Recent Rabbit Hole Adventures
When something piques my interest, I become obsessed with learning more. I hate that the internet gives me a means to entertain my new obsession. If it was like back in the day, I would have to go to the library and do my research. If I had to go to the library, I probably wouldn't research a new topic unless it was really interesting. But now I have all this information in the palm of my hand so I can find out all the things I ever wanted to know.
During the past few months I have gone through quite a few topics with a hyper-fixated interest. Here's my listicle of what they are:
US American Nuclear history in relation to New Mexico. I went to the Trinity site in April and learned so much about the American race for nuclear supremacy. I'm so obsessed that I will be taking a trip back to New Mexico to explore Los Alamos. I will be going for other things but I have a day dedicated to just Los Alamos.
Utah and the Church of Latter Day Saints. Let me just say it blows my mind that the state of Utah exists in this country that is so big on the separation of church and state. So this started because I saw a video on Instagram from a woman explaining some LDS rituals. Of course, I was hooked after watching it. I actually got TikTok because this was the original platform that it was on. I found out that TikTok has a variety of niches. There are the ones about ex-Mormons speaking out about the LDS church and the rituals. There's also fitness and military niches that I have looked into. I'm not at the point of obsession with those...yet. Also, Hulu released Under the Banner of Heaven series and it has only reignited my obsession. I read the book a few months ago, before I knew this would be a show. I learned a lot about the LDS church from the book because all I knew about it was from my high school friend and a South Park episode. (I also learned about Scientology from South Park and then later learned that my dad took one of their tests. That's a story for a later day.)
Cults and cult-like leaders. I have always had an interest in cults and charismatic figureheads. I think it came from watching a movie about the Jonestown massacre when I was a preteen and then hearing about Heaven's Gate. (I was around for the Hale Bopp comet and I remember watching it with my parents.) I remember watching the news during the Brand Davidian attack in Waco. I watched all NXIUM cult documentaries that came out in 2020 and now there is a new show called The Deep End on Hulu which is about Teal Swan. I watched her videos and her critics' videos. I am intrigued. I even bought her book The Completion Process because I want to know more.
Filipino American history in the early to mid-twentieth century. I am pretty much all over the place with this. I learned about the riots that happened in the early twentieth century where whites attacked Filipinos for a variety of reasons. I've also been reading about the role Filipinos played in the formation of unions on the west coast. It seems like Filipinos are eclipsed by others; for instance, Larry Itliong and Phillip Veracruz are rarely mentioned because Cesar Chavez became the face of the farmworkers movement. If it weren't for those two Filipinos, the outcome would be very different.
These are things that I have been researching and learning about. I think I may take some time and delve into these interests with a focused approach. I think I have just been doing surface level research and just acquiring a foundational level of knowledge.