⚓️ a metaverse of our own making
gm. it’s happening! today is going to be a Goblin-free newsletter. I’m also not speaking on Hobos, Elves, or any other derivatives of Goblin Town.
ALPHA ⚓️
yesterday, GQ dropped a must-read piece on Bored Apes.
the writer, Will Stephenson, spent the weekend at NFT LA with some Apes and asssimilated himself into the degen lifestyle.
the piece mostly centers around the idea of their IP rights, but we get some cameos from our favorite Apes, including Sonny Q who kicks off the article (please refer to him as Sonny GQ from now on).
in my opinion, it’s written mostly as a hit piece on Bored Apes and NFT culture at large. you’re supposed to be left saying, “get a load of these idiots” and feeling like Bored Apes mark the decline of western civilization as we know it.
however, to me, it weirdly captures the essence of what makes NFTs so special by showcasing the wide range of people who care about this stuff.
it’s not just about owning Ape in a funny hat…it’s about taking ownership of your own life. with a Bored Ape, you get the power to be as unique as they are. not everyone takes advantage of using the IP, but those who do are pursuing a life they’ve always wanted.
will anyone care about their endevours? that’s the core thesis of the piece (the writer FWIW seems to think they will not). but I certainly hope we can prove them all wrong.
I’m writing a newsletter right now that few will ever read or care about. but I’m doing it because for the first time in my life I’m going for it…and meeting some other awesome “degens” along the way.
weirdly, Jimmy Fallon nails it in this interview by saying BAYC is full of interesting people…and ultimately, who “wouldn’t want to be around interesting people?”
BETA ⚓️
GoDaddy acquired an ENS domain yesterday (GCD.eth). however, it sounds more exciting than it turned out being. turns out, GoDaddy is just radicalizing their users to hate ENS domains.
in recent weeks, they’ve urged brands to acquire their .eth domain preemptively in order to combat squatting and price gauging.
meanwhile, Sandbox let their one of their ENS domains, sand.eth, expire and boldly let it drop after paying 4.9 ETH for it in November.
obviously, someone swooped in and grabbed it. now if Sandbox wants it back, there is going to be a hefty premium or move on.
whereas ICANN would likely return the domain to Sandbox, ENS can only help facilitate a compromise.
ENS continues to be the most fascinating…if not lawless…project in all of NFTs. I smell a war coming between brands and the degens who hold their ENS domains. and I feel that for the first time in a while, we have the upper hand. however, we’ll likely come out of the other side looking like the villains somehow.
DELTA ⚓️
IRL real estate on the blockchain? it’s always made a lot of sense, but so far we’ve only been messing with metaverse land. hopefully, we see a lot more of this in the future…
Yuga will take a vote to see if $APE will be moved off the Ethereum network. this is after the Otherside land sale went sideways and $APE voters were strongly encouraged to consider this. I doubt it happens, but it’s certainly a fun feud to keep an eye on.
following up on the Nate drama, Horndog (an actual lawyer) came through with more accurate information on how and why they’re bringing charges. check it out!
