On Wednesday, John Miguel McCauley, an LA-based research data analyst, asked people on Twitter to share their gripes, however small, and offered to listen to them. "In such a beshitted world, complaining about small things can feel selfish," he said.
People took McCauley up on the offer. There was no complaint too small or insignificant to be raised.
"My dog refuses to cuddle next to me most days of the week and when she does want to it's while I'm working."
"My bf said he was gonna pick up milk and asked if i needed anything and i said no, but now i wish i asked for coke."
"The property manager keeps the heat so high in my apartment that my Reese's Peanut Butter Cups melted in the cupboard."
Some complaints seemed like they've been bottled up for a while. "My cats don't respect me or my house."
The thread also opened everyone up to the hilarious and curiously weird worlds of other people.
But perhaps the even better function of the thread is that someone is actually listening. And not only did McCauley listen to everyone's gripes, but he also took the time to respond.
To almost each and every one.
And his responses were thoughtful, empathetic, and delightfully poetic at times.
A few hours later, he updated everyone to let them know he'll be taking a quick break from the "beautiful tapestry of life's little slights."
But people went ahead and aired their little slights all through the night, and through to the following day.
People who read through the thread of complaints — and responses — from complete strangers were inspired.
And thought it was a great way to start your day and/or reset.
It restored a lot of people's feelings about Twitter — which has been mostly a mess as of late.
As for McCauley: Thank you.
And I've reached out personally to grumble about the fact that the yogurt at the office — which is provided free — is either overly sweetened with 80% gelatinous fake fruit or "fat free" and void of any flavor and tastes like cardboard mildew.