You probably knew this already, but nihilism is in. I’m a chronically late adopter – I only found out about skinny jeans in 2012 and I’d be growing a beard around now if my follicles were up to it. A cultural vibe shift has to be seismic before I notice it. So if new-gen nihilism is on my radar, it must be everywhere, a dense, pillowy fog of meh enveloping the globe.
There were hints earlier: I remember being charmed by the “Why don’t you just give up and let the moss reclaim you?” meme of 2019 – it’s certainly a phrase I’ve whispered countless times since, imagining inhabiting a silent, primeval forest, nostrils filled with the damp, earthy smell of moss as it slowly conquers my inert form, all thoughts of Virgin Mobile’s call centre and our perpetually clogged sink forgotten.
