STOP ADVERTISING TO ME. No, but seriously, stop. The internet today is just one huge ad. It used to be that there were ads on the sidebar of social media apps, easily ignorable but still present. On the sidelines, clickable but not in your face. Even that was annoying back in the early days, but I also understand that ads are how things are paid for. Now people are ads and ads are people. Huge corporations pose as people, commenting funny little gen-Z sayings on videos to convince us that they are just silly, goofy humans, too. Influencers are just walking brands, nothing they say or do is new, and at the end of what you might think is a well-meaning video on parenting, relationships, or hell, even nursing, there's an ad for Korean skin care or a new calendar for your kitchen that's a cool $600. 

In a time of overconsumption-core, I find myself drawn to living smaller. I am one thousand percent guilty of needing a little treat once in a while and finding myself in the $5 section being played a fool more often than not. I have vowed to myself this year, especially during Christmas, when the ads are completely out of control, that I will not let myself fall into those traps. I have enough things, too many, in fact, and for Christmas this year, I wish I could downsize everything. 

Nothing is authentic because everything is a brand. I have been working out regularly for almost a year, and I wish I could watch workout videos without being bombarded with ads for new workout clothes or water bottles. Everything is so loud, I miss the quiet and the slow. I want to pick up my Kindle to read and not be fed an ad before even opening my book, I want to buy strawberries without there being a sticker advertising for Hulu on the lid. (Seriously, what is that about??) I have over a thousand emails in my junk folder of just advertisements. I've definitely reached my limit. Ad fatigue is real, and there is no end in sight unless we disconnect ourselves from the source of the frustration. 

That is my goal for this next year. Live more simply, buy second-hand when possible, use things until they are completely empty, and focus on the why behind feeling the need for dopamine boosts every day.