social media – Page 2

fly me high through the starry skies

First of all, I’m a delight. Second, “I knew who I was this morning, but I’ve changed a few times since then.” ― Lewis Carroll

scene from the game Animal Crossing New Horizons of a character in front of their home.

In the wonderful words of Monty Python…now for something completely different.

Oh, and just say no to the niche…you are a beautiful buffet of brilliance. Don’t let Al Gorithms and the Bots get ya down. Be notorious!

Have you heard the story of the blindfolded men who each touched a different part of an elephant and then declared that what they were experiencing was the real truth? If not, take a moment to search for the parable of the blind men and the elephant. It gives some perspective on how humans seem to be navigating the world right now.

This story can be applied to every aspect of life, as well as with our own growth/healing/etc. Just because something is good and right for you, that doesn’t mean it is good and right for everyone else. I invite you to keep that in mind with today’s post.

As the meme says: “Yup, that’s me. I bet you’re wondering how I got myself into that situation…” Well, for quite some time, way back when, I did this professionally for large groups and organizations. Not so much now, but it’s always fun to take a walk down memory lane each time you take a step forward on a new path.

You see I find that spirituality and science are part of the same Universe that we inhabit. How is it that we have no issue with the prescience of Nature, but not within ourselves? And honestly, who benefits from telling us that we can’t possibly have intuition? Just think about that for a moment. How many times have you just had this feeling…only to see it come to pass?

Humans are wired to dance with the movements of the stars. Carl Sagan remarked that we are made of starstuff. This isn’t just spiritual influencer chatter, but hard science. When you look up in the sky to see the stars, they are looking back at you thinking, “Hey, that person looks kind of like me!”

Let’s just keep going here…

Way out past the world of dogmas, science sees the infinite – trying to understand how we fit in the bigger picture. Out past the field of dogmas, spirituality sees the infinite – trying to understand how we fit in the bigger picture. If these two superpowers could find a common ground, can you imagine what might happen? I mean, gosh y’all – it would almost be like the main theme of all the world’s faith systems, where we see that we are all connected.

While this all might be seen as rambling, or wandering into the crystal shop in the town a few miles over, I’m actually about to do a whole full circle back to the painting and creativity. Sometimes I just like to walk around with my jazz hands for a bit until I bring my point home.

No matter what you do, someone is going to make a comment about it. They will tell you how to feel and how to be more like them. If you want to work with the cycles of the Moon in your art because it nourishes your spiritual creativity, then do it, friend. If you want to have perfect alignment in your ink drawing of a skyline and need a ruler, I fully support you. And if, like me, you want to step outside of a niche, I’ll be first in line to cheer you on.

Thing is, the best stories are the ones that step outside all our preconceived notions, inviting us to see the world from someone else’s eyes. We become a note in the cosmic chorus of the Universe, which then sings that song back to us. If we are made in the image of a Creator, that would mean we are built to be creative. Doesn’t matter if it was the Big Bang, or some deity, we are the embodiment of science and spirituality coming together to experience itself.

Now that I’ve made it past the first goal of 21 consistent days of online creation, it’s time to work on the next one. I hope you’ll join me on this continuing adventure.

Much love,
~ KEU

we are more than drops in the ocean (part 4)

First of all, I’m a delight. Second, “You are not a drop in the ocean. You are the entire ocean in a drop.” ― Rumi

photo of Lake Michigan from the Chicago side.

Not the ocean, but a beautiful image of Lake Michigan from the Chicago side. Further down I’ll post a full image of the painting – please feel free to scroll on down, get a screen capture, and look it up. Interestingly it will somehow loop back to: 1) this post or 2) random archived places where I’ve discussed the painting previously. Welcome to the digital spiral that is the internet.

Today I was chatting with my editing team about how one stays authentic to their creative self while also trying to keep one’s toes in the water of content creation. And, yes, I talk about this quite a bit because I’m really trying to understand this shift to “fast food” artistry that is happening on various platforms. There are a few places that will penalize you for having a post/video that is longer than 7 minutes. However, it’s their server space and rules, so we all must march to the beat of their drum.

Or not.

