Internet Savvy
An entry i posted on http://glitzydork.livejournal.com, 3 years ago. I realized i was trying to make some sense here.. :D
you can call me an obsessive compulsive internet user, i want all my accounts be updated as frequent as possible and everything should be at proper boxes, no unwanted texts or codes hanging anywhere in my profile page. recently, i am committed to twitter and plurk and facebook and blogger and multiply. im feeling strangely irresponsible when i didn’t tweet the whole day; when i haven’t logged on to facebook to update my status, answer surveys and read some posts and i hate seeing notifications saying someone has beaten my score on typing maniac; when i don’t come up with a nice blog in a week is a mortal sin; each time i wasn’t able to listen or download new music, i feel outdated; when the websites i religiously visit has many posts i haven’t read yet, it’s like i know nothing. the social networking havoc literally makes me aggressive and drives me to spend the rest of my vacant hour browsing.
i was in my real ordinary self way back 2007, when we’re not broadband connected yet. i manage few accounts online and go to the shop when school calls for it. in short, i really am not an internet dependent person until we’ve had one at home and until i started to learn something interesting that i was horribly hooked up 7 hours straight. really, im not seeing myself avoiding internet in a decade or two. maybe i wouldn’t be that hyped but for sure i won’t lose touch. is there something wrong with me? ikaw, (in all honesty) can you live without it?
“social networking sites were built to enhance relationships, not SUBSTITUTE it. sometimes status updates aren’t really “what’s on their mind”, it’s more of how they want to present their selves online.”—> is my recent status on facebook. aside from the educational and knowledge enriching online sites, we’re all benefited by social networking sites which gives us an instant cheap connection to reach out with friends. i don’t even think snail mail still plays its role as a letter sender coz we’re all equipped with e-mail and comment boxes and instant messaging. even mobile phones has less job coz we’re charged bucks for a text message or call, right? especially when the reply can wait for a few days or so, we wouldn’t bother calling a friend until time fades. i mean, if not for emergencies we won’t use our phone. i wonder what would happen if the entire world wide web was infected by a virus wrecking all the data and everyone has to start all over again, FROM THE BEGINNING. im pretty sure ocean full of tears will be formed and the entire universe will be fucked up.
i visit almost 10 to 15 sites in one sitting, the number goes larger if im given more time. sometimes, i set my alarm to 3am (if i have a 7:30 class) so that i’ll have 2 hours to check on my accounts and a number of sites. during non-school days, i’d go online for 3-5 hours straight. then i’d end up a little longer coz another site calls for a few minutes more of discovery, i hate it when i can’t resist the temptation of the online world. hence all of this is for i-should-know purposes and not the unimportant things, i don’t waste time online & as in what im doing is productive. see? it goes to show that im addicted to the internet because my brain can’t stand idle time, my mind wanders a lot and it worries me if im taking myself away from the present to predict what’s at stake for me in the future. so instead of collecting pressure boosters, i’d desperately make myself busy doing stuffs online to separate myself from the anxiety of living in tedium.
we love the instantaneous feedback we get from our online buddies. the affirmation of our status updates or blogs or pictures or videos or links somehow makes our day. narcissists love social networking. it gives them sudden elation when the world get to visit their page and compliment their photos or even agreeing to their shoutouts. if you’re just cramming for attention then go spread your love to everybody online.
on the other hand, i doubt the sincerity online coz people can be somebody they’re not; portray a charming role and be adorable on photos or maybe a villain or backstabber. we can’t be really good friends or lovers secured by the shitty “i love you” glitter graphics posted on your comments box, i just don’t think we’d trust somebody we don’t know personally.
technology should enrich our lives, not replace it. the internet was made as a medium of communication so that we’ll be more aware of what’s happening in all parts of the world. but that was just the broader sense of our initial responsibility which is the people that surrounds us and our community.
if every computer is busted for a week or two, what’s the worst thing that could happen? what if we won’t have access to youtube, google, twitter or facebook, who would you even bother calling? when the celebrity gossip and scandal sites were banned, would you even dare reading weather news reports? in the absence of these sites, who would you think of?
blogging has been the counterpart of me coz it’s were i share unspoken thoughts. it’s were i can say anything without hearing complains or reaction that would piss me off but above all this, none of my blogs has ever contained what i felt the moment i was writing it. still, you wouldn’t know everything about me without my physical presence. AN ONLINE BUDDY CAN BE SOMETIMES THE TOTAL OPPOSITE OF THE PERSON YOU MOLDED IN YOUR INTERNET-INSPIRED MIND.Jul. 15th, 2009 at 3:51 PM
