[Musings] Waxing & Waning, and thoughts on the Reddit API Mess

Interest in skincare waxes and wanes, it's normal and expected. I've experienced it and I've seen it happen to many users on the sub. It's definitely waning for me again.

The first interest that got me into AB was buying a bottle of Mizon Snail Gel and falling into the community of the sub at that time. I got what I mostly needed after a few years of lurking and left. I came back, as I'm sure others did, during the pandemic and very quickly found out that not only had the sub changed, but so did the AB field in general (not in a great way).

I had fun catching up with the new science and tech that I missed, learned a bit more and had fun engaging with the sub more than I had the first time. But I'm now back to what waned on me the first time: I've got what I mostly needed and I think I've given back a lot as well.

I think anyone who has a healthy relationship with themselves and realistic expectation about skincare knows there are limits to what it can do for you. In terms of the anti-aging department that I'm in, time will always win. So you do your best, have fun playing but can my skin be better for a few months or years, find out it likely can get better, but up to a point. And then?

The picture above is my current shelfie (not inclusive of the backups I have). I've been slowly transitioning to luxe products for the past half year mostly because my skin really has demanded more since my mid-30s. I have products in the picture that I plan on replacing once I pan, and I have the products in mind to replace them...that's about it really. I guess I'm waiting for some new breakthroughs or the (sometimes dreaded) reformulations, but I'm pretty set.

My interest has mostly been in haircare the last few months because I cannot for the life of me figure it out. Which is fun in it's own way; it's kind of like skincare, but when my scalp needs something different than my hair? That's a new problem for me. In terms of staying on with the sub, I do mostly still enjoy helping people, but combating misinformation can take a lot of energy.

I love the sub. I love the community, I love the history, I love that I can search the sub and posts from 5, 7, 10 years ago still pop up. The wiki and the sidebar has been a labor of love by mods who have come and gone and I love(d?) adding my little bits to the history of the sub as a sort of "pay it forward" to everyone who came before me and helped me so much in figuring out my skin. 

Reddit is not helping that feeling.

The API thing itself is tough. I understand Reddit needs/wants to make money. I also understand and have seen Reddit grow due to its symbiotic relationship with it's users/content creators, including third-party apps.

I started off with "old" Reddit, before it was labeled old, and insisted on using Old Reddit for a long time, including when I started modding. But I started using New Reddit and then the App, and I got used to it the image-forward layout of Reddit compared to what it used to be and what some of the third-party apps preserve. I don't hate either New Reddit or The Official App - I do most modding on the App and it's fine. But it is clunky and I understand that. I always go back to old Reddit to do some stuff because it's just easier and frankly more reliable (as of now, the app is broken and I can't ban rule breakers on it). But not everyone loves it or change in general.

But what is frustrating for me is seeing Huffman (spez) give so little consideration for the millions of people who built Reddit up, and the thousands of mods who do their work for them for free (and saving them millions). I believe it was initially marketed as an AMA, but the "discussion" was basically 20 combined comments from Huffman and other Reddit employees and that was it. So it's disheartening to say the least. The top level execs at Reddit are making r/AsianBeauty look bad and I'm not sure how much longer I want to stay a part of that.

All social media platforms come and go, and it really would be a shame to have r/AsianBeauty go, but the reality is it probably will "go" someday. I just thought I would be leaving before seeing that happen.

My blog isn't meant to be a replacement of any sort of the sub - it's mainly just an expansion of what my interest in skincare has become. I graduated with a BA in Psychology and International Studies, with a minor in Marketing, and the marketing and selling of AB products touches on all of those. I'm writing this to the void, mostly because the blackout is happening today and I'm given some time to muse about my own disappointments toward Reddit, but the love and appreciation of the sub.

Ultimately, I think all of this is culminates into my wanting to minimize my contributions to the sub outside of mod duties, including what I contribute to the archival history, which I think Reddit is best used for. I'll be migrating some posts here (and deleting them off of Reddit), but mostly I'm just thinking about future reviews, journals, science, guides, routines, etc. that will only be on here.

It's a shame, but I think this is the best middle ground I can come up with and sits well with me.