At this age (I feel old, ok?), I can no longer abide by introductions. Meeting new people has become such a chore: the endless treadmill of socializing that leaves you spouting the same tired old lines again and again for the umpteenth time.
Sometimes you feel like lying about yourself just to break the monotony of it all. And other times you have to reign in your to tongue to keep from saying what you really want to say i.e. when you want to let brutal honesty and slit-throat sarcasm take over. But you don’t of course, because that would be a major no-no in polite company. Trust me displaying psychotic tendencies does not make a good first impression. But still depending on how I feel that day I tend to either come across as a smiling half-wit mute with no personal opinion whatsoever, or (this is when I put in some effort) a bland “normal” human being, or (when I’m really pissed) an enigmatic deranged lunatic. Heh.
My point is, and I do have one (I think) is that I wish there was an easier way to go about meeting new people, a way that is not fraught with soo many layers of pretension. Because don’t get me wrong, I’m all for meeting new people and expanding one’s circle of friends, it’s just that I wish there was some way of filtering them for quality first.
Examples of some desirable top notch qualities in my case would be a strong stomach for whiny bullshit, tolerance for long drawn out moody silences and a very strong hide to withstand the occasional whiplash from a sharp tongue. (And people find it amazing how such a wonderful girl like me can’t find a nice sweet guy. It’s a mystery, I say)
So this brings us to blogs (you knew it was coming didn’t you?). When you come to think of it, it’s the perfect solution isn’t it? You get to quietly read as complete strangers pour out their deepest darkest thoughts, feelings and desires. You get a feel of what the person is made up of by the way they express themselves and their reactions to their surroundings. Now if this isn’t a brilliant way to vet through the anonymous masses before you actually introduce yourself, then I don’t know what is.
But (yes, there is a but), using a blog as the sole medium with which to size up a person is not without it’s flaws. It’s kinda like trying to imagine what a person looks like when all you’ve seen is a toe. I also tend to think that the image we portray of ourselves in our blogs are frequently an exaggeration of who we are. It isn’t necessarily a lie, but more of an embellishment perhaps.
So what now? Ok, here’s the deal. If you do find a blog/blogger that you like, chances are you’d probably like them in real life and go on to be lifelong (virtual) friends and whatnot. But before that prepare yourself, because all of what you read might not be embodied in the person you will eventually meet.
Real life, it’s a bummer eh?
Sometimes you feel like lying about yourself just to break the monotony of it all. And other times you have to reign in your to tongue to keep from saying what you really want to say i.e. when you want to let brutal honesty and slit-throat sarcasm take over. But you don’t of course, because that would be a major no-no in polite company. Trust me displaying psychotic tendencies does not make a good first impression. But still depending on how I feel that day I tend to either come across as a smiling half-wit mute with no personal opinion whatsoever, or (this is when I put in some effort) a bland “normal” human being, or (when I’m really pissed) an enigmatic deranged lunatic. Heh.
My point is, and I do have one (I think) is that I wish there was an easier way to go about meeting new people, a way that is not fraught with soo many layers of pretension. Because don’t get me wrong, I’m all for meeting new people and expanding one’s circle of friends, it’s just that I wish there was some way of filtering them for quality first.
Examples of some desirable top notch qualities in my case would be a strong stomach for whiny bullshit, tolerance for long drawn out moody silences and a very strong hide to withstand the occasional whiplash from a sharp tongue. (And people find it amazing how such a wonderful girl like me can’t find a nice sweet guy. It’s a mystery, I say)
So this brings us to blogs (you knew it was coming didn’t you?). When you come to think of it, it’s the perfect solution isn’t it? You get to quietly read as complete strangers pour out their deepest darkest thoughts, feelings and desires. You get a feel of what the person is made up of by the way they express themselves and their reactions to their surroundings. Now if this isn’t a brilliant way to vet through the anonymous masses before you actually introduce yourself, then I don’t know what is.
But (yes, there is a but), using a blog as the sole medium with which to size up a person is not without it’s flaws. It’s kinda like trying to imagine what a person looks like when all you’ve seen is a toe. I also tend to think that the image we portray of ourselves in our blogs are frequently an exaggeration of who we are. It isn’t necessarily a lie, but more of an embellishment perhaps.
So what now? Ok, here’s the deal. If you do find a blog/blogger that you like, chances are you’d probably like them in real life and go on to be lifelong (virtual) friends and whatnot. But before that prepare yourself, because all of what you read might not be embodied in the person you will eventually meet.
Real life, it’s a bummer eh?
4 comments:
Not embodied in the physical, maybe not.
But I do agree it does provide a way into a person, that might otherwise take knowing the person for ages before you actually find out what kind of person they really are. Knowing from the inside out, not outside in.
it depends, i guess, on just how much that person chooses to reveal on his/her blog... and sometimes the fact that while the reader may be privileged to see a part of the writer not normally visible to others, it is also true that the part of the writer visible to everyone else remains hidden from the reader...
one thing tho, i do find that as we get older, we also get "wiser" in terms of our bullshit detection radar. i'm less nice and more likely to be able to suss out people who r not worth being friends with.
re blogs.. not all are diaries. and sometimes, i feel tt people write for their readers than for themselves. i've met up with 4 bloggers so far (in 3 years).. 1 gal is very close to me. but that's after talking online for ages and confiding in each other a lot. And her blog is a diary.
Ditto, ditto, ditto. Seriously, think you people would have done a better job writing this post than me...hey! no fair, try not to steal the limelight ok u guys? ;-)
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