The SideNote - a collection of thoughts, conversations and SideNotes on topics, big and small.
The Welcome Note.
I sign up for newsletters and I never read them. Despite my good intentions, they remain unopened and clog up my inbox, until I inevitably forget what they are even about, or why I signed up to them in the first place. Realistically, when do we have time to read a newsletter? The answer for most of us is we probably don’t. Time nowadays is almost as precious as money, and ‘I just don’t have enough time’ is one of those statements I hear in passing or directed at me almost every day.
Part of the problem is the burgeoning economy created out of our attention. Social Media apps line up at the auction, paddles ready, and bid, using the most advanced and innovative ways of spiking our fragile dopamine levels and keeping us glued to their content. Doom Scrolling has become the buzzword of the 21st century and while it may have staved off boredom, it has also decimated a considerable amount of our brain cells.
I am, of course, also guilty of the ‘doom scroll, and I see it all around me, on the tube, on the bus, walking along the street, and even at pub tables. People always craving the thrill of receiving that WhatsApp Message, because we just have to reply straight away. The other person has to hear what we have to say. People love to be needed, and business is the modern trophy of success.
I recently learned we spend 12 years (on average) on our phones, which is alarming and somewhat nauseating. So, I decided to seek out a way to change my online habits and spend my time creating, and doing, something.
'Good things happen to those who hustle.' – Anais Nin.
So why should you read this Newsletter? The aim of this weekly (or Bi-weekly) publication is to provide short digestible notes on things happening in the world, from pop culture to art, all the way through to global conundrums, and big issues. It is also a way to maintain my own sanity and make sense of this strange world. After all, I am a Gen Z, - would I even be a valid if I didn’t have some kind of side hustle?
I am in a race against myself to create a doom-scrollable, informative newsletter to change the way we spend time online.
Each week there will be a long piece looking at a big issue, a short shot looking at strange cultural trends, and a weekly dose of reviews, art shows, books, and perhaps, the odd interview.
Subscribe if you dare, and I will try my best to make this Newsletter the next doomscollable thing.
Topics you can expect….
Englishness - a deep dive into the past and why we are so keen on holding onto it.
Taylor’s New Meaning - what the intersection between pop-culture, politics, and social media means for the future of global relations.
MensWork - the story behind ‘constructive toxic masculinity’
The Last Soul in Seoul - how this South Korean City is a look into the future of the Metropolitan City.
An ode to the DukeBox.
The Psychology of Ghosting.
Is it possible to swim, and thrive, without social media?
Why Margate is the next best cultural destination
About me….
I am a freelance journalist, currently working in between many jobs, as freelancers are prone to do.
I have found finding a voice in this saturated world intensely overwhelming, especially when I scroll on Substack (or Instagram) and read about all the things people are writing about, which seem far more interesting than anything I think I can create. But, writing is as much for me as anyone else, and I think that is something I want to imitate here. A divorce between passion and economy, because nowadays they seem almost joined at the hip.
And so, I also want to use this space to write about the ideas I have which never make it, to the mainstream. All my Ghosted pitches.
