Popular culture

Popular culture seems to idolize a certain way of living. As I listened to “Pop That Pussy” by 2 Live Crew, I couldn’t help but notice the themes: open sex, partying hard, doing drugs, and living without limits. The message is clear—freedom means indulgence. In another one of their songs, “Banned in the USA,” the group pushes back against censorship, arguing that their lyrics are misunderstood and not meant to promote violence or disrespect toward women. They claim to be simply expressing pleasure and freedom in a new era, pushing against the morals of those who don’t understand—likely white, conservative America. Hearing those lyrics made me reflect on the current state of popular culture, especially from my perspective as a middle-class white guy in my early twenties. Today, in much of rap, movies, and TikTok, there’s this ever-present sense that to be “free” is to act on every desire. If you want to fuck, you fuck. If you want to do drugs, you do them. If you want to party and lose ...
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Aug 29

A debate I've been having in my head recently stems from a recent encounter I had with a women. We had gone on a date, which I thought went well. She texts me a few days later saying she rather just be friends and invites me to a kickback she is having. Reluctantly I go and end up having a pretty good time. I talk a little with her and at one point we leave to go get cigarettes together. It feels like we are kind of flirting but I don't know. A few minutes later I ask her where the bathroom is and she says she'll show me. We go into the house together and she shows me both bathrooms asking me which she thinks is hers. I guess correctly and she lets me do my business. I can't remember exactly what I was feeling in this moment, I'm sure part of me was wondering if I should kiss her or make a move. 

The last few days I've been wondering if that's the right thing to do. Making a move could have breached some boundaries and potentially hurt her. It could have also worked out. I wrote this whole story to illustrate the two different mindsets I believe I should live my life by. One is more passive and waits for things to come to me. There's typically less risk involved in this and more so a trust in the universe that things will work out for me. The other mindset is more focused on going out and getting what I want. This means breaching that barrier and talking to a girl I think is attractive or making a move like I should have above. This involves taking on a lot more risk which my brain struggles with. On top of that, if I can't convince myself to do it I turn on myself and think I'm worthless. I'm not capable of living up to the standards I set for myself. I also become more cynical towards the world and lose hope in the future since in this mindset it's not guaranteed. 


Writing this I notice that I like ideas from both these mindsets but struggle to balance them. 



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