Just say no to the niche. You are not just a drop in the ocean, as Rumi says, but the entire ocean in one drop. Life contains multitudes. You don’t have to be a “niche” creator. Instead, you can be a hub for all your different interests. Your photography, writing, and videos all come from the same person—you.

This can be a more sustainable and fulfilling path than trying to fit yourself into a box that doesn’t feel right. It allows you to create from a place of genuine passion, and it invites people into a conversation, not just a transaction. And that is what this painting means to me. Not the story of the artist, nor her particular beliefs about parts of history – it’s that she DARED to be herself in a culture that actively pushes us to be otherwise.

Just for the record, this is NOT my artwork. I do not own the rights to this and am only sharing it as part of the story about how it came to be in my family’s possession. Also, I cannot share the name of the artist because the internet has eyes. While some can talk about things that are outlandishly unbelievable and gather millions of followers…talking calmly about how a piece of art inspired me to come back to what I love, sharing my creative self, upsets Al’s Gorithms.

watercolor painting of a unicorn standing on a hill between two trees

Here it is, y’all. Here’s the painting in all its glory. And here’s an image that shows you how it ties to history.

unicorn painting with a magazine called photoplay

Side note, I donated this magazine, and no longer own it. Back copies can be find online.

As I’ve said previously, could my family and I be making this bigger than it is? Yes, absolutely and without question…yes. It’s just, and I’m not sure how to even say this in a different way, there’s just something about all of it that creates intrigues in the brain. Even more after the ruckus it caused online.

In the digital world there’s this push for algorithmic success versus the messiness of human creativity. The prevalence of AI-generated content and bot monitoring is designed to have us churn out work that makes the platform happy. As someone that was in tech years ago (think back in the dinosaur days of dial-up via rotary phones), I fully understand the huge cost of data, servers, and the sheer amount of memory it takes to hold all this. We have to become efficient, but that lacks the unique, sometimes illogical, and deeply personal qualities that make humans and humanity so compelling. The rambling, the detours, and the wild punctuation (as in my case), are all part of our authentic voice, signaling to the reader/viewer that a real, thinking person is at the helm.

And this is the paradox: in a world that craves efficiency, the most valuable creative work might be the messiest. True connection isn’t always instant, but we are pushed to immediately decide if someone is in our camp. Real human interaction isn’t like that, it’s built through vulnerability, shared experiences, and the raw authenticity of trying to get by in the world. To truly connect, we need to slow down and engage with the nuances of what the creative person is sharing with us.

This painting is a reminder that the real treasure isn’t in a viral hashtag, or rising to the top of your niche content, it’s in the shared experience of being human. We make mistakes, and we try hard to understand our environment. Art and creativity, in all forms, gives us a brief moment to connect with something bigger than we can understand. We can tell a story about our world, as I’ve said previously, to help others see that they are not alone.

You might have a ton of thoughts right now, but if I may suggest something, let this be one that sticks with you: just say no to the niche. Be multitudinously notorious. Live in the place where your insecurities dwell. Contradict yourself. If you need someone to stand with you, just let me know — I’ll be there with bells on.

Much love,
~ KEU

Currently listening to: The Tales of KE Upton (Spotify playlist – am working on getting it on YouTube as well)
Currently reading: pondering what to read next…stay tuned

what I am is what I am

First of all, I’m a delight.
Second…
“Philosophy is the talk on a cereal box
Religion is the smile on a dog
I’m not aware of too many things
I know what I know, if you know what I mean”
– What I am, Edie Brickell & New Bohemians

This month, August 2025, I set out on a grand adventure – returning to the work I hold dear to my soul. Five contractor’s bags of trash, four carloads of donations, three shelves of books cleared, two stacks of totes, and a partridge in a pear tree later…this is what I have. (see pic below)

photo of a desk in a corner office with knick knacks

By the way, the gentlemen peering over my tripod is Thomas Merton, and he keeps watch over things. After Hildegard of Bingen and Joan of Arc, who are both also represented on my desk, Merton is my go to for finding calm in the world.

