Social Media and 2021

I’m beginning to feel like one of the deeper problems with social media is its immersive nature. It lulls you in, swallowing up precious hours, days and insidiously entering the mind to build associations that you.just.dont.need.

And I’m not even referring to that strange system of designating acquaintances into the category of followers *cough*fans*cough* 

I mean, when did friendship stop being a mutual relationship? 

In the quest for higher numbers and also numbers that don’t overlap, some people seem to have lost the original plot- now its more important to be seen than to see? And even if, there is a mutual sharing of the daily - what is being consumed is banal yet addictive. 

The whole thing is rather puzzling and I find myself giving up on it.

I actually did join the most consumption-driven site for a while, and then again, and it was lovely to stay in touch with those who matter... seeing what they were up to, staying more updated about their daily lives, stuff we wouldn't necessarily text about... applauding their artistic experiments (yay!) and generally feeling happy cheerleading their achievements :)

It was also great getting back in touch with others, sending virtual hugs as love-filled memories warmed the heart. It was great to reach out, comment and actually connect without reservation. 

But the other darker aspect is ultimately too oppressive for me, compelling me to step away after a few weeks. There's just too much projection happening. Too much... pandering. and it doesn't ever lead to a good feeling when you're consuming that much of a false narrative. and IG, in particular, has just a huge volume of images just hitting you visually, each one carefully curated to provoke a particular reaction.

I guess Twitter doesn't seem that obvious, although probably the same intent propels each tweet. The desire to appear a certain way, to project wit, intellect or sarcastic intelligence. I guess every expression/interaction, virtual or otherwise, can then be interpreted as attempts at projection.. Hmm, that's probably true. But in reality, sigh so many months ago, when we do meet people, it's normally at a much smaller scale. The projection of an image is thus limited to those we are physically interacting with. Social media makes it possible for us to expand our influence and shove that same attempt at projection into every screen that subscribes to our virtual persona.

Which brings me back to the joy of simpler times, actually interacting with people we like and share the same-ish wavelength with. Whether its celebrating each others sense of humor, giggling over past idiocies or musing on changing philosophies, its really good to connect with those whom you're actually a fan of. :) Friendships are unique and precious, but as we grow older (33 this year!! whoa!) you realize that friendships are also sustained by admiration of each others strengths... of not just liking the person, but of looking at this human you've shared so much with, and you admire different aspects of them. they're probably not going to be identical to you, but there are aspects of them you aspire to and vice versa... you share love and a genuine concern for each other... you wish that they receive the best, and experiences with them, of laughter and love, become treasured memories. 

To the good moments

To the good memories

To the good ones

BIG Thank you! To receive a chance to experience goodness is wonderful, to remember to acknowledge the goodness is priceless. 

keep it moving buddies, nothing to read here

Officially- the plot has been lost

Almost completed a rhyme about a floating 🐝 

Managed to erase it before it took too much of a structure and I would have to confront the fact that I at 1 am think composing children’s songs about 🐝’S is actually an appropriate and constructive use of my time

Ofcourse *this* is not much better 

But sometimes when you’re skipping a whole lot, it helps to spout the nonsensical

YouDoYou

Regardless of the disdain many (most) people seem to have for "inspirational" quotes, I've always liked ones that ring true to me. 

The ones that make me think. that push me out of my complacency.

I value a good bucking-up, or maybe i'm just the kind of person who needs it.

Maybe you don't. Maybe most of you don't.

But in the mutual admiration society we have going on in social media, sometimes a genuinely solid nugget of wisdom is better to absorb, for me. 

i get too drawn into the circus, i need the reminders of "this is not real".

Maybe you don't.

Maybe you're stronger.

I know I'm self-aware enough to know I need the reminders.

SO, I'll stick to my reminders... and you... do what works for you.

the cropping of questions

Are we most susceptible to taking advice from our own selves?

Is that the reason we have to evolve our sense of understanding, expand it?

So that, with experience (self or borrowed), we are able to give our own selves better suggestions?

Are we most convinced by our own logic?

Can we muscle out of the mind-space we occupy, and genuinely entertain another perspective?

How long does it take to change? The mind, the action, the belief that thoughts step out from and flutter around till we actually do something different from patterns of the past.

Who do we allow, in?

Whose thoughts are we most affected by?

Whose opinion?

Whose perspective?

Whose belief is allowed in, to vibrate deeper and actually mull over.

One, is someone we admire... for qualities that we decide to admire and want to emulate.

What are those deeply personal definitions of admirable qualities?

What is heroic?

Does everyone even want to be heroic? good? better? better outwardly or inwardly?

Better than someone outside or better than past me?

Of course, an understanding of goodness is deeply personal.

There aren't just two sides, there are millions... most of which we are unfamiliar with, in ourselves and others.

If we don't think about changing, we can be so oblivious to recognising it.

If you think you know yourself and you're satisfied with that assessment, that may be true for a while... but since change is inevitable, at some point, the version of you, that you know, will become the past you that flickered around before being affected into transforming into another being.. with new thoughts, responses, tendencies.

Knowing ones own self is a continuous process. Perhaps that's why it's easier to put others in boxes, keep them neatly categorised for years, for decades... Easier, than admitting the unfamiliarity in even the closest relationship-one's own with oneself. 

Habits are such an easy way to delude oneself into thinking "I'm still the same", the world has changed.

What is read, eaten, done as employment... if they're the same-ish, surrounded by the same people, you can feel the same. Even if, if you're honest, you no longer respond the same way to what you're eating, drinking, reading or working with and around. 

Maybe that's why some people love to travel, such an obvious way of enjoying a change, something different, before we go back to what looks like the same life. 

I definitely like travelling, and mainly any destination by a welcoming water body.. I also deeply enjoy recollecting the best, most peaceful memories travel has bestowed. 

But it's not a trigger for change, maybe we just notice it more easily after an outward journey.

A mini-milestone of sorts, a pause, to notice different patterns.

Are we all searching for the same thing?

Because, le savoir

Novelty, to not "draft", but delete.

Because, will chime when requested :)

Worth it

Moments like now, justify this blogs active presence.

The option, to express the tiny changes in the flow of thoughts.

Irrelevant yet mattering.

Inking away. 

Worth the oscillations.

"Meh"

Ups and downs are the constant. 

#notjust2020