internet ouroboros

a stroll down memory lane is losing an evening to rereading your old posts from seven years ago. when considering whether to deactivate or stay on the bird app, i found a tweet about my migration from LJ to DreamWidth. this kinda thing has happened before and will again. sunsetting an online space reminds me of the closure of a beloved bar or restaurant: not one where you’re a regular, but one you have a Sentimental Feeling about. maybe you realize you only frequented the space on a handful of occasions, though it certainly felt like more. once you know the days are numbered, all you want to do is find a way to visit one last time. and maybe you do, maybe you don’t. when it’s finally gone, that space will come up in conversations like a ghost—how well-loved it was, what an end of an era it symbolized. but just as you’re always thirsty, you’ll inevitably find a new bar: not so much a replacement, but a different vibe. and on and on.

nobody needs me of all people to write a think-piece on the state of social media, despite the fact i think about the internet all the time. i do, however, love how ben tarnoff calls them “online malls” not “social media platforms” and indeed, when i log into one, it helps me to think about them that way (my expectations then better align with why i’m there and what i’ll be walking away with). i’ve mostly stopped frequenting billionaire-owned platforms. my profiles have become ghosts; my accounts like museums, curation within a timeframe, dusty. this kinda thing has happened before and will again. i crave new spaces, so i created an account on mastodon but decided against hive, logged into counter.social once but didn’t dig the vibe (aren’t bars just like that, too?), and signed up for the waitlist for project mushroom. but as with bars, online i’m invested in the people and energy of the places where i want to contribute. thus, the call of the moment (for me, anyway) feels like one towards newsletters, so i’m back here on substack with no promises of whether this space becomes my new fave bar or whether the drinks will be any good. my hope and intention in being here: writing and sharing more updates including mixtapes (playlists), and reading more newsletters, comments, and recommendations. here’s to old faves, variety, good vibes, and reasonable expectations.

i hope you are thriving and taking care of one another.

<3,

rhienna