#it was REALLY good for that

[pocket-size-cthulhu]

This is so true, so well-put, and so alarming.

I talk about this constantly but one of the greatest things that ever happened to me was the neighborhood where I lived during my elementary school years. You wouldn't call it a walkable area as an adult, but for a kid it was perfect: I lived on a quiet cul-de-sac, within walking distance of most of my friends; the park (with playgrounds and nature areas); the public pool; my family's church; and Baskin Robbins. My parents were also deeply committed to giving my siblings and I reasons to be outside, so we had a largeish backyard with a playset and trampoline, and a treehouse and sandbox my dad built, himself; and my parents kept a garage full of various riding toys (bikes, scooters, skates etc), sports equipment, and stuff like sidewalk chalk and water guns. (When I say they were committed, I mean they were committed.)

So that's how I spent my childhood. I started by playing in the back yard; moved to the cul-de-sac as I got a little older and could be trusted around the occasional car; and by the time we moved away, I had fairly free rein to wander the neighborhood, bike around, visit my friends, go to the park etc, all without a phone of any kind, as long as my parents knew ~generally how to find me. I don't think I could be described as a super confident kid - I've always been a bit cautious as a person and there were definitely other factors that impacted my confidence especially socially - but like, I was always in these situations where I was navigating choices on my own, away from my parents, and where I was fairly self-governing.

And then we moved! Far away from that perfect little neighborhood, to the other side of the country, in a patch of suburbia in the middle of the woods where nobody my age lived and nothing was within walking distance and my parents didn't want me walking through the woods anyway, all right as I transitioned into my teenage years in earnest. There were a lot of things about that move that were difficult for me, but I think the sudden, sharp loss of independence was maybe the worst. All of the confidence I'd built up was gone. I became completely dependent on my parents immediately. it's not really anybody's fault, but I had a lonely several years until my parents put me in online high school, I made friends, and I started to Be Online for the first time in my life (and I've been Online™️ ever since 😬)

Anyway. I guess I've seen both sides of this? And like, my elementary school years weren't perfect and I had my share of small and big troubles. But I was generally happy, navigating friendships and making decisions and spending time outside and around people and getting plenty of fresh air and exercise every day, just playing. Vs being utterly dependent on busy adults and not seeking out opportunities just because I don't know what's out there and don't have the confidence to go for it even if I did.

I don't know where I'm going with this besides that I feel awful for kids. Like actual kids as well as teenagers. They all deserve better; they deserve independence and autonomy to a developmentally appropriate degree, and they deserve time outside and spaces where they can hang out and be themselves in public with other people their age. This situation is unfair to them on so many levels. It's not their fault that they are the way that they are. Kids don't get a choice, nor is it their responsibility. It's adults' jobs to make sure kids have what they need for healthy development, and it's society's responsibility to support parents in providing their children with what they need, and kids have been repeatedly failed by both of these groups since before they were born. It's not their fault.

if pointing out that the age of getting a phone decreasing along with the prevalence of short form video as the dominant form of social media content during the most significant collective educational gap in recent history all of which happened during one of the most significant windows of psychological development in a human lifetime has had a deleterious effect on the attention spans, self-regulation, impulse control, social skills, tech literacy, and actual literacy of zoomers and gen alpha. if pointing out that that is a real and serious problem makes me a boomer and an old crank who has fallen for “kids these days” propaganda someone find me a porch and a rocking chair so i can yell at you to get off my lawn

[rennerei]

...😎😎🌟

[great-and-small]

The majority of the Earth’s rodents: How do you survive environments with practically zero oxygen, feel no pain, and live for decades when none of the rest of us can???

Naked mole-rats:

[razzafrazzle]

Just Checking In! (aka Something About Red Triangles)

[monstermonger]

i love when i look into a window and find a cat there... | minizine ♡

[demi-pixellated]

Sorry Sonic, Your stay in the story has been extended. Indefinitely.

[bl00dline]

the whole tiktok situation is EXACTLY why media literacy and education on propaganda is so important. the notifications about tiktok going down and then coming back use VERY propagandistic language, and with a literal fascist coming into power in the us tomorrow we need to be even more critical of the information we’re consuming and stay on the lookout for political stunts like this

[fly-chicken]

A Pragmatic and surprisingly comforting perspective about the Trump 2nd Presidency from the ACLU

***Apologies if this is how you found out the 2024 election results***

Blacked out part is my name.

I’m not going to let this make me give up. It’s disheartening, and today I will wallow, probably tomorrow too

AND

I will continue to do my part in my community to spread the activism and promote change for the world I want to live in. I want to change the world AND help with the dishes.

And I won’t let an orange pit stain be what stops me from trying to be better.

A link to donate to the ACLU if able and inclined. I know I am

[corpish]

in recognition of World Down Syndrome Day on March 21

[hansoeii]

It was affection.

[thesociallyanxioussociopath]

Something something, living rent free in my mind and such, anyway I love them.

[poorly-drawn-mdzs]

I love you Safety Wizard.

(Inspired by @keroascrazy)

[s0up1ta]

toxic yaoi or something idk i haven't watched gravity falls

[lapdogchase]

[churroach]

Full of Desires