The world is a Messy, Messy place (& so am I, & so are you, & so are we).
Welcome to Messy Dialectic, written by me, Tiara Alinia. This Substack is my playground to dive into the messy opinions, decisions, and even legislations that keep our communication, thoughts, and society in a whirlwind. I hope to bring forth a perspective that can untangle the deep webs of beliefs and actions that got us to where we are in our everchanging world, and I hope that after reading an essay or two, you’re able to find yourself with a fresh new perspective or outlook that you can carry into your communities and into the world.
To delve into the archives, visit the Messy Dialectic tag for more.
I also love to post diary-like posts that connect my perspectives directly to my day-to-day endeavors. You can find these under my field notes section on the website.
Where to Begin?
Here are some pieces to dive headfirst into the Messy Dialectic catalogue:
My Beef with the Modern Commodification of the Self
As an experiment, I created a cozy self care personal brand with pillars surrounding cozy living, self care, and cozy eats. I had hopes so high that I even applied to a speaking engagement, confident that this is the life for me. That this is the path I wanted to pave for myself. I too wanted to get paid to exist and receive opportunities beyond my comprehension. I had spent Q1 of 2025 planning out content pillars, content ideas, and more, and once April rolled around, I was ready for the world to see me.
field notes: post-vacay depression & the power of the pivot
In retrospect, now that I’m back from vacation and I look at myself in the mirror, I can really tell that I needed every ounce of that experience. I’m covered in crazy deep tan lines, my eyes look more rested and clear, my body feels way less tense (save for the soreness from the long ass drive). I can literally see in the mirror how much better I feel, and I can’t believe that I didn’t take a vacation sooner.
On another note, I genuinely can’t believe that no one, and I mean no one in my life told me that I needed a vacation.
Where is the Future that We Seek?
Of course things were always better “back in the day,” but now, with the blending of niche and corporate, silly and political, or even inauthentic and creative, is it really surprising that everyone is craving the past more than ever? Maybe, deep down inside, we all know that the last time art and creation truly felt real on a large scale was in the past, back in the day when posers were outed and style was a representation of your lifestyle, whether that is the 70s, 90s, or the 2010s. Back when authenticity was more heavily rewarded en masse.
field notes: the importance of the redemption arc
Being as young as I am while having gone through so much awful stuff, it’s a tough place to be as my ultimate goal has become harm reduction and “protecting my peace” (as people say these days), and in order to achieve these two goals, I have definitely taken many steps to isolate myself from situations that have burned me in the past. However, a new issue replaced all of my old ones: that methodology led to me creating a very sterile life that, yes, protected my peace, but also kept me from living my life and enjoying activities that I had been curious about pursuing in the first place.
