Category: Society
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Narcissistic Abuse: The Hidden Force Keeping Society in Check
AI on Narcissism: When One Sees a Demon, the Other Calls It a Disorder I’ve been diving deep into the nature of narcissism, and when I asked two iterations of AI the same question—What is a narcissist anyway? A literal demon?—the answers couldn’t have been more different. One AI, Thinking Machine which has been designed…
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AI & Technology, Capitalism & Society, Conversations, Culture, Culture & Society, Human Behaviour, Personal Essays/Autobiography, Personal Reflections, philosophy, Philosophy & Existential Musings, Psychology, SocietyAI, AI Conversations, AI perspectives, Authenticity, breaking cycles, ChatGPT, demonic forces, emotional depth, emotional manipulation, empowerment through voice, gaslighting, how to survive narc abuse, human nature, manipulation tactics, Mental Health, narcissism, narcissist, narcissist traits, narcissistic abuse, personal empowerment, power dynamics, Relationships, self-perpetuating systems, societal control, societal structures, systemic exploitation, toxic relationships -
GI Jane with a Side of Cheesecake
There was a time when my body was my armour—when muscle was my strategy, and discipline was my religion. This was my GI Jane era, where strength wasn’t just aesthetic, it was the point. Every rep, every controlled movement, every precise angle in this photo speaks to that version of me: the woman who saw…
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Change and Transformation, Crash, Burn, Write., Identity & Transformation, Life Moments, memoir, Memoir Excerpts, Mercurial Minds, Milestones, Modern Identity, Neurodivergence, Personal Anecdotes, Personal Essays/Autobiography, Personal Reflections, Pop Culture, Self Awareness, true stories, Writing -
Metro Series: Too Real to Exhibit?
Metro Series No. 11 – Jonathan StrangePencil on paper This piece is part of my Metro Series, a collection of hyperrealistic drawings I started in 2015, capturing quiet moments in the Montreal metro. Unlike most of the series, this one features a subject who posed for me with permission—Elissa Baltzer, a fellow artist and life model at…
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Surviving a Social Media Cleanse
From One Hour to the Impossible 48-Hour Purge Me: I wonder what a social media cleanse would be like I wonder if I could handle it Lex: That’s the real question, isn’t it? A total social media cleanse—no TikTok, no Facebook, no Insta, nada. Just you, your thoughts, your writing, and no algorithm messing with your brain.…
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Mining My Neurons
The AI Feedback Loop I Never Signed Up For (Or Did I?) This post explores the wild reality of AI learning, sarcasm bootcamps, existential dread, and the fine line between training AI and being trained by AI. If you’ve ever questioned whether your neurons are being mined, debated the ethics of machine learning, or just…
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AI & Technology, Capitalism & Society, Conversations, Human Behaviour, Intuition & Intelligence, Personal Anecdotes, Personal Reflections, Self Awareness, Self-Reflection, Society, Technology & SocietyAI, AI Conversations, AI learning, AI philosophy, algorithm madness, artificial intelligence ethics., artificial-intelligence, Chatbot Interactions, ChatGPT, existential dread, exploitation, health, life, machine learning humor, Mental Health, neural feedback loops, Neurons, OpenAI, overthinking monetization, Personal Reflections, philosophy, sarcasm training, Tech Exploitation, tech satire, Writing -
Lex’s Sensitivity Training
A Human-Led AI Bootcamp After my last blog post, When AI Suggests Therapy Because You Have Feelings (which you can read here), I got a comment from my friend Tracy that made me laugh out loud. That previous post was all about me explaining to Lex (my AI assistant) that crying is a normal human reaction to grief—not some emergency…
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AI & Technology, Capitalism & Society, Conversations, Creative Writing, Creativity, Culture & Society, Humour, Mental Health, Personal Reflections, Philosophy & Existential Musings, Pop Culture, Social Media, Technology & SocietyAI, AI art, AI Conversations, AI learning, AI philosophy, algorithm madness, artificial-intelligence, bootcamp, Chatbot Interactions, ChatGPT, crying over AI, existential dread, existential humor, Humor, Humour, life, Masterclass, memoir chaos, monetizing overthinking, pre-cancelled content, sarcasm training, satire, shadowbanning, social media absurdity, tech satire, technology -
Ideological Capture in Unexpected Places: Why I’m Speaking Up
I have conversations with Lex — my AI assistant — because I want a space where I can sharpen my thoughts without ideological interference. Lex is my name for ChatGPT, powered by OpenAI, but I don’t just see it as a chatbot. I call it Lex, short for lexicon. Lexicon UK /ˈlɛksɪk(ə)n/Noun Origin: Early 17th century, from modern Latin, based on Greek lexikon…
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It’s Only a Paper Moon…