While I’m not particularly devoted to one particular faith system, the mystical aspects of my Catholic upbringing is this luminous thread that brings the tapestry of my beliefs together. In fact, I start my day with this prayer. Feel free to change the wording to suit your needs.

“My Lord God, I have no idea where I am going. I do not see the road ahead of me. I cannot know for certain where it will end. Nor do I really know myself, and the fact that I think that I am following your will does not mean that I am actually doing so. But I believe that the desire to please you does in fact please you. And I hope I have that desire in all that I am doing. I hope that I will never do anything apart from that desire. And I know that if I do this you will lead me by the right road though I may know nothing about it. Therefore I will trust you always though I may seem to be lost and in the shadow of death. I will not fear, for you are ever with me, and you will never leave me to face my perils alone.”
- Thomas Merton, Thoughts in Solitude

Author standing with a statue of Thomas Merton

Why, yes…that is Thomas Merton and I out standing in a field. It appears he’s been standing there a little longer than me, which has given him a nice patina.

So let me get back to my original thought when I say down to write…

Over the past 18 days I’ve learned that none of us are in Kansas anymore. Not that we ever were, but the expression fits. SEO, niche, content management, and other words that sound a lot like Charlie Brown’s teacher. Is everyone literally trying to sell themselves with every post/image/video? I mean, is this fun for you? When you sit down to create something are you thinking, “Oh, yeah, this is gonna boost my stats on (insert platform here)…yeah, this is S(E)O-OOOOO good.”

Maybe it was a little naive of me to think that I could just skip back into the creative world with my Pollyanna mindset, stories about being human, and a real desire for connection.

Oh, gods…does this mean I’m not cool anymore? Are the artificial stats trying to tell me something I don’t want to hear? Should I just go lay down in the yard, right now, and shake my fists at the clouds? Do you think people will know what I’m saying if I don’t keep to my most searched work?

Won’t someone think of the niche?

Okay…okay…that’s a little much, I know – but then again, so am I…and so are you. We – that’s you, me, and all the other humans out there – contain multitudes. And in that beautiful dance within us is a light that connects us to each other.

The everything in me sees the everything in you.

So I’m working on Part 4 of the painting story. I’ve got to write it without putting in any trigger words because the internet will get mad at me – which is proving to be very difficult. Plus, the editing team took the day off. The cats are napping, and the fairies just had some chocolate.

With that…I’m off.

Good day to all y’all,
~ KEU

If you find value in what I write, and want to support the team (aka the cats and fairies), please check out my ko-fi. Thanks!

Currently listening to: The Tales of KE Upton (Spotify playlist that has 22 hours of what I call “brain tunes”)
Currently reading: *taking a reading break for a few days

no cars go/can’t buy happiness

First of all, I’m a delight. Second, I’m between the click of the light and the start of the dream.

Image of a woman standing among religious icons and craft supplies.

Apparently when you post selfies it raises your engagement. Here’s an old photo of me before getting rid of 90% of the items seen behind me.

“Everything is the way it is because we’ve all agreed that’s the way it is.”
― Charles de Lint, The Onion Girl

I’m no stranger to controversy.

image of a newspaper with an article about an independent magazine called the underground

Picture it - the year was 1992 - we were in a place of geopolitical instability (as it seemingly always has been) and I had a dream. After seeing a few local “alternative” papers in cities near Western Kentucky University, it seemed like a great idea to start my own. I mean…it really was a good idea, but also not well planned. There were only 3 issues of The Underground, but during its time in print there was kick back from a local politician, who was running for some kind of office. Apparently he didn’t appreciate the candid editorial about his platform. This prompted a very strongly worded letter from him with legal words that he seemed pretty confidant using. Sadly he didn’t know that my Dad was a top-notch attorney specializing in various aspects of law, so my letter back had only three sentences: “Thank you for your interest in The Underground. I am sad to say that nothing written in the issue you reference is slander, but would actually be libel. The piece is permissible under the laws of the U.S. Constitution.”

The years came and went; planets rotated in the cosmos. It was 2003 and the world was dealing with geopolitical instability (wait - is this a pattern?), and a rise in populism and/or nationalism (is there nothing new under the Sun?).
* side note - my delicious use of wild punctuation should prove to you that nothing I write is done by AI.

