The internet feels like a dumpster fire that someone keeps pouring gasoline on.
Every platform is optimised for outrage. Every algorithm rewards anger. Every comment section turns into a battlefield where nuance goes to die.
Your feed is probably 90% people screaming about things that make your cortisol levels spike before you’ve even finished your morning coffee.
(I know I felt that way this morning when I dared to peak at my phone)
We all know this isn’t by accident. Rage drives engagement. Fear keeps you scrolling. Controversy generates clicks. The platforms have figured out that your lizard brain can’t resist a good fight, even when that fight is slowly poisoning your ability to think clearly.
So I’m building an antidote.
A living document of good vibes. Literature quotes that remind you why language matters. Ideas that make you think instead of react. Aesthetics that feed your soul instead of depleting it. Creative work that proves humans are capable of making beautiful things instead of just tearing each other apart.
You know? Art stuff that makes us feel alive and a part of something.
Call it digital detox. Call it curated sanity. Call it whatever you want. But your brain needs this more than you realise. (Well mine does, so why not share it with you too, huh?)
On top of that here’s what constant exposure to negativity does to your thinking…
It rewires your neural pathways to expect the worst. It trains your attention to scan for threats. It makes cynicism feel like wisdom and optimism feel naive.
You start seeing problems everywhere and solutions nowhere. You begin to believe that everything is broken and nothing can be fixed. You lose the ability to appreciate small beautiful moments because you’re too busy bracing for the next catastrophe.
I want to feel better and think better too.
When you regularly consume well crafted writing, your own writing improves. When you expose yourself to thoughtful ideas, your own thinking becomes more nuanced. When you surround yourself with creativity, you become more creative.
Environment shapes cognition. If your information diet consists entirely of hot takes and outrage bait, your mind becomes a hot take generator. If you feed it beauty, complexity, and genuine insight, it starts producing those qualities in return.
This is why I need your help building this thing.
I’m looking for anything that makes you stop and think “huh, that’s interesting” instead of “what the hell is wrong with people.” Literature quotes that hit different. Creative projects that remind you humans can make gorgeous things. Ideas that challenge assumptions without attacking character.
If you come across something that feels like intellectual vitamins instead of digital junk food, send it my way. Reply to any email with “Good vibes” in the subject line and include a link or screenshot.
If you’ve created something that fits.
Writing, art, music, photography, whatever, include that too.
Think of it as a museum for functional beauty. A library of things worth your attention. A bookmark collection for your future self when you need reminding that not everything online is designed to make you angry.
The world doesn’t need more rage. It needs more thoughtfulness. More nuance. More evidence that humans are capable of creating instead of just consuming and complaining.
I don’t want to be part of the anger merchants forcing bullshit into our eye holes.
Stephen Walker.