This week, Kate reflects on 2025 for feeling depleting yet not defining, exhausting and sometimes forgettable; a year of endless micro-trends, political chaos, and moment sludge that somehow left very little to hold onto. Fun! She dives into "viral death cycle" and why nothing sticks anymore, explores the three stages of aging out of culture, explores why many of us feel our brains are broken, and processes the weird grief of realizing you're no longer "becoming" someone but existing deep in a routine, all while she grapples with her uncool taste in apples. TLDR: a contemplative, honest, sometimes vulnerable year-end reflection about culture, the internet, our interests, and Kate's job at the intersection, and how this is the first year she felt like she's officially getting old. Happy Holidays!

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