We Were On a Break

Reptar, digital cameras, and flip phones 💚

Jan 19, 2023

I’m back from a week in LA, complete with my favorite Korean Fried Chicken sandwich; brain chemistry-altering avo toast (mint and dill are the key ingredients!); a spontaneous thrifting trip; a serendipitous outdoor workday at my namesake plant-based restaurant, Nic’s; an appearance at the Blockbuster pop-up; and a workout at Barry’s, after which I could not fully extend my arms for 5 days. My colleague also sent me this less-often circulated picture of Paris Hilton and Britney Spears, which I’ve been thinking about ever since.

Nicstalgia is on a break rn, and it’s definitely what I’ve needed. I’ve been back-and-forth (in a curious, not a lamenting way) about how I want to show up on social media. Although I have recently gotten off the hamster wheel, churning out content while working in a creative silo is still the norm. It’s a lot easier to work collaboratively in web3 orgs – which I am very excited to continue doing – but much of decentralized (meaning you do not have to answer to the algorithm gods for your livelihood) media structures and content systems haven’t been built out yet. The thought of building them myself sounds exhausting, but also….exciting??? I’m seeking newness…to an extent??? (Reka articulated the oscillation between obsession and disinterest in a lovely way that very much resonated with me. I’m like ~~an onion~~ a cake.)

In a practical sense, what does this newsletter evolve into? Interview features? Video content? Guest-written columns? Trend revivals? Nostalgic pop culture news? Community-generated content? We’ll see. Please send me a message if you have any (much appreciated) feedback!! Until next time! xx Nic

🍒 Catch Up on Nicstalgia

If you liked my 90s Reptar Tamagotchi fit in celebration of Marisa’s birthday, you’ll love these Nicstalgia episodes: Making Music Videos With Your Cousins with Marisa herself, Millennial Misery and Memes with Jamie from Millennial Misery, and Sugar, Spice, and Everything Nice with Danielle from 90s Babes!

🛼 Haven’t You Heard?!

What’s going on in pop culture rn:
It was brought to my attention that scientifically, your favorite music is your favorite music in 7th grade. For me, this tracks, as I get a lot of use out of my Middle School Dance playlist. (If you went to middle school in the early 2000s, you will too.) There’s also a longstanding meme seemingly always in circulation that says ‘your song’ is whatever song was #1 on your 14th birthday. In my case, this would be Usher’s “Yeah!” (tracks) and Britney Spears’s “Toxic” (in Canada. TRACKS.)

The NYT came out with an article about how teens are taking digital cameras to parties because they actually love the shitty camera quality, and now it has become a topic of conversation. I have been thinking about getting a digital camera for a while, but I would like the *exact* one that I had in high school, which I cannot buy or find a picture of, seeing as I don’t remember the name or brand. Will get back to you on that.

Speaking of fun retro tech, teens are also getting burner phones for parties in the form of flip phones. I have been wanting a flip phone again!!! But because I was not old enough to have lived through an entire trend cycle completion, and youth is wasted on the young, I got rid of my old cell phones in 2019 when my parents moved. My sister is a lot smarter than I am though, so luckily she kept hers. Now if only I can figure out how to turn them back on…