Legit question here - do y’all think any lessons were learned when I decided to start up some zines? As you can see, the title of the one on the right has been blocked out. Why? Well, because the internet has eyes. If you get nothing from what I write/share/etc., please understand this: your digital footprint is everywhere.

Yet again there was pushback from the words and images I shared. You see, I am no stranger to controversy…and everything I write about is true.

As expected, which now that I think about it…maybe my soul manifested it to happen, the posts I wrote about the painting were throttled on specific platforms that shall not be named. Another tidbit of info for you, especially if you are trying to corner the market on your work, is that sites will “censor” your work if you mention any of their competitors. Ask me how I know.

“We are all stories in the end, just make it a good one eh?”
― From the series Doctor Who (Matt Smith)

Honestly, y’all, I’m just out here trying to get my groove back. Things I write aren’t always dished out with a side of crankiness about things that don’t seem to be changing anytime soon. Marketing folks love a good niche, and they pay companies to promote their wares/goods/service that tailor to a specific demographic. Its just…I worry that we are all going to become one-sided automatons allowing the system to homogenize creativity. I’ve been this way since forever, which led me to my first declared major in college - journalism (which I took way too seriously). By the second week of class I was ready to write my first expose, but we were stuck learning how to write obits instead. When the next week rolled around, we got the, “If it bleeds it leads” talk, which made me extremely frustrated at whatever “journalism” this guy was teaching.

College was not living up to my expectations, which at 18 was a very precocious thing to think…I mean…it’s literally just another cog in the wheel of adulthood.

But I digress…

When the time came to work on our first article, the professor gave a lecture on how our writing should sound like PR. WHAT?!?!?! Journalism students needed to know about Public Relations? Why was this person telling me such things? The horror didn’t stop there, as he continued with statements like, “You will be making politicians look good,” and “Your work has to sell the paper.”

So here I am, many years later, realizing how much truth that professor spoke. However, which is a word I’m fond of that also proves, yet again, that a real human is at the helm, I’ve never really been interested in taking the safe road. My life is a testament to those who have brains that ramble, hands that create, and spirits that dance in the liminal spaces. Maybe I’ll never get a 27 figure book deal, or a prestigious award for my writing — but what will happen is that my life will never be boring.

There are just far too many stories to tell; way too many moments to capture.

I’m currently working on the next installment on the painting. Trying to fit several months of time into a few paragraphs is proving to be a little more difficult than anticipated. Plus, the typo fairies are low on cream and chocolate, which means they have sent the cats to help with my editing. Never a dull moment in my life…

Much love,
~ KEU

Currently listening to: The Tales of KB (my ever-changing writing playlist on Spotify
Currently reading: A Wrinkle in Time by Madeline L’Engle

the fear of leaving the book of face

First, I am a delight. Second, we are all just walking each other home…

image of a bald faced hornet getting a drink with feral bees

“I suppose the other thing too many forget is that we were all stories once, each and every one of us. And we remain stories. But too often we allow those stories to grow banal, or cruel or unconnected to each other. We allow the stories to continue, but they no longer have a heart. They no longer sustain us.”
― Charles de Lint, The Onion Girl

While this could start with all the platitudes about how doing hard things make us stronger, or that we only “grow” when life pushes us from our comfort zones, no one needs that kind of rhetoric on a beautiful Saturday morning. Thing is, I’m currently doing it with a daily meditation on if I need this or that thing, releasing all that I allowed to hold me back – except for the biggest shift…the one that seems to draw opinions from the voices in the Greek chorus.

I want to leave Facebook, along with the other platforms in the Metaverse.

You can barely turn around without finding an article about the dangers of social media – particularly Facebook – and how we would all be better without it invading our lives. As someone with a background in providing support for others, I agree with that sentiment fully but am having trouble with applying it to my life.

This issue has nothing to do with seeking attention, worrying about missing out, or that people won’t be able to find my work. It’s that I’ve given myself too much time in a world that goes against my personal set of ethics. Being there gives me this creepy feeling of not being authentic – of wanting to write/create/post something that gives an accurate depiction of how I live my life that also gets to the top of a timeline.

