Point: There Are No Third Spaces Anymore!
Tired Millennial
The third space — a place that isn’t work or home — is a nearly extinct presence in modern America. With society’s endless focus on hustle culture, it feels like any time that isn’t spent in one of those two places is a waste of energy which could instead be spent comfortably doomscrolling in my bed. I see my dwindling number of friends less and less. I mean, where are we even supposed to meet? The only options are either a bar or a club — why must every social event be centered around alcohol?! Every cafe requires a purchase just to stay for an hour at a time. No one even wants to hang out anymore, they just stay home. They’re always so busy with the unceasing grind.
Admittedly, I’m guilty of this myself; I always feel like I need to be productive, working on some side project or something with my limited free hours, yet I still end up on my couch every night, saddled with a boatload of guilt.
Since I left college, there’s hardly any place to make new friends outside of work. I’m just not meeting anyone anymore. It’s worse because I work remotely, so my coworkers are just Slack icons and my boss a series of emails. I barely even have a second space, my office is my home!
I’m just so lonely now. Sure, I text my friends all the time — hell, we communicate all the time through TikToks, Reels, and the occasional YouTube Short — but it doesn’t feel real, you know? I just wish there were more places where I could meet people, hang out, and just spend time being a person.
Counterpoint: Get A Second Job, Dumbass!
Certified Bootlicker
Oh my God! Stop complaining, pull up your bootstraps, and get a damn job! Oh, you already have one? Get another one then! A second job would be an excellent use of all the free time you’re blabbing on and on about. God! People these days make me ashamed to be part of this pathetic generation. What are you, a child? You want to have a playdate with your friends? Because that’s what it sounds like. You are an adult, start acting like it and focus on climbing higher up that corporate ladder and making money through any means possible. When you are rich, you can buy all the “third spaces” you want.
You know what will stop making you feel guilty for “not being productive?” BEING FUCKING PRODUCTIVE! Have something to show for yourself, damn it! You seem like a person with a lot of free time. Surely there’s something you can do with it. Pick up a barista gig after work, monetize your hobbies, bartend all night, you name it. You won’t worry about not having a “cute little neighborhood spot’’ to “connect with your community” when you haven’t got a goddamn second at home except to sleep.
I’m not gonna sugarcoat it sweetheart, it’s a dog-eat-dog world out there, and you are not going to get anywhere if all you want to do is “hang out with your friends.”
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