Not long ago Toby and I discussed something that when I later thought more in depth about, really bugged me.
We were out and about on our usual weekly errands when Toby pointed out that if we were to get into a car accident (this thought is not far-fetched considering the reputation of the drivers in the city we reside) and we were all killed that Bo would be locked in his kennel for an indefinite amount of time and would possibly perish himself.
After all, we don't have any family close by and what few friends we do have we usually don't talk to on a daily basis. As far as our neighbors go, they may would eventually wonder where we were, but there again it would probably be at least a week or two before anyone would be curious enough to check on us.
This prompted me to re-think my connections. I thought about it hard and seriously. There have been numerous times that I have opted to spend time on FB or watching t.v instead of going out and socializing with the neighbors in the evenings when they usually come out of their abodes.
I'm the sort of person that takes FB seriously. It's my way of socializing without having to put out much effort. I take notice when one my FB friends have not been online for a while. I'm not one of those people that just accept anyone and everyone as a friend so I don't have a thousand friends to keep up with. I notice when someone is missing and on a few occasions privately messaged them to make sure everything was okay. There again, it took me a couple of weeks to notice someone was missing...unless they are a one of my closer FB friends.
I decided last week that I was going to disconnect myself and take a break from FB and the computer for awhile - this excludes my blog, so that I could start connecting to real life and real people.
I want someone to miss me if I go missing. I don't want my dog to perish in his kennel because nobody misses me for weeks.
With technology this day and age it can connect us all around the world to anybody or anything in a matter of seconds but it so impersonal. So many times we stay connected to our computers or Ipods, Iphones, etc. when in actuality we are sooooo disconnected.
I have been making a point these past few weeks to get out and hang out with my neighbors, to meet ones that I have never met, to say hi to the ones I pass by who are out in their yards working or the ones I pass who who are also out walking their dogs or kids.
I want people to notice when I am missing. I want them to say, "Hey, I haven't seen Laura out walking the past couple of days..let's go check on her."
I want to see my friends every week. I want to text them just to say. "Hey! Hope you have a great day!" so they miss me when they don't hear from me.
I want to plug into life...REAL LIFE.
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Very good point. I am reaching the same conclusion. While I do not do FB, by blog takes time away from personal interactions. Sometimes it's good to disconnect and head out for one on ones. If for no other reason we learn to carry on conversations that are longer than one or two sentences.
ReplyDeleteI worry about not being missed too, although I figure our stupid cat can fend for herself if we kick the bucket. It's being away from family. I think if I didn't have my call/skype check-in time with my parents twice a week, no one would really miss us for a long time.
ReplyDeleteThis is not something I worry too much about what with my teaching during the fall and spring semesters. And in the summers, I'm out and about enough that people would miss me if didn't call or drop by. Besides that, I have a daughter (29) that comes by a couple of times a week to chat, continue cleaning out her stuff as she transitions towards married life. I don't know about Toby, but if Ellen didn't show at work, someone would call to find out where she was. Same with me -- if I didn't show for class, someone would come find out why. Also, I belong to two email groups (both composed of long-time friends from across the country) that would wonder if I didn't speak-up for a day or two. That said, I doubt if anyone would miss me on FB. Thankfully our group of friends are quite well established.
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