex.
alarms remind you when it’s time to do that thing you would’ve forgotten about otherwise.
and those are pretty good things. but i believe the best parts of the internet are the ones that enhance our offline experiences.
asking “does this thing add to or subtract from my real life?” is a pretty simple way to test whether you should spend time or energy on it. it’s a great lever to pull when you’re deep in a sad pit looking at other people having fun or being good looking.
so, when the internet is making you feel bad or sad or insecure (which is usually what it does to me) — remember that it’s not just a giant despair generator or shopping mall (even though it is definitely good at being both of those things).
it’s also great resource you can use to make your real life easier, richer, or more fun. and there are infinite opportunities to do that. you just have to look.
the magazine rack is an online repository of digitized print publications from the past and present. you can find almost anything here. topics range from knitting to pc/software/tech culture to legos to agriculture to porn. worth digging around in for a few hours to see what you can find. lots of great visual inspiration and opportunities to learn about something new. if you’re not into either of those things then you’re in the wrong place and should unsubscribe from this newsletter.
if you find something really fun in there, please email me with the link and tell me why you liked it.
our little planet is a collection of videos made and compiled by alexander carusillo. he built a newsletter platform a few years ago called doublebounce that i really liked but isn’t around anymore. i don’t really know what happened to it. i remembered it the other day and looked it up and found out this guy made it but is doing this other stuff now instead.
the videos are about nothing. i like to put them on my second screen when i’m working so it feels like i’m watching a tv show about what someone else is seeing while they’re taking a short rest somewhere. he has a bunch of other little web projects worth checking out, too. most of them have to do with sound and image. they’re probably more fun if you actually know how to use computers and are into coding or web developing, but i don’t so some are hard for me to fully explore. i do especially like the project other lives if you want to start there.
this is a tumblr archive of images from the early-mid 00’s uploaded to IRC Galleria, a European social media site built in 2000. it’s a refreshing look back into pre-iphone social media when you had to upload photos from a digital camera or scan them onto your desktop and then post them online. euro y2k culture at its finest and most pure. lots of unimpressive pictures of people doing mundane things. a reminder of what we documented before we were always on and people built things specifically to be photographed in front of and uploaded to the internet.
this is a public google doc where you can trade/buy/share seeds with other people. it’s updated sort of regularly but there aren’t as many items in there as there were last time i checked. still just sort of makes me feel nice to know it exists and that people are down to share seeds via google doc.
earthly pleasures
no comments. just vibes.
pancakes
feeding yourself is cool. feeding other people is even cooler.
and if you’re just learning how to feed yourself or other people, pancakes are the perfect place to start. like most breakfast foods, pancakes are fast and easy to make because you’re probably cooking them first thing in the morning when you’re still sleep-stoned and drool-y from the night before.
a weak pancake game is some especially low vibrational shit. especially if you’re old enough to pay taxes and vote. breakfast is an intimate and beautiful meal, and knowing how to cook it is extremely attractive.
so if you care about being sexy or a good friend or a good cook — learn how to make breakfast. learn to make breakfast and you can learn how to make anything, friends and lovers included.
the first step in making great pancakes is finding a recipe worth taping to the fridge.
why are we taping a recipe to the fridge? 1. it’s easy to locate in an emergency. 2. a recipe posted up in the kitchen gives the appearance that you know what you’re doing in there. and appearances are 50% of doing anything. like if you invited me over and i saw a recipe taped on your fridge, id automatically be like “damn okay they must get to work in here” and assume you’re a great cook. it’s that easy. tape this recipe to the fridge and you’re already halfway there.
and you’re maybe thinking “but there are a million pancake recipes. how do you know that this is the one?” i know because ive made a lot of other pancakes without this recipe and they all sucked. and then i found a pretty good recipe and tweaked it til the pancakes turned out exactly the way i like them, so now it’s a great recipe.
if reading this got you thinking about how pancakes taste, these pancakes taste just like that.
just give me the recipe already, damn.
support people growing food near you
love you thanks :’)