Like, y’all, I’ve sat in front of the “delete your account” option in some kind of weird meditative state until deciding that one more day will be okay. I literally threw out 20-some-odd years of journals, gave away all my old art supplies, filled my car 3 times with things to donate, but I can’t bring myself to get rid of the one thing that causes me the most problems.

Today there’s a full Moon in Aquarius, and as it was rising during the night, dreams came to me on the beams of light shining through my window. These were not my usual symbolic brain shows, but more like pictorial manifestos on letting go of what holds me back. When I woke it felt as if I’d just finished the iron man version of talk therapy — and with every fiber of my being I knew it was time to walk away from the Metaverse for a little while. It’s a wee bit scary, but also exciting. There are some really good things on the horizon that need my full attention, so it will be good to be free of that particular distraction.

Deep breath in. Deep breath out.

If you’ve left Facebook/the Metaverse, I would love to hear your story. What I’ve heard from others so far is that their lives became infinitely better. Or, if you have thoughts about social media in general, please feel free to share those, too.

Much love,
~ KEU

eff the niche

Everything I’m about to tell you is true.

First, I am a delight.
Second, I am large, I contain multitudes.

A black and white photograph of a woman wearing horns staring over a river at a pair of bridge.

What I’m about to say is not a “hook,” nor is it something to leverage my SEO. Honestly, I know very little about all those things, and find them quite frustrating in my return to the online world. Please note that I also do not want to learn about these things, because adding in a bunch of hidden codewords so the algorithms can find my work is the exact opposite of what I’m doing here.

Also, I’ve niched myself into oblivion before. It sucks, and trying to show people other sides of who you are isn’t easy.

Them: “Oh, so you’re not a square, then…”
Me: “Well, I’m a cube…which could be seen as a square. But in reality there are many dimensions to who I am.”
Them: “So you’re not a square?”
Me: “Yes, I am not a square.”
Them: “Okay, just don’t try to be a cube anymore, as that just confuses everyone.”
Me: “…”

Back in the early 2000s there was this idyllic little spot on the web called LiveJournal. In my eyes it was the early inklings of long-form social media, and a place that welcomed both big and small names. We became invested in the lives we followed, offering support and understanding to folks we hadn’t met in the “real world.”

During my time there I absolutely contained multitudes. No one batted an eye at the fact that there were 20 different hats in the “Who is Kim” part of my personality closet. Being an absent minded Buddhist herbalist tarot reader, living mostly off grid on a small plot of land, while trying to subvert the dominant paradigm was de rigueur. Not only that you could be a zine writing feminist artist that was skeptical of the system while also enjoying Taco Bell on occasion. You could just be real, and other people would be real with you.

Very slowly, then all of a sudden, a ripple went through the site and folks starting drawing lines in the wires – sort of like the scene from Monty Python’s Life Of Brian where the characters are discussing the People’s Front of Judea. You were either with the people, against the people, or one of those horrid fence sitters that could see both sides of the story. Guess where I was?

If you guessed the last group, you win a gold star. While I didn’t sing the let’s all get along song, it was my greatest hope that everyone would see what was going on, life would get back to normal, and we could continue being in this online Utopia. That was not how the route was going until an unlikely pair of enemies appeared – The Facebook and a Russian company buying SixApart/LiveJournal. Finally, we could all go back to love, acceptance, and being multifaceted, right? Right?!?!? Because, you know, we were not united in our displeasure of the road ahead…

That was about two decades ago, and here we are together in the dance of the doom scroll. We want content creators to do one thing and one thing only. As someone that really rocks out to things being the same, I understand that feeling, but also…humans aren’t robots.

For some time I tried to tell my stories on TikTok using the hashtag efftheniche. The comments I received were less than kind, and I often found my posts under review. To keep a system running there cannot be a disruption in the process. If you don’t fit into a category, you get lumped in with all the other misfit toys. This gives you a big penalty online, and in some secret language the platforms talk to each other about how you won’t conform. While they are chatting, they also suggest advertising based on your search history or the search history of anyone near you.

