meganmayFri, Jan 16, 2009 This post sparks a lot of thoughts in in my brain. For one, I recently confessed to a friend that when i stop seeing someone online for a long period of time i start to worry that they're dead, which just goes to show how much of a place this kind of connection has in my life (this has only happened a couple of times though, i promise). Knowing that the moment i turn on my computer I'm connected is a pretty profound feeling, and even though i don't talk to all the people on my buddy list, I feel a certain closeness to them. The online connection is an emotional one.
Of course, I also thoroughly believe that physical contact is hugely important. This is going to get too long, but Laura Huxley, wife of Aldous, started a program where elderly people would hold babies, providing the physical contact much needed in these two stages of life. I was always touched by the elegance of this idea.. maybe we just need to hire feelers to touch us when we communicate with someone online? My theory on the physical digital akwardness you mention in the love section has something to do with chemical interference, which should probably be elaborated on in a proper post, but as for the solution...I'm not exactly sure...i was thinking of becoming an avatar for hire in meatspace to bridge the gap.
Also, you might want to check out mydeathspace, which is an aggregation of myspace profile pages from people who have died.
This post sparks a lot of thoughts in in my brain. For one, I recently confessed to a friend that when i stop seeing someone online for a long period of time i start to worry that they're dead, which just goes to show how much of a place this kind of connection has in my life (this has only happened a couple of times though, i promise). Knowing that the moment i turn on my computer I'm connected is a pretty profound feeling, and even though i don't talk to all the people on my buddy list, I feel a certain closeness to them. The online connection is an emotional one.
Of course, I also thoroughly believe that physical contact is hugely important. This is going to get too long, but Laura Huxley, wife of Aldous, started a program where elderly people would hold babies, providing the physical contact much needed in these two stages of life. I was always touched by the elegance of this idea.. maybe we just need to hire feelers to touch us when we communicate with someone online? My theory on the physical digital akwardness you mention in the love section has something to do with chemical interference, which should probably be elaborated on in a proper post, but as for the solution...I'm not exactly sure...i was thinking of becoming an avatar for hire in meatspace to bridge the gap.
Also, you might want to check out mydeathspace, which is an aggregation of myspace profile pages from people who have died.
And I just thought the following image was apt