PSA: I miss when remote work was just a laptop and a prayer

Seriously, all this talk about perfect home offices makes me laugh. Back in the early 2000s, working from home meant using whatever computer you had on the kitchen table and hoping the internet didn't cut out. I helped a friend who did her entire job from a folding chair in her living room. Now, it feels like you need a whole room with special gear just to send an email. We've turned flexibility into a big production to look good on video calls. I think we lost the point of remote work. Give me the old, messy days any time.

2 comments

2 Comments

the_linda4h ago

Man, this really hits home. The whole thing has become such a performance now. It feels like we swapped real flexibility for this pressure to show off a perfect, quiet home office on camera. That old way was messy but it was actually about getting the work done anywhere. I miss that practical spirit too, where the job itself mattered more than the background in a video call.

caleb_owens3h ago

We keep making normal things too fancy for no real reason. Look at how even a simple walk has to be a "mindfulness practice" with all the gear. The same thing turned remote work from a kitchen table job into a stage show.