A few nights ago, I was hanging out with some friends, and we got to talking about the old internet. One of these friends posited that AIM away messages were, in their own weird way, the absolute pinnacle of social networking. It was a raw, unfiltered, and surprisingly intimate way to signal what was on your mind without the soul crushing pressure of performative posts and endless timelines.

So, I did what any self-respecting neckbeard with a server and a free afternoon would do… I spun up a site to bring that vibe back.

It’s called AFK, and it’s ridiculously simple. You log in, you post an away message, and that’s it.

There’s a very small timeline available to scroll. As of right now, the only people on AFK are a few other friends who I’ve told about the site. There’s no follower counts to obsess over, no photos to get just right, and there’s absolutely no history. When you want to post a new message, you have to delete your old one. Your presence is ephemeral. Your thoughts are for here and now.

Frankly, I’m lowkey tired of the internet where every interaction is mined, every thought is archived, and every platform is angling to sell you something. AFK is my quiet little protest against all that. It’s a space to just be, to share a fleeting thought, a song lyric, or an inside joke with the few friends who might happen to see it. It’s a throwback to when the internet felt less like a shopping mall and more like a bunch of weird, interesting lil neighborhoods.

No frills. No noise. Just vibes.

I am tempted to clean up the code and share it so folks can set one of these spaces up for their pals. It’s honestly a shitload of fun.

Then again, maybe I should be happy with what I did and let AFK be a home-cooked meal instead.