wattba is my acronym for what a time to be alive. I actually got it from the simpsons and I use it when people mention random technology that is cool but also not really that important.
But this past year I think a lot about time. People say time is a construct but it’s not that simple. It’s really hard to understand. Part of what makes us human is thinking about the past and the future, but all we can be really sure is of is the now. The transience of it is trippy.
My favorite artist, Alicja Kwade, does a lot of art that relates to time. I was lucky enough to buy this piece for auction that supported Ukraine:
It entitled “My candle burns from both ends” It’s typically used as an idiom to express overworking or overindulging at the cost of your life. But we’re all burning at both ends. Just living burns from one end. And the inevitability of deathly causes is burning at the other. And the piece also captures the sliver of the now that is certain.
There’s another aspect of wattba. I actually got this from Howard Stern. He says as he matured and went through therapy, he realizes that we’re all lucky to be in this situation of randomly living on this floating rock. It’s a waste of time to hate people. It’s a miracle to have this experience and let’s make the most of it. wattba.