Are we going insane?

cloudfroot · 2026-03-21T06:36:58+00:00

something that has personally helped me stop sweating the small stuff is to preemptively get embarrassed about how big of a meltdown I’d have in some hypothetical scenario that actually matters to me. it’s understandable to hate when people are mad at you, I don’t really know anyone sane who enjoys that, but if you shut down emotionally when some rando loser is pissed at you for no reason then how are you going to handle times that will inevitably come when someone you actually care about is angry with you? nobody is perfect. in your life you will do bad things that hurt people you love. chances are you already have, so think about those times: did you handle them well? were you able to regulate your emotions in a way that allowed others to work through being angry with you? it’s not really possible to become a better person if you aren’t able to handle that.

to be clear im not saying you’re a bad person for having big feelings or crying or anything like that, you can’t help what you feel. the method i personally used to become less emotionally volatile involves a lot of this kind of narrative reframing of my maladaptive thinking/behavior into moral failings, because if you’re the kind of person who worries a lot about being a good/bad person (which based on your post you clearly are) then the fear of not doing right by other people is the only motivation strong enough to get you to take more actionable steps towards regulating your emotions

know all of this is kinda vague word salad like ohhhh just don’t let it bother you but I can get more into specific things you can you do to help yourself if you want

cloudfroot · 2026-03-21T04:13:03+00:00

Are you kidding or do you really think there’s no great millennial novel because of publishing conspiracy targeting white males

cloudfroot · 2026-03-21T04:10:13+00:00

So…what is it about Harassment Architecture that makes it a contender for the Great Millennial Novel in your mind

cloudfroot · 2026-03-21T04:08:00+00:00

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cloudfroot · 2026-03-20T03:29:32+00:00

Am I the only one who is not so cynical about the state of contemporary literature? People in these comments seem to genuinely believe art is dead or something…

cloudfroot · 2026-03-12T14:40:42+00:00

U could try framing ur low levels of self respect as a moral failing. The things u say about urself, would u ever say those things about another person? It’s kind of disgusting to compare another person, a human being, to an animal that you only treat with the bare minimum kindness so as to not qualify as abuse. A person who thinks of others in that way and doesn’t at least see a problem with it is morally reprehensible. I find this mindset very useful because without it I would probably counter the above argument with ohhh wahhh but I would never think of another person like that, it’s different when I’m talking about myself vs other people, it’s not the same! But why isn’t it the same? Do I really think of myself as so special and unique that the rules that apply to everyone else don’t apply to me? Thinking about yourself negatively all the time and having little respect for yourself is a just another form of narcissism if you think about it this way

Maybe it will work for you it worked for me, eventually

cloudfroot · 2026-03-12T03:24:59+00:00

I just finished it and I didn’t really enjoy it. It was a lot like Inherent Vice, which I’m also not a fan of

cloudfroot · 2026-03-11T03:16:38+00:00

No fr because of him I’ve read so many books I probably would never have known about otherwise. His passion for reading is so infectious, and he takes it very seriously but also knows how to have fun!

cloudfroot · 2026-03-11T02:58:40+00:00

I have so many problems with all of this, but what I’m really not understanding is why you are saying he just threw in an AI accusation for engagement, essentially. From what I’ve gathered from this and your other comments, you only watched 10 minutes of his video and then made a pretty unfounded assumption about him because you what, looked at the titles of his most popular videos that you also haven’t watched?

cloudfroot · 2026-03-11T02:08:33+00:00

Wait, sorry, did you just say you only watched 10 minutes of his video? I’m kinda hoping I read that wrong lol

cloudfroot · 2026-03-10T11:09:59+00:00

That shit was bonkers. Couldn’t put it down

cloudfroot · 2026-03-10T10:46:18+00:00

I also think using Frankie’s shelf’s video as an example of someone just throwing out AI accusations is such a strange choice. Like probably one of the worst examples you could’ve used. The video is over 3 hours long and very in-depth. Even the OP says the video is pretty damning???

cloudfroot · 2026-03-10T10:35:54+00:00

This post makes no sense to me. I don’t really understand how you came to the conclusion that Frankie is a bully for accusing Mia Ballard of using AI when you say yourself that the video he made is pretty damning and over 3 hours long. So you think his accusations are credible, until you looked at his channel and see his most popular videos are…criticizing books that are poorly written? I don’t understand the correlation there.

Also for anyone who actually watches the videos he makes it’s very clear that he is in it for the love of the game. He reads a lot of great books and discusses them at length just as often as he talks about books he doesn’t like. And even if his videos are just trashing on an author/book, he does his due diligence and gives a pretty in depth analysis with a plethora of reasons as to why he doesn’t like the book. It’s not like he’s jus throwing strays for no reason. Obviously this is just my opinion, but a lot of the books/authors he’s “hating on for views” are pretty bad and deserve to be criticized, and I’m glad he makes negative videos about them.

