Idk, man. There’s a certain vapid hollowness to a lot of the consumerist fan cultures.
Like, I’m not going to complain that you’ve got a desk covered in “I love golf” tchotchkes or bobble heads of your favorite movie character all over your bedroom or Batman’s logo tattooed on your arm. But I’m not going to admire you for it.
Don’t waste your time being cool to have fun
It’s nice not to be so self-conscious that you can’t enjoy yourself and cultivate friends who enjoy the same thing. But sometimes its also nice to do a little bit of introspection when other people are consistently turned off by what you’re doing with all your time and money.
Hate the sin, not the sinner, though. I also get really upset about consumerist culture, but I try not to take it out on the people who enjoy it. It’s really the capitalists at the top of the chain that are pushing all that crap, and they do it because they love money. If the world were better, and there were more responsible ways to enjoy that sort of thing, I think most people would jump on it.
I try not to take it out on the people who enjoy it.
Like I said, I’m not here to rub my opinions in anyone’s face. I just don’t think reflexively hording shit is the kind of “fun” I’m going applaud someone for engaging in.
No more than watching a guy chug a bottle of vodka or smoke a pack of cigarettes
Given how hung up you are with what other people enjoy (it’s sooo gracious of you to not complain to them directly) and your judgement of the “quality” of that enjoyment, maybe you should try a little more of that introspection you seem to admire. As long as they’re not hurting anyone else, their hobbies are theirs. Not everybody needs to be a philosopher for their hobbies to have meaning to them. This post isn’t about YOU approving or accepting of other people’s weird hobbies. It’s about admiring people because of their enthusiasm, regardless of you or anyone else thinks. Focusing on your own judgmental attitudes about those hobbies totally and completely misses the point.
That’s my point. Your judgemental “speaking your truth” is antithetical to the entire point of the post. To be sure, it is a paradox of tolerance, but that’s no excuse.
Yeah consumerism can be bad. But not everyone is into weaving baskets from grass.
I do agree a little though, someone with 500 funko pops isn’t doing the environment (or the slaves in China that made them) any favors. But if they enjoy it, do it. 1 billionaires jet flight destroys more than 1 of us ever could in an entire lifetime if we bought 20 funkos a day. Not to mention the running cost of their 10 homes and yachts.
But not everyone is into weaving baskets from grass.
That’s just it, though. When people are convinced that any kind of Arts & Crafts activity is tedious and boring, the reflexively avoid it. And the end result is a reinforced cycle of Shop Therapy, where people want new things in their lives but are too insecure about their own skills or intimidated by the process of artistic creation. So they just buy someone else’s work product. Or some machine’s work product. Or some AI’s work product.
But if they enjoy it, do it.
In my experience, people who are hording collectibles aren’t happy so much as they are remembering a time when they were happy and struggling to recreate that experience.
Idk mixing and recording music is tedious and boring sometimes and I still do it. I paint furniture. I repair cars. The truth of the matter is all of those things involve buying something to do the job. Or fixing your house. Thats just how the world is. You aren’t gonna find shingles and 2x4s and nails out in the woods to gather.
I’m definitely one of those, except my "collectibles " all serve a function. I don’t get things that just sit. If it is sittiitng, I sell it (like my old Atari I never used anymore).
I could probably be better about buying things, but the things I buy enable me to do more. I’m a project person. And, I usually buy used if I ever can.
Definitely better than folks buying endless plastic un repairable junk on amazon that they dont need at all.
I don’t think it’s fair to expect or demand people love your shit.
I do think it’s fair to ask people who dislike your shit to exercise some discretion in thier engagement. Dropping in just to say “lol that sucks” is something that probably need not be said.
I think this post is just encouraging the latter: not into some harmless hobby? That’s fine, no need to shit on people who are into it.
Idk, man. There’s a certain vapid hollowness to a lot of the consumerist fan cultures.
Like, I’m not going to complain that you’ve got a desk covered in “I love golf” tchotchkes or bobble heads of your favorite movie character all over your bedroom or Batman’s logo tattooed on your arm. But I’m not going to admire you for it.
It’s nice not to be so self-conscious that you can’t enjoy yourself and cultivate friends who enjoy the same thing. But sometimes its also nice to do a little bit of introspection when other people are consistently turned off by what you’re doing with all your time and money.
Hate the sin, not the sinner, though. I also get really upset about consumerist culture, but I try not to take it out on the people who enjoy it. It’s really the capitalists at the top of the chain that are pushing all that crap, and they do it because they love money. If the world were better, and there were more responsible ways to enjoy that sort of thing, I think most people would jump on it.
Like I said, I’m not here to rub my opinions in anyone’s face. I just don’t think reflexively hording shit is the kind of “fun” I’m going applaud someone for engaging in.
No more than watching a guy chug a bottle of vodka or smoke a pack of cigarettes
Given how hung up you are with what other people enjoy (it’s sooo gracious of you to not complain to them directly) and your judgement of the “quality” of that enjoyment, maybe you should try a little more of that introspection you seem to admire. As long as they’re not hurting anyone else, their hobbies are theirs. Not everybody needs to be a philosopher for their hobbies to have meaning to them. This post isn’t about YOU approving or accepting of other people’s weird hobbies. It’s about admiring people because of their enthusiasm, regardless of you or anyone else thinks. Focusing on your own judgmental attitudes about those hobbies totally and completely misses the point.
I’m just speaking my truth, bro.
That’s my point. Your judgemental “speaking your truth” is antithetical to the entire point of the post. To be sure, it is a paradox of tolerance, but that’s no excuse.
Yeah consumerism can be bad. But not everyone is into weaving baskets from grass.
I do agree a little though, someone with 500 funko pops isn’t doing the environment (or the slaves in China that made them) any favors. But if they enjoy it, do it. 1 billionaires jet flight destroys more than 1 of us ever could in an entire lifetime if we bought 20 funkos a day. Not to mention the running cost of their 10 homes and yachts.
That’s just it, though. When people are convinced that any kind of Arts & Crafts activity is tedious and boring, the reflexively avoid it. And the end result is a reinforced cycle of Shop Therapy, where people want new things in their lives but are too insecure about their own skills or intimidated by the process of artistic creation. So they just buy someone else’s work product. Or some machine’s work product. Or some AI’s work product.
In my experience, people who are hording collectibles aren’t happy so much as they are remembering a time when they were happy and struggling to recreate that experience.
Idk mixing and recording music is tedious and boring sometimes and I still do it. I paint furniture. I repair cars. The truth of the matter is all of those things involve buying something to do the job. Or fixing your house. Thats just how the world is. You aren’t gonna find shingles and 2x4s and nails out in the woods to gather.
I’m definitely one of those, except my "collectibles " all serve a function. I don’t get things that just sit. If it is sittiitng, I sell it (like my old Atari I never used anymore).
I could probably be better about buying things, but the things I buy enable me to do more. I’m a project person. And, I usually buy used if I ever can.
Definitely better than folks buying endless plastic un repairable junk on amazon that they dont need at all.
Absolutely.
This is actually fair.
I don’t think it’s fair to expect or demand people love your shit.
I do think it’s fair to ask people who dislike your shit to exercise some discretion in thier engagement. Dropping in just to say “lol that sucks” is something that probably need not be said.
I think this post is just encouraging the latter: not into some harmless hobby? That’s fine, no need to shit on people who are into it.