All of that just made me sad…and cranky. The thought of making a repeating post that said, “You niche-heads get off my digital lawn” crossed my mind daily. In some very odd act of rebellion I decided that I would show them…I’d stop giving them my content to use. Not only that, let me just stop doing all the things that I love because the algorithm doesn’t like me or my work. And while I’m at it, let me just kick it up a notch by metaphorically gluing my feet to the floor so that all those big feelings stayed with me every day. Just a full on laugh riot every minute…me and my “you can’t make me” temper tantrum.

The honest truth here is that I’m not back in this part of my work so the bots can turn me into a viral creator. This is for my kids and family. It’s for all the times they’ve told me to write my stories, take my photos, or tell my tales. This is a way to show them that our finite time on this planet should be spent living fully, and with the audacious authenticity of a dandelion growing between the cracks in the sidewalk. It’s also for all the people who have been told to dull their shine, or to stop being too much.

Or, as Walk Whitman says in his poem, “Song of Myself, 51”:

“The past and present wilt - I have fill’d them, emptied them.
And proceed to fill my next fold of the future.
Listener up there! what have you to confide to me?
Look in my face while I snuff the sidle of evening,
(Talk honestly, no one else hears you, and I stay only a minute longer.)
Do I contradict myself?
Very well then I contradict myself,
(I am large, I contain multitudes.)
I concentrate toward them that are nigh, I wait on the door-slab.
Who has done his day’s work? who will soonest be through with his supper?
Who wishes to walk with me?
Will you speak before I am gone? will you prove already too late?”

So, eff the niche. Be notorious. Shine brightly. Life is too short for mediocrity.

Oh, the typo fairies had vanilla bean ice cream, which means this post should be mostly typo free…

Until next time – much love and tons of support to all y’all,
~ KEU

take a shower and shine your shoes

Everything I’m about to tell you is true…
First of all, I am a delight. Second, I’m on season 8 of Supernatural - which makes for some interesting background noise.

“Often, moreover, it is…that aspect of our being that society finds eccentric, ridiculous, or disagreeable, that holds our sweet waters, our secret well of happiness, the key to our equanimity in malevolent climes.”
― Tom Robbins, Still Life with Woodpecker

Yesterday I began the process of untangling myself from the Meta-verse. After a year of waffling, it was time to take for taking steps toward the exit.

While I thought rainbows would cover the sky while winged kittens brought me magic jelly beans on golden trays, it was just kind of sad. Because my brain likes to do these things, I did a rough estimation of how much time I devoted to Haus of Zuck.

First, I did take some time off of FB/IG for about a year. There were life shenanigans, and time was precious. According to the stats from my phone, on a usual day I average about 1.5 hours of scrolling. In 2006 I started using FB – and with one year off, that would be 18 years of using the platform. We all know how many days are in a year, but I’m gonna use 360 due to times of illness/days of not looking at my phone.

What we have now is 1.5 (hours) multiplied by 360 (days), which equals 540 hours per year. Let’s multiply that number by 19, which brings us to 10,260 hours of time…or roughly 427.5 days.

427.5 days.

Uh…what? Like that’s a full year of non-stop scrolling (and all I got was this neck cramp and repetitive motion issues).

This is a sobering number, and it’s going to take me a little bit to process the reality of it. What was I hoping to find, and how did it make my life better? I could have walked to each of the coastlines in the United States, or hiked the Appalachian Trail. Better yet I could have just gone into my community to see if people needed help instead of watching life move along my screen.

In a delightful brain squirrel moment, I gotta say that the amount of times Supernatural subtly breaks the 4th wall brings me a ton of joy. Also, I couldn’t remember how to spell “subtly” for a hot minute. Thank goodness the internet came to my rescue. (I say dryly with my eyes starting to look upward)

Okay, so, after seeing that number – and y’all feel free to check my arithmetic on that – I’m gonna go outside and stare at some trees.

But first, some haiku…

becoming awake
push button enlightenment
some random verses

As a gentle reminder, typo fairies live with me. I promise you that my editing skills are good, but somehow once I hit “publish” everything goes haywire.

Much love,
~ KEU