The cages that we build
with screens
with updates, likes and chats
with never sitting down to eat
discuss or face a friend.
We watch the stories, reels
of people eating
brewing, baking
sometimes making stuff
believing it’s for real
if we never use our hands
except to swipe.
Trapped in brain-rot
with kicks of dopamine
fenced inside
not comprehending
that addiction also comes
from poisoned Apples.
Raoul Ubac
Today Melissa hosts dVerse Poetics with a prompt where we listen and get inspired by the lyrics of Folsom Prison Blues. For me the thought of prison today is the one we are building for ourselves with (a)social networks.
January 13, 2026
Björn Rudbergs writings 
Bjorn, addiction as much as any pill, powder, or needle.
Indeed
I love where it took you, Björn. This has a very ominous feel. The Apples are indeed poisoned.
Thanks… sometimes I feel like a prisoner myself
Well observed and written, Björn. I worry for the future of society. As much as I love being part of our virtual pub and other writing communities, the rest of the internet is brain rot.
I think we have to learn how to use it properly… interesting that Gen-Z are the ones who invented a word for it.
Dopamine…YUM
Powerful drug indeed.
Hard-hitting and true, Bjorn…as i tap on my Apple.
It is our use that is hard to regulate….
Brilliant poem Bjorn, I have really struggled with this prison that we have all stepped into willingly. I long for a good face to face conversation that has some depth and not just the toxic positivity conversations that people seem to prefer these days.
I recently fell into that dependence deeply… have struggled to get back
A wonderful reflection on the way (some) people live – I love the accented Apple – Jae
It is such a large part of the population…
I love the double meaning of poisoned apples! Well done!
Poison we feed even to toddlers.
Amazing isn’t it, letting social media shape our todlers!
Gotta love those spikes of dopamine!
Like any drug…
Sadly, we have become addicts of the internet. That is why I feel one should limit their time and enjoy time with actual family and friends. Take a walk in nature and connect on a different level.
Exactly… forcing ourselves outside it’s scope…. on long hikes I tend to put my device in flightmode.
Ah yes….the addiction (and I do think it’s that) to be on your “phone” which isn’t really a phone, doom scrolling…looking for “likes” on your posts…the 24/7 news cycle available on your phone. I used to rail against young parents who stuck a pacifier in their child’s mouth, even out of doors, even when the child wasn’t making a fuss. To me it’s a PLUG that keeps a very young child from exploring their voice and communicating. Now it’s the PLUG AND handing the child, as soon as their chubby fingers can handle it, an ipad or phone to play games or watch videos to keep the child “busy”. I’m with you here!
It is a giant experiment on global scale….
I watched one of my students scrolling TikTok this morning, effortlessly liking, reposting and sharing stories with specific friends, each one taking less than a second to process. I just don’t get it. And I don’t think the ‘kids’ do either.This generation will be the easiest to manipulate in the future.Well written Björn 👏
I think that there are those in the younger generation that are more aware than anyone else of what is happening…
I hope you are right. And also hope that they understand that adding your like to a post isn’t fixing anything!
Nice pun at the end, there!I think the trouble is that many people are not taught to be discriminating in their use of social media. Which probably means that they have never been taught to think for themselves at all – sadly.
It is an advantage to know that being a bit bored is actually a blessing. Vacation for me is being outside coverage…. I seek those places.
Oh yes, prisons of our own making, Bjorn. This poem illustrates that perfectly … I have in the past few months limited myself to maybe fifteen minutes a day on Facebook, primarily to make certain I don’t miss a close friend’s birthday. It is one of most freeing actions I have ever taken and I don’t miss the political, nonsensical, nutty stuff whatsoever. I have also done the same with an instagram account which now I access maybe every other month. The only posts of interest are my two grandchildren’s and three great and forever friends. Cheers to you.
Good for you… I have been in the update world from time to time and I will soon go into detox