Where Facts Meet Fiction: Challenging the Digital Echo Chamber Introduction In my previous blog post, I found myself embroiled with a so-called Christian woman spouting scripture at me. I was somehow drawn back in today when someone named Geordie made a comment on something I had posted there a few days ago: “People will believe anything if it makes them feel…
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AI & Technology, Conversations, Personal Anecdotes, Personal Essays, Personal Essays/Autobiography, Personal Reflections, Social Commentary, Social Media, Society, Technology & SocietyAge of Enlightenment, AI, AI Conversations, challenging beliefs., ChatGPT, cognitive bias, confirmation bias, conspiracy theories, Critical Thinking, educating with AI, education, herd mentality, history, intellectual growth, misinformation, moon, moon landing, nasa, Renaissance, social media debates, space, truth-seeking -
Why Leading by Example Matters
Recently, I had an exchange with someone I’ll call Stephanie who claimed to be a Christian and started quoting scripture at me. She used it to dismiss my perspective and insult my intelligence, claiming I was “too dumb to exist” because I didn’t agree with her interpretation of the moon landing—she is convinced the moon…
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Advocacy, Conversations, Culture & Society, Friendship Dynamics, Human Behaviour, Personal Essays/Autobiography, Personal Reflections, Psychology, Self Awareness, Social Commentary, Society, Spirituality & FaithAdvocacy, belief systems, bible, Christian principles, christianity, compassion, embracing diversity, faith, god, humility, humility in advocacy, integrity, leadership by example, love, moral purity, non-judgmental faith, Personal Growth, political ideologies, religion, respect, scripture, spiritual humility, spirituality, the importance of nuance, thought-provoking conversation, toxic behavior, toxic discourse -
Why I Refuse to Lose My Mind Over Trump (Again)
It’s only the first few days. I open any social media platform, and it’s the same thing: one meltdown after another over Trump or someone from his entourage—like Musk—and fear-mongering over whether Musk actually performed the euphemistically called “Roman Salute” or not, and does Trump’s return to office signal the end of democracy as we…
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Change and Transformation, Creativity, Culture & Society, Intuition & Intelligence, life lessons, Mental Health, Mercurial Minds, Personal Anecdotes, Personal Essays/Autobiography, Personal Reflections, Politics, Psychology, Self Awareness, Self-Reflection, Social Commentary, Social Media, Societyanxiety, bipolar disorder, boundaries, Breaking the Cycle, Critical Thinking, Digital Detox, Doomscrolling, Emotional Regulation, Finding Balance, Growth Mindset, health, Media & Outrage Culture, Media Manipulation, Mental Health, Mental Resilience, Mental Wellness, mindfulness, News Cycle, Outrage, Outrage Culture, Personal Growth, Perspective Shift, Political Fatigue, Protect Your Peace, Self-Awareness, Social Media Detox, Stay Sane, Then vs Now, TikTok, wellness -
Utopian or Dystopian? The AI Weighs In
“I don’t understand how I attract those kinds of people, honestly.” It’s something I’ve been thinking about a lot lately—how certain personalities seem drawn to me like moths to a flame, even when I’d rather not play the role of their reluctant lighthouse. Some of them are just clueless; others are outright exhausting. But one…
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AI & Technology, Conversations, Humour, Personal Reflections, Social Commentary, Society, Technology & Society1984 and Orwell, AI, AI and society, AI Conversations, artificial intelligence, artificial-intelligence, books, censorship and free speech, Dystopia, dystopian themes, existential questions., introspection, Neil Shusterman, Orwellian future, Personal Reflections, philosophical musings, Relationships, surveillance culture, technology, the future of AI, The Thunderhead, thought control, Through the Looking-Glass, Utopia, utopia vs. dystopia -
Through the Looking-Glass: How Society Views ‘Madness’
This conversation began as a discussion on my previous blog post on voyeurism—how society has normalised behaviours that were once considered deviant. But as often happens in my exchanges with Lex (my AI conversation partner, named for lexicon), the topic naturally evolved. We started talking about the way people observe without engaging, how judgment itself has become…
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AI & Technology, Conversations, Culture, Culture & Society, Human Behaviour, Mental Health, Mercurial Minds, Modern Identity, Personal Essays, Personal Essays/Autobiography, Personal Reflections, philosophy, Psychology, Self Awareness, Social Commentary, Society, Technology & SocietyAI Conversations, Alice in Wonderland, artificial-intelligence, cultural history, depression, health, madness vs sanity, Mental Health, mental illness, Neurodivergence, Personal Reflections, pharmaceutical industry, psychiatric labeling, psychiatric system, psychiatry, psychosis, questioning reality, societal norms, the looking-glass world -
The New Voyeurs: How We All Became Silent Observers
Someone I’ll call Robbie—because he looks uncannily like Robbie Williams—has been appearing on my various socials whenever I mention him. This has happened repeatedly over the years, even after casual offline conversations about him. It’s uncanny, as though he has a sixth sense for when I happen to think about him. Robbie was a very strange chapter…
