Strictly for Rants :)
I recently realized that I rant a lot on my WhatsApp status — well, I wouldn’t call it a realization any more than it is a habit. I have been doing this, probably since 2020, during the height of the pandemic and quarantine. I always had something to comment on. I mean, X — or as it was called then, “Twitter” was a complete brawl, and probably my favorite social media interface. I may have spent more time on it than I did on IG — unlike now, where I spend endless hours scrolling through posts and sharing reels like it’s a blood-pact or something. However, my growth in WhatsApp presence/engagement grew massively in 2022. There was a strike that lasted eight months. I had just graduated from secondary school and was pretty much jobless as well. So, yes — there was a lot of time to probably say a lot of stuff, so long as it grabbed my attention well enough to speak on. And I was also quite articulate as well (something I get a lot of props for).
In recent times, I’ve been wanting to leave WhatsApp — and pretty much social media as a whole. But if I’m being honest, that’s just a goal that I don’t think is realistic for me, not at this point in my life, at least. Why? Cause I’m still an undergrad, unfortunately, and a lot of the most important information concerning school gets shared in our WhatsApp class group. Which means, your mates are likely to graduate ahead of you if you’re offline for too long. And trust me, with how sick I am of this institution already, I can’t imagine spending another month past my graduation in this place. Which is probably why it’s been hard staying away from my status updates now and then — I can’t lie, stuff gets addictive sometimes. And speaking of addiction, Instagram! I can’t even begin to explain how much screen time that gradient colored application takes away from me. And it’s not even funny at this point. It’s probably the first and last app I open before I go to bed for the day. But just so I don’t digress from the main topic of this essay, I’ll probably write a separate piece on my IG addiction some other time. For now, it’s going to be a focus on my WhatsApp status rants.
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The truth is, I do a lot of passive — often misdirected aggression on my WhatsApp status. This often has a way of grabbing my CL’s attention. Dreezy often cites how much he enjoys viewing my rants. He calls my psychotic episodes “absolute cinema”. And to be honest, I don’t blame him in the slightest — I do be wiling sometimes. So much so, my rants have actually caused heated arguments with my partners on what my views often are and how much impact that has on me and the position I’m currently in right now — I know they somewhat care about me and all, but sometimes I just have to say it. But then, I can’t help but feel like WhatsApp is beginning to feel like a limiting medium to say whatever I have to say, give it the most articulate analysis possible, and have the most fulfilling engagement as I possibly can on whatever it is I’m ranting about. And to be honest, it’s been feeling like much of an empty endeavor doing that than actually having anything meaningful coming out of those status updates. And for a more technical reason that backs up why I want to tone it down, the WhatsApp status update options don’t really favour a lot of textual content; it has a very annoying way of cutting texts past a certain number, which leaves the result looking really weird. And that just means I have to create more slides of text posts — which frankly, is really not my thing.
I’ve spent the last few months exploring more topic-based media like YouTube, Reddit, Medium, Discord, and even Substack. Basically, trying to see where my next addiction takes me. Also, I’ve really wanted to rekindle my reading culture in a more traditional way (reading physical books and other written materials like articles as well), but I’ve come to realize that this is also another unrealistic standard I’m setting for myself — maybe for now at least. However, no matter what I do, my core goal is to have it rooted in critical thinking and effective communication, and engagement. I love to think, and not just think — but share those thoughts with people around me. It’s the reason I’m so into competitive debating — because it feels like the only place where people actually engage with your views, no unnecessary clap-backs, no faux intellectualism or one-liners — just a pure display of logic. And this is pretty much why I’m growing tired of just typing my opinions on my status. I want to actually do more, not in a manner that looks like I’m seeking unnecessary attention, but in a manner that feels like it connects, informs, and most importantly, gives proper intellectual engagement.
Which is why I’ll be doing a lot of my ranting somewhere away from my WhatsApp status moving forward — maybe not all of it, but the more thought-provoking ones at least. I feel this step would actually give my thoughts the proper space they need to be effective and a lot more relevant. And sure, I know you’re thinking, “What do you plan on getting out of this?” To be honest, my mind isn’t really on what I get out of it, but more on what it achieves. Do I want to be an actual content writer? I don’t think so — personally, I think there’s too much content being consumed and not a lot of thought being dished out. I probably don’t want to see my writings go to waste, but to say I want to package them like commercial content material? Nah, that’s not one of my goals right now. Besides, I have a lot I’m trying to excel in already — and that’s my design skill and knowledge. I just think people need to start critically thinking and maybe penning down those critical thoughts more. Cause there’s a lot of BS being rolled out daily, and it’s crazy how much we just mindlessly buy into that stuff.
I plan to just focus on design, music, and debate — since these are the things that currently define me and where my head is currently at right now. Substack and Reddit would probably be where these thoughts go for now — I may even expand to Medium, but I plan to use that as my consumption space for now. So, stay tuned for a lot more if you’re like Dreezy and are a fan of my status updates. I’ll definitely make sure to drop links whenever I have something posted or shared on those platforms as well.
TSA.
