about

I’ve always been fascinated by great stories, but over time, I’ve realized how time-consuming and mentally draining it is to find detailed, thoughtful information on topics that spark my curiosity, without wading through layers of useless fluff, seemingly inserted to trick SEO algorithms or the reader (or should I say “the clicker”).

So, I felt the urge to run the show myself. My goal is to explore and discuss these phenomena by curating information from credible sources and bringing light to stories that have been overlooked, forgotten, or simply never given the attention they deserve.

I created this website to share stories that center around “the other”, cases I’ve come across, observed over time, or thought about, yet struggled to find satisfying information on easily and quickly.

I believe the reason for this is the current content is the contemporary consumption habits of online users. News outlets tend to give only the surface level information, redirect users to relevant sub- or side-stories to cut corners rather than simply mentioning those, possibly due to get more clicks and engagement.

I’m not here to obsess over style or perfection. This is about the joy of researching, discovering, writing, and sharing, cutting through the noise as much as possible, without the pressure of creating for an audience or making content that is “shareable.” If someone reads and enjoys it, great. If not, that’s okay too.

While building this website, I came across a passage on Twitter from Ash Newman, a software engineer based in San Diego. Her words completely changed my perspective on how I should approach the work I do:

Stop Acting Like You’re Famous: Advice for myself around leisure activities.

You aren’t famous. Anything you do or create will probably receive little to no attention, so stop optimizing for a non-existent audience and instead focus on what makes you enjoy the activity.

Want to try a craft or artistic hobby? Focus on mastering the skill and enjoy the variety it can provide. You don’t need to build a personal style. No one will care. Want to do photography and think black and white photos are cool? Great! You don’t need to create an Instagram branded all around your moody black and white photos. Most likely you’ll get bored of it and want to try a different type of photography, and that’s great. You aren’t Ansel Adams, no one will care if your “style” is all over the place.

Do you want to build an app or website but don’t enjoy the process of designing? Then make it ugly. Who cares! Design is for an audience, and you don’t have one. Functionality is more important right now. Maybe a designer will notice and want to improve it for you, but until then take pride in your crappy UI.

Blogging is fun and therapeutic. Grammar and editing aren’t. As long as your thoughts are coherent, don’t worry too much about writing mistakes or filtering yourself. Just use Grammarly to fix elementary-level errors and move on. It’s more about the writing process than the final product.

The most egregious thing you can do with any activity is daydream about how you can make money off of it. That’s the quickest way to optimize for the wrong things and suck the fun right out of it. Most likely you will stop doing the activity almost immediately, so save the money-making schemes for work.

In the end, find something you enjoy doing and just do it because you enjoy it. If you have to, make some goals for yourself, but never for your “audience”.”

Source: https://ajkprojects.com/stopactinglikeyourefamous

At the end of the day, this website is just me following my curiosity wherever it leads. There’s no big strategy, no pressure to please an algorithm, and no expectation that anyone will care. I’m just here to dig into stories that interest me, put thoughts into words, and enjoy the process without overthinking it. This is my little corner to explore, reflect, and let things unfold naturally, without the noise, without the pressure, and without needing a reason beyond “because I felt like it.”