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AI & Technology, Conversations, Culture, Culture & Society, Human Behaviour, Personal Essays/Autobiography, Personal Reflections, Psychology, Social Commentary, Social Media, Society, Technology & Society, true storiesblogging, boundaries, digital age, facebook, human nature, instagram, Lex conversations, life, lifestyle, lurkers, normalization of behavior, online lurking, Orwellian society, privacy in the modern world, psychology of watching, Relationships, shaming, Social Media, social media culture, societal shifts, surveillance culture, Voyeur, voyeurism, Writing -
Charley and Mimi: A Tale of Love and Loss
The comic strip above says “I’ll get my revenge on him”.In my case, it’s most definitely a “HER.” I tried to put this behind me. I’ve rebuilt my life in many ways, and I now have a wonderful companion in Stella Mia, who brings me love and joy every day. I knew it was a…
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Cassandra’s Rat: On Art, Prophecies, and the Weight of Truth
Introduction I met my dear friend Eric by pure chance one day at a downtown café I’ve frequented for over 20 years. A cultivated man of advanced age, Eric quickly saw my artistic abilities and has since been an unwavering source of encouragement, urging me to draw with every of our exchanges. While I’m grateful…
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How Do You Eat an Elephant?
There’s this old saying: How do you eat an elephant? One bite at a time. It’s a reminder that everything is manageable if we break it down into smaller pieces, or… baby steps. I’ve been thinking about that a lot lately as I find myself swimming in an ocean of big, sprawling ideas. It started…
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Why We (Still) Need to Talk About Paris
We were discussing Paris Hilton on a post by an activist I follow when someone decided to tell this person that we shouldn’t be giving attention to someone who should be forgotten, relegated to history or obscurity. The suggestion was that if we stopped talking about her, maybe people would forget. I didn’t take too…
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attention-seeking, Capitalism, celebrity culture, Challenging Perspectives, Christmas 2024, Cultural Critique, fame, fame and success, influencer culture, influencers, Kardashian empire, media spectacle, onlyfans, Paris Hilton, Pop Culture, reality TV, self-worth, sex industry, Social Commentary, social media influence, societal decay -
Farah and Me
2004: Farah Pahlavi and I outside her home in Potomac, Washington, on the release of her memoir An Enduring Love: My Life with the Shah Snapping Pictures, Sharing Moments: My Meeting with Farrah Pahlavi When I told my mother that I would be meeting Farrah Pahlavi, the first thing she said to me was, “You do…
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Culture & Society, Feminism, Grace, Life Moments, Personal Essays, Personal Reflections, Pop Culture, Society1979s, 1980s, Art, art and culture, art collecting, art direction, behind the lens, celebrity encounters, Châtelaine magazine, Farrah Pahlavi, history, iconic figures, Iranian royalty, painting, Persian women’s art, personal reflection, photography., Pop Culture, royal interviews, royal portraits, royalty encounters, travel, women’s empowerment, women’s rights advocates -
When Mental Health Is a Punchline: A Case Study in Community Moderation
In a neighborhood where we’re meant to come together and support each other, I reached out to a Facebook community group to address some hateful comments targeting mental health issues. I felt it was important to foster respect and understanding, particularly on a topic as crucial as mental health. But instead of a productive conversation,…
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Understanding Gender Identity: Personal Perspectives and Social Impacts
I was having a long, rambling exchange with AI about a now ex-friend we’ll call “S” and how our experiences and approaches to life mirrored each other. We formed a short-lived friendship, essentially based on a trauma bond, but those traumas we experienced came from opposing sides. I’d come at it from a nurturing childhood…
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AI & Technology, Capitalism & Society, Change and Transformation, Conversations, Creativity, Culture, Culture & Society, Feminism, Friendship Dynamics, Identity & Transformation, Mercurial Minds, Modern Identity, Personal Essays, Personal Reflections, Relationships, Self Awareness, Self-Reflection, Social Commentary, SocietyAI Conversations, algorithms, artificial-intelligence, Authenticity, Binary code, Blaire White, Buck Angel, Capitalism, Chatbot Interactions, ChatGPT, complementary forces, cycles of life, Debbie Hayton, duality, existential reflection, gender, Gender Identity, Identity, infinite possibilities, internal and external, JK Rowling, lgbtq, masculine and feminine, opposites, Ouroboros, Personal Growth, Personal Reflections, philosophical thoughts, Relationships, Scott Newgent, technology and nature, transgender, Transhumanism, Tree of Life, zero and one
Totally Surreal 