i'm starting a sticker collection

Over the years, I’ve been shifting from a minimal aesthetic to a more maximalist one — and now I'm making another step in that direction 💪

Today, I put stickers on my laptop for the first time in my life. Hoping to fill it up (slowly) with more fun, meaningful ones.

During college, even during my hackathon-heavy days (when I definitely had access to tons of stickers), I never put a single one on my MacBook. I was too much of a purist.

But now, as Arjun put it, Steve Jobs is rolling over in his grave.

There’s something I really love about a maximalist aesthetic. My desk these days feels full of life — skincare stuff, keyboard, mouse, headphones, peripherals, mail (I actually collect the mail now), photos, a lacrosse ball for massage. It’s a little chaotic but visually interesting. I can't take a picture of it right now since I’m out of town, but here is a picture from a few years ago that show the early signs of that maximalist shift:

Also, I love this photo I took of a Korean cafe in Oaxaca (it’s been my desktop wallpaper). It’s visually busy in a nice way:

Finally, the space at the Recurse Center, the coding retreat I’m at right now, is such a great example of this too. It’s not a “clean” aesthetic at all. All the monitors and desks are mismatched, and every corner has something quirky: a stuffed octopus, art projects, weird hacks people have added over the years. It's so vibrant.

I aspire for my space and laptop to have a lot of personality and visual interest. Sometimes it might come at the cost of cleanliness or cohesion, but I'll take the hit.