Have you ever thought about the intersection of the "real" world

[CaliforniaPeggy]

with the online world?

I have...

I've got many online friends that are now "real" world friends...

Some of them I see or talk to on the phone on a regular basis...

And sometimes it strikes me as weird the different ways we connect...

Since the online world seems almost unreal at times...

It's easy to forget that there are real people sitting at their keyboards, typing their thoughts out for all to see...

Just some random musings on this Monday morning...

[Deja Q]

1. Of all the things people can do with their hands, is typing the cleanest act of them all?

Not according to this site.

Or this one.

or especially this one!!

:hide:

[CaliforniaPeggy]

2. You better hide, my dear Hypno!

You know damn well that's not what I'm talking about, silly!

Germ-laden keyboards have little to do with what's typed onto them!

Hands do many things, and go many places...As a nurse, I am intimately aware of this!

:spank:

[Parche]

3. My Dear CaliforniaPeggy

You are right, I have since 2001 had more and more from this site another Dem site
that I email and IM to.
There are tons of nice people on this site, except for a few lurking trolls that
want to make things harder for other people..............:hi:






"Since the first day that Man stared up at the stars and saw other worlds, there has been no more haunting question than this: What will we find there? Will there be other creatures, and will they be like us? Or when that ancient dream comes true, will it turn into a nightmare? Will we find, on some distant, frozen planet, an alien life of unimaginable horror?"

[CaliforniaPeggy]

9. My dear Parche!

There are many good folks here!

And you're one of them...:hug:

[redqueen]

4. I have never found that easy to forget...

cause it just never occurred to me that the internet was anything other than 'real'.

:shrug:

[CaliforniaPeggy]

10. My dear redqueen...

Oh, I know it's real...

It's just an odd sort of real, to me...

Kind of a fourth dimension...:shrug:

:pals:

[Parche]

20. Real

"When fear is too terrible, when reality is too agonizing, we seek escape in manufactured danger, in the thrills and pleasures of pretending-in the amusement parks of our unamusing world. Here, in frantic pretending, Man finds escape and temporary peace, and goes home tired enough to sleep a short, deep sleep. But what happens here when night comes? When pretending ends, and reality begins?"

:hi:

[ThomCat]

5. About a dozen or so of the online people I've met have become

friends, to at least a casual extent. A few have become friends I hope to stay in touch with off-line as well as on-line.

I'm met some very awesome people online. There are definitely real people on the other end. :)

[CaliforniaPeggy]

11. My dear ThomCat...

Oh, I hear ya!

There are certainly real people on the other end...

And you're one of them...:hug:

[ThomCat]

15. LOL! I've often been called "one of them"

but this is the first time it's said, and meant, so kindly. :P

:hug:

[La Lioness Priyanka]

21. i told you i was awesome

:p

[ThomCat]

22. Yes, and you were right.

:P

[tigereye]

6. yeah, there seems to be a part of my brain that has an Online'DU

subtext - even though I have met a fair amount of folks IRL.


I wonder if "real-life" friends and interactions light up a different part of your brain when you interact with or think about them, vs. when you interact or think about online peers.

Sorry, I spend too much time reading neurology and psych studies...

[CaliforniaPeggy]

12. My dear tigereye...

I think your thoughts are most worthwhile!

I'm sure that different parts of your brain light up when you're online vs. when you interact in the real world...

That has always intrigued me...

:hi:

[Fire Walk With Me]

7. I try to get a sense of anyone I find myself sharing a board with.

And I find that sometimes, just as in the direct physical world, there are some that I take an immediate, and usually later fully justified loathing of, and others who I find to be normal, and the rare few who I wish to know better.

But with so many people acting like Republicans, and simultaneously wondering why they end up under Republican rule, it's not always easy. The Golden Rule is long dead, long live the Golden Rule!

Thanks for bringing this up, Peggy. I hope you're having a great day.

[CaliforniaPeggy]

14. My dear Peake!

I do that too...

Sometimes you can get a sense of the person, and sometimes not...

The ones I'm close to were people who held nothing back...

They showed themselves, truly showed themselves, and so became worthy of my attention and friendship...

Thanks, sweetie...I'm having a great day!

:hug:

[skygazer]

8. My online world has connected with my real world in some profound ways

For instance, if it wasn't for the online world, I wouldn't be in California which would be a shame.

Sometimes when people point out the dangers of online relationships, and how you "don't really know anyone" online, I think about people in the past who formed lasting friendships and even romantic relationships by mail. It is, after all, pretty much the same thing and requires the same common sense principles - but in the end, when you decide to actually meet, its the same leap of faith.

Yeah, I'm a thinker, too. :hi:

[CaliforniaPeggy]

16. My dear skygazer!

My online world has profoundly affected my real world too.......

My dear friends from DU have changed my life...

I really believe you can meet someone online, and you can trust what you see...

There is a leap of faith, true, but you shouldn't let unreasonable fears hold you back.

Let's hear it for thinkers!

:hug:

[nickgutierrez]

13. We have a lot of different realms of communication now.

There's the internet, but even within that there are varying types of communication:

Discussion boards, like this one
Instant messaging - more phone-call like
Online worlds (Second Life, for instance) - where the environment is common and interactive but not 'natural' in the sense of it being spawned directly from nature
Online games, where the interaction is more toward a direct purpose

It ends up having an effect on the way we think about everything.

[CaliforniaPeggy]

18. My dear antiwarwarrior...

Yes, there are many ways of communicating...

DU is great...

I've used IM'ing too, to very good effect...

The others you mention, I haven't used...

But it's true...it does end up having an effect on the way we think about everything...

I wonder how someone from a much earlier time would react to all our methods of communicating?

:hi:

[supernova]

17. Oh sure, I think about it a lot

And I have a much easier time connecting with people I meet online initially over people I meet "IRL"

I think exchanging thoughts/feelings/experiences via the written word is much easier for me than offline, at least initially. Offline I am much more likely to be intimidated by walking into say a party where I don't know anyone and finding someone to talk to, versus posting in a new forum where I don't know anyone. If I post in a forum, at least I know we have a common subject matter and I can discuss that. My chitchat/small talk skill are limited.

And I find that if I meet someone online, develop a raport with them, then I am able to meet them offline and spend time with them just fine. :-)

[CaliforniaPeggy]

19. My dear supernova...

I understand what you're saying...

For shy people, the internet has been a godsend...

:hug:

[unpossibles]

23. all of my friends are imaginary n/t

[CaliforniaPeggy]

24. My dear unpossibles...

No, they aren't!

:P


:hi:

[unpossibles]

25. thank you, Peggy!

how are you doing? I've been pretty busy here, but otherwise enjoying myself where I can.

:)

[CaliforniaPeggy]

26. Ah, you're welcome!

I'm doing well, thanks!

Busy with school, Dem Club stuff, and like that!

I try to always enjoy myself too....carpe diem!

I should really be doing my homework...:yoiks:

[UrbScotty]

27. My dear CaliforniaPeggy!

You don't exist, so I hope you don't mind if I tell everyone that you and Bill O'Reilly have fun every night!

No, not THAT kind of fun! :D

[CaliforniaPeggy]

28. My dear ih8thegop!

I do too exist!

See?



And I loathe Bill O'Reilly! :grr:

[UrbScotty]

29. My dear CaliforniaPeggy!

That is a cardboard cutout of "you!"

[bridgit]

30. you've posted this notion previous, yes...

:hi: