The Inner Monologue

Let’s talk about the aesthetic of your belongings—yes, that thing you pretend doesn’t matter because you’re so practical. Newsflash: If your stuff looks like it was dragged through a landfill, you’ll treat it that way. And that’s why it’ll break in six months while someone else’s identical, but slightly less hideous version lasts a decade.

The Brutal Truth: Ugly = Disposable

You buy a nice knife. It’s sleek, balanced, and makes you feel like a Michelin-star chef. You hand-wash it. You store it properly. You respect it.

Now take that same knife, but imagine it’s chipped, scratched, and wrapped in duct tape. Suddenly, you’re tossing it in the sink with the other greasy utensils, letting it rattle around in a drawer, and—whoops—now it’s dull, rusty, and living in the “junk we might fix someday” pile.

Same knife. Different fate. Why? Because how something looks directly impacts how you treat it.

The Psychological Voodoo of “Nice Things”

Humans are shallow, irrational creatures. If something looks good, we assign it value. If it looks like garbage, we treat it like garbage. This isn’t a design seminar pep talk—it’s survival instinct. Your caveman brain sees a cracked phone case and thinks, “This one’s on its way out. No need to baby it.” And so, you drop it just a little more carelessly until—shocker—it finally gives up.

Meanwhile, the person with the pristine case? They still use two hands to text like it’s 2007. Their phone lives forever.

The Maintenance Mirage

You think you’ll maintain things equally, but you won’t. A car covered in dents and mystery stains? You’ll ignore the oil change light because “Eh, it’s already a beater.” But a clean, shiny car? You’ll panic at the first dashboard warning like it’s a nuclear launch code.

This isn’t about vanity—it’s about self-fulfilling neglect. The worse something looks, the less effort you’ll put into preserving it, and the faster it’ll die. It’s a vicious cycle, and you’re the one spinning it.

The Fix: Stop Pretending You’re Above This

If you want your stuff to last:

1. Keep it clean. Dirt and grime aren’t patina—they’re decay accelerants.
2. Fix small damage ASAP. A missing button is a $2 fix today; a ruined shirt tomorrow.
3. Store it properly. Yes, even if it’s “just” a tool/hobby thing/whatever.
4. Buy things you actually like looking at. If you resent its existence, you’ll sabotage it.

Or don’t. Keep treating your possessions like they’re already trash, and enjoy your endless cycle of buying replacements. Your wallet will love it.

Bottom Line: Looks aren’t everything—but they’re the difference between something lasting and something languishing in a landfill. So wipe your crap down, fix it before it’s tragic, and stop pretending you’re immune to the power of not disgusting.

—End Rant.