#260 - Blogger Ate My Post

And I'm Glad.

I typed up this long entry that was inspired by a conversation I had with Vince a week or two ago, where I was going to put the truth of a story down on the internet, but I think I'm going to stick with my initial instincts on this one. For one, I'm not the kind of person who likes to do that sort of thing on the internet anymore -- the internet as a whole is a place that seems to bring more irritation than it does pleasure. Perhaps it's hypocritical of me to even broach this subject on a weblog, but the fact of the matter is the internet really brings too many things out of people; things that wouldn't normally come out in every day life.

When I first got on the internet, and then into message boards and blogging and such, I found it really intriguing to be able to look into people's lives via their words. To a certain extent, I still do, but I've discovered that there are times when this is a blessing and times where it's truly a curse. Meeting people over the internet can be interesting, and it can provide at least some sort of entertainment and fulfillment on those nights where you have nothing better to do, so long as you don't allow yourself to become wrapped into it. Reading the blogs and livejournals of these people reveals insights that you would have no chance of discovering on your own without traversing great distances or long-distance phone bills, or even your own self-esteem.

But reading the journals of those that are actually physically close to you; the people that you see on a regular basis? This seems to produce mixed results. In some ways, it's a great way to keep in touch with a friend whom you don't see very often. You can learn to understand them on a level that perhaps you didn't understand them on before; you can ever-so-briefly see the world through a pair of eyes that are not your own without going too terribly far from the source. And as a writer of one, it seems like you allow people to come closer to you than they would during typical contact. There's a certain pleasure in speaking your mind and allowing people to see what you think without having to get into a debate with them. There's a safety behind the screen that you can't experience in the outside world. There are plenty of other things too.

These things are fine to a certain extent, but when it comes to people that you know and interact with on an everyday basis, you're probably better off not reading. For starters, it could be said that if you are only kept up-to-date by these sorts of things, then chances are you're no longer really that important to the writer -- if you were, then why would you have to read a blog or a livejournal or some such to be kept abreast of their lives? For adults with incomes, phone lines, and vehicles, this is really sort of a sad idea for friendship.

Learning to understand others could easily be one concept that almost every human being crosses over in their lifetime. There will always be people in your life whether you want them or not, and you'll probably never understand most of them. The ones you believe you understand are the ones that are likely to confuse you in the end, or so it seems. But in any case, this is yet another thing that's good for internet friends and bad for people you actually interact with. You won't have the chance to make eye contact with those people on the internet...or maybe you will, but it won't be for long enough to really count for anything.

Or something.

Anyway, after mulling over this mini-essay for several days, I've decided simply to end it, as sooner or later I'll want to write another entry but will be unable to because I haven't finished this yet. So for now, it's finished!

~Don