ZYCERAK UPDATE:
I do not mind taking a while to peel an orange. Me and the orange, together, I could have sworn I felt its aura, like another living thing with a conscious, vastly different from my own. It wanted to be eaten, I knew that. I felt good for the orange, knowing it wanted to be eaten, to pass its seeds, to give birth to new life. The orange's life has been fulfilled, it achieved its duty, its purpose, and it can die in peace. The orange didn't know it was sterile. It didn't need to know. I'm sure it lived a much better life, and died a much better death, not knowing. Not knowing I would put it in my body and turn it to poop, and that being the end of it.
It was just me and the orange for a while. The rind had to come off in two layers, because the pith was seemingly glued to the fruit inside. The peel had to come off in small segments, each under a centimetre of surface area. Then the pith, I tried to peel off gently, not wanting to rupture the segments inside, but I failed in some areas. The entire process proved therepeutic as it allowed me to reflect; I think it changed my life. I took out the orange a boy and by the time I had eaten it I became a man.
Those who can not peel an orange slowly are all what's wrong with society. They are the reason all of our fruits are filled with chemicals and microplastics. They are the reason producers put a thin coat of wax around apples to keep them looking fresh. They are the reason we get lower quality products for a higher price. The best tasting fruit rarely look the best, rarely the most voluptious, rarely the most colourful. Duracell once put out a more powerful battery for a higher price. To compete, Energizer put out a more powerful battery for the same price as the less-powerful alternative. Surely, surely people will flock to the battery which is higher in quality and lower in price. But alas, consumers failed to use critical thinking, failed to do their research, made false assumptions, and assumed that Duracell's battery was better because it was more expensive. Energizer had to re-release it with a new name and a higher price. The entire world missed out on cheaper and higher-performing batteries.
Money does not buy happiness. I know this because I am filthy rich. I have so much money it makes me sick. Sick of everything. I buy a new car and crash it the next day because it bores me. You people could never understand this struggle. Poor people have it much better. Their potential for happiness is tremendous. So much of life is still mystical to them. That sense of wonder. They feel happier eating their first meal in weeks than I have felt in my life. They should be thankful they're starving, because it makes the next meal taste that much better. Not for me though. My chefs prepare a feast for me each night, ten different plates. I take a bite of caviar, I throw the rest away. I take a bite of wagyu, I throw the rest away. I don't take a bite of lobster, because I know what it is like to be a lobster, so I set it free, back into the ocean.
This is why I peeled my orange slowly. The longer it takes, the better it tastes. As I peel, the anticipation grows. I hope it's tasty. There was a stretch where every orange I had was dry despite feeling juicy from the outside. I did not know oranges could be dry before that experience. It was awful. The suspense grew with each chunk I chunked off. I had to really dig my fingernails under, they still smell of oranges. The orange tasted okay, not the best I had, but it had a hint of an exotic flavour I rarely get to taste: Victory.
People in today's society need their oranges to be peeled as fast as possible. The plague of instant gratification. Its a cycle that feeds upon itself. Need more. More more more. More pleasure. Faster. Pleasure now. Feed me YouTube shorts. Feed me TikTok. Post post post. Next thing, next thing. Something new, new, new, I seek something new. Something better. This gave me pleasure, now I'm bored, give me something better. It's a natural process, but we were never meant to get this far. It is part of evolution, leads to innovation, leads to survival, leads to longer lives. But we cheated the system, we were never meant to get this far. The corporations understand our reward pathways and use it to manipulate us, as they are manipulated themselves, thinking money is the end game. More more more. More money, its not enough. Yes, higher number, expensive watch, feels good, expensive car, feels good. Throw it out, next watch, next car, yes, better, higher price point is better, higher price point is better, must obtain the next largest number, satisfy the reward pathway, yes, please.
It's all backwards. We're skipping to the end. No buildup, constant climax. I wonder why the climax isn't as impactful as it should be. I don't want to go outside and laboriously build real social connections gradually over time. Let me post online, its easier, I can see who to like, I can block the people who don't like me, I can post into the open and people can come to me, it's easy, it's instant, it's effortless. It's skipping to the end. Let me get to the fruit of this orange quick, let me take off the peel quick, yes, give me the good fruit inside, I need it sooner, I need it now. Let me watch highlight reels of other people's lives and experience their highs and lows vicariously, movies, TV, twitter, YouTube, Mr. Beast, win big, lose big, I am happy now, I am sad now, this must be what life is, Mr. Beast showed me what life is, but the people in the content are reacting more than me, I wonder why it's not as impactful as it should be. I skip to end where I find fame and fortune, I have many cars, many houses, many wives, I wonder why I'm sick of it all.
It's all backwards. Colour is relative; a field of muted colours makes draws attention to the moments of ultra-saturation, they call it an optical illusion, contrast, I learnt that from painting. It's the ultra-saturated colours that get all the attention, this is the end, this is whats good, yes, let me fill the canvas with ultra-saturation, more, more, more, more dots, more dots, it must be good, let me back up now, where did all the dots go? Why is it all grey? It's called optical mixing, I learnt that from painting. It's in the muted colours, it's in the negative space, positive space gets all the attention, but it could not exist without the negative space.
The greatest sensations are created by the moments in between. We think we want the end, we want the moments in between. The moments in between are the most beautiful. The peeling of the orange. The bus ride. The walk to the washroom. I'm filled with the anticipation of the poop that is about to come. That's what keeps me walking to the washroom. The orange will pass through me, only lasting in memory. If I ate ten, easy-to-peel oranges today I would not remember them as well. But I lived with this orange. For nearly 30 minutes we breathed the same air, shared the same heartbeat, I sat with it quiet for nearly 30 minutes, it wasn't the best, but like other people, like anything, really, the flavour was more intense because I had grown attached to it, and that intensity will last longer in my memory than 10 oranges combined. Thank you, orange. I am glad I took the time to peel you.
Click to expand...
