I know we are supposed to be rejecting everything we stood for last year, sloughing off our desiccated, used-up 2023 selves to emerge sparkling fresh, dewy and morally superior, but, I don’t know, seasonal self-loathing seems so … vigorous. If you are anything like me (I pray you aren’t), you feel listless, lumpen and broke. Plus, have you looked outside?
Rather than tormenting ourselves with “new year, new you” flannel, let’s take a horrified, judgmental look at some “new year, bad old them” pictures. Because things could definitely be worse. Historically, “pain is beauty” was taken literally, giving rise to centuries of wild claims, dangerous hacks and impossible-to-attain standards.
