#fuck algorithms

It's normal, it happens often, and it's normal if I have posts scheduled 24/7 to feed the algorithm, averaging about 40 a day… but one might be an informal diary entry, another might be a movie or book I'm sharing to enjoy, and I even add more, like unusual music I like!

There's a trick, for both PC and the app. It's more a dinamic or protocol that I use with several blogs. If you find one of my posts in your feed and it reminds you of me, just click on the blog's name, and it will open instead of the feed. You'll see the new posts (on PC in two-column view, it's a meter and a half of scrolling for 50 posts), and that way you're more up-to-date. I like posts to mark them as seen when I do this.

I could say more, but you'll have to read where I say it. I can create posts, but the feed that appears when you log in here doesn't show everything you follow, and the same thing happens with YouTube when you log in. You have to check the profiles you like so you don't miss anything. Cheers!

So like, yall know our attentions spans are capital F fucked, right? I was talking with my bf's mom and I mentioned how I used to read a bunch but ever since the pandemic I haven't been literate, like at all, unless it was required reading for school. And she said she was in a similar boat, and that's what got me thinking.

So, I have ADHD, and so does she, so that definitely plays a part in it, but the big thing is that the pandemic did two big things really well: It gave us a lot of time alone to reflect on how shitty the world is, and it happened to be a time where a certain short form content centered app was skyrocketing in popularity. So naturally, people flocked to these quick dopamine hits for escapism and its gotten us to where we are now. Scrolling mindlessly down videos for hours while time passes in a thick sludge, and our attention spans are ruined because of it.

I have noticed its reversible though. After the election, I realized I was in a huge echo chamber and due to both a desire to stick my head in the sand and a desire to not let myself be fooled into an echo chamber again, I deleted pretty much all my social media off my phone.

Then, I started challenging myself to only watch longer content. LegalEagle and Coffeezilla are usually my background noise (facts are comforting to me), and I've also started watching Bobby Broccoli's videos which are about 50 mins to an hour and a half. I've definitely been able to feel engaged in the videos, and watching political content from facts led sources helps me stay enough out of the echo chamber that I only have the normal amount of dread.

I've also been going out and doing things and forcing myself to interact with my friends so that I'm not zoning out and bedrotting all day. Definitely been helping. I also have been trying to do puzzles to get my brain working again. Plus I've been looking into more actual activism stuff (as opposed to arm-chair activism) and that really helps with political dread.

Recently, I finally got the urge to get books and read again. Most of the books I'm looking at are activism related, but the top of my wishlist is about the aids epidemic. Very excited to read that.

I think the problem is that streaming’s algorithmic nature leads to locking yourself into a comfort bubble with the same old playlists with the same old recommendations. “Made For You” playlists further lock you into that box as long as the songs get more streams.

Meanwhile, I watched Rage recently (the Australian equivalent of MTV) and it got me hooked on Reel Big Fish and Little Simz, two amazing artists I had no interest in before because I was never made aware of their music. I rediscovered The KLF through listening to Radio X on the RadioGarden app. Two mediums of listening to music known for constant repeats of popular songs have done more for me (in terms of finding music) than Spotify has ever done.

Thoughts of today: I might do something super crazy and.... delete my art-instagram! 😲 I'm so tired of all the algorithms, and competing in reels and which one just "might" go viral. It's exhausting. I just want to create, have my normal turn when people are able to see it on their feed and having fellow artists follow each other for their work, and not the popularity.

Been checking out both Cara and Artfol, and I do like these concept a lot better, and since my followers are very slim - it does not really matter if I change platforms, and delete the whole instagram account for my arts.

However, I will keep my writing/author instagram - just because its a different goal for me with the promotion (when that time comes).

Check me out on Cara: elenaferndale or/and on Artfol: fernie