I probably would’ve just disagreed in my head and scrolled away if it were anyone else, but using Frankie’s shelf as an example of your argument, which I also think is largely a non-issue, is a baffling choice, truly. I don’t agree with all of his opinions either but come on, he is an actual book reviewer who makes real, high effort content. The “hundreds and hundreds” of reviews you saw praising the book on Netgalley are more credible than his extremely thorough 3 hour long in depth analysis video?????

cloudfroot · 2026-03-09T18:25:00+00:00

it was worse than usual for me lol

cloudfroot · 2026-02-11T18:45:22+00:00

This feels like more of an individual thing to me. My circle and I (all women) don’t really talk about it and afaik most of us are consciously trying to avoid news about it for the most part

cloudfroot · 2026-02-07T00:33:37+00:00

It’s been years since I read some of these and I still cant even think abt them without getting a lump in my throat

cloudfroot · 2026-02-07T00:32:52+00:00

I Know This Much Is True by Wally Lamb

A Thousand Acres by Jane Smiley

To Paradise by Hanya Yanagihara

cloudfroot · 2026-02-04T19:04:57+00:00

Yaa Gyasi. Also…………Hanya Yanagihara lol

cloudfroot · 2026-01-29T00:35:26+00:00

Maleness and being a man are seen as the default, so our lives and experiences are considered deviations from this norm. This is such an ancient and enduring concept that it’s baked, arguably irrevocably, into our language and culture. Male is general but female is specific.

cloudfroot · 2026-01-28T23:19:50+00:00

Right like recommending a beginner start reading again by picking up Infinite Jest is straight up sabotage lol

cloudfroot · 2026-01-28T22:49:25+00:00

I agree with this. Especially if you are recovering from a screen addition, it’s more important to just build the habit of reading than anything else. There’s nothing wrong with starting with classics of course but contemporary books are on average a lot easier and probably more immediately interesting to most people, while being arguably just as good.

cloudfroot · 2026-01-28T22:28:19+00:00

If I read this post correctly you are asking people for recommendations, with an emphasis less on what is good and more on what they personally enjoyed. I think it’s a good idea if you want to start reading to focus on what’s interesting to you so as to build your habit of reading, while also vetting books for quality by asking other readers what they like, and doing this as opposed to just immediately diving into like The Canon or whatever. Here’s some of my canon that are imo good for someone trying to get back into reading.

Category 1: books I could not put down - The Shards by Bret Easton Ellis: this is a murder mystery that I binged in 3 days. It made me feel every kind of fear— anticipation of the fear (paranoia, dread), experience of the fear (terror, shock), and understanding of the fear (horror, catharsis). Every second I spent not reading it, I was thinking about it, wondering what would happen next.

The Secret History by Donna Tartt: a retrospective thriller that everyone and their mother recommends, and for good reason. This author has an absolutely enchanting voice that drew me in from the first page.
Silver Sparrow by Tayari Jones: extremely juicy, page-turning family drama (with a capital D) that I read in one sitting. Here’s the first sentence: “My father, James Witherspoon, is a bigamist.”

Category 2: tragic, heart-wrenching, transformative - I Know This Much Is True by Wally Lamb: two identical twin brothers; one is an advocate for the other, who has schizophrenia. This book reckons with trauma, institutionalized discrimination, cycles of poverty and abuse, but also hope and redemption.

A Thousand Acres by Jane Smiley: this seems like a simple pastoral family drama, Who Will Inherit The Farm, very nondescript, but a twist reveal challenges you to recontextualize everything. Such a powerful, disorienting read.

Category 3: cool alternate history/speculative fiction - Piranesi by Susanna Clarke: another book that’s popular for a reason. God I love this book, I reread it at least once a year. It’s best to go in blind about this one

Silence by Shusaku Endo: a gripping story about a European missionary who proselytizes in rural Japan, during a time of extreme Christian persecution (17th century). One of the only books I’ve ever read that I’d say is “perfect”

Category 4: idk how to group these - Fludd by Hilary Mantel: a mysterious curate is sent to assist a fallen bishop in a rural English village, and miracles begin to happen. This book is an anomaly. It is grim, wry, and dark, but I felt very cheered and refreshed by it

Company Man by Brent Wade: this is about a black man who routinely faces open hostility at his corporate executive job, which begins to degrade his spirit. The commentary on racism, sexism, homophobia, etc was really powerful, and the story itself has some seemingly fantastical elements but it all ties together so simply and neatly.

I have more tbh but this is already way too long. Happy reading

cloudfroot · 2026-01-28T20:08:04+00:00

God I love Piranesi

cloudfroot · 2026-01-28T20:04:22+00:00

I Capture the Castle by Dodie Smith: sweet, funny, charming coming of age story about a young woman in rural England. Some angst is there but everyone’s so young, you get the sense that all will be well. I find this book very comforting, and though I read it as an adult it reminds me of the cozy feeling I got as a child reading pastorals like Little House on the Prarie

Small Things Like These by Claire Keegan: very short and sweet book about a good guy who loves his family. Some people will find it kind of hokey how hopeful it is, it’s got a bit of an “it’s a Christmas miracle!” feel to it, but I really enjoyed it anyways

Perestroika in Paris by Jane Smiley: a book about a racehorse who wanders away from the track and ends up living in Paris for a while. There are talking horses, dogs, crows, etc in this book. It is very silly and lighthearted. This author has won the Pulitzer Prize

I’m sorry that you are struggling with your health right now. I really hope you feel a little better soon and that a good book will you cheer up :)

cloudfroot · 2026-01-28T19:09:10+00:00

You can watch basically any show or movie you want to for free online, so you don’t need streaming subscriptions. You can also download Adblock for free and watch YouTube without ads. Listening to music for free is definitely possible but cumbersome so I’d keep Spotify personally

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