Being neighbourly.
Posted: November 15th, 2011 | Author: Erica | Filed under: Sociology of Social Networks | Tags: sociality | 1 Comment »With fewer IRL friends than ever, it’s geting easy to skip the step where we’re pleasant to each other.
Do you forget to start your emails ‘n’ such with a pleasantry—heck, a greeting—and just get right down to your transaction? I do it on purpose sometimes, in the interest of reducing people’s attention overload. Greetings are now implied.
The immediate and often character-limited access we now have to each other—texting, IMing and DMing our way into each other’s lives—is almost designed to be abrupt.
Hmm.
I’ve met so many people on Twitter that I consider my ambient friends, but sometimes find my stream a fast and lonely place. Whoever’s there at the moment are the only people that “matter”, and conversations and connections evaporate. If you’re quiet for a day, no one seems to notice you’re gone. It reminds me of the sheer quantity & speed of humanity on a New York sidewalk.
So it’s nice—and surprisingly surprising—to just say ‘hi’ sometimes.
