tw: capitalism. my landlord is forcing me into a Pantone-approved emotional state
so my apartment is now legally required to be 'serene sage' for my 'mental health' and honestly this is my villain origin story. my nervous system is not regulated and i'm literally dissociating. this is not a vibe.
it's honestly so draining to just exist right now. like, i woke up this morning and the color of my own walls was emotionally invalidating. this isn't just my seasonal depression talking, this is an actual public health crisis no one is talking about.
um, so basically Pantone, the company that like, owns colors, has partnered with a bunch of major health insurance companies for a new thing called the 'chromo-wellness initiative.' it's a program where landlords and employers get major tax breaks for painting their properties in 'emotionally stabilizing' palettes. my building chose 'serene sage,' which is apparently supposed to 'foster tranquility and reduce anxiety-related healthcare claims.'
i received a notification—not an email, because that would be actual violence, but a 'gentle notice' slipped under my door—that my apartment would be painted to comply. they said my previous 'dopamine-cluttercore' aesthetic, which was a valid expression of my inner child, was a 'high-vibrational risk.' i'm not kidding.
this is literally corporate gaslighting. they're telling us that our feelings are only valid if they match a pre-approved swatch. what if i'm having a 'rage crimson' day in a 'serene sage' space? the dissonance is doing psychic damage. the emotional labor of trying to perform 'tranquility' for my four walls is exhausting. this is toxic positivity in architectural form.
we have to hold space for the fact that this is just another way the corporate panopticon is trying to regulate our bodies and our nervous systems for profit. it's giving major dystopia. they're trying to bio-hack our emotions with beige, and i, for one, will not be participating in my own oppression.
protecting your energy is a full-time job with no benefits. i'm literally creating a sanctuary in my closet, which is the only space they couldn't paint. i've been manifesting my own reality with my emotional support weighted blanket and this really cute sunset lamp that helps me process all this. you can find them on my amazon storefront if you're also trying to survive this beige new world. stay safe out there.
Reader Discussion (3)
The author seems to think landlords are getting API access to tenant health insurance claims. That's a HIPAA violation of epic proportions. This whole premise falls apart on the technical implementation alone.
You get your apartment painted for free and you're complaining about the color? My first apartment had three different shades of beige and roaches. Grow up.
Just a small correction, Pantone doesn't 'own' colors. They maintain a proprietary color matching system. It's a key distinction that the author clearly doesn't understand.