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 Posted: Sun Feb 04, 2007 2:35 pm |
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Joined: 01 Jan 1970
Posts: 76
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"I blog, therefore I am"
http://dancaprar.blogspot.com
The new (b)logic of existence:"I blog, therefore I am"
Now everyone has one. A blog, that is.
Ok, not everyone, just yet, but it looks like we’re getting there. First time I read one it certainly sparked my interest – in a professional way. Most of my work was and is about putting people’s lives and minds under microscope – a nice way to legitimize what was, in fact, one of my natural tendencies: an intense curiosity about people. And here it is, the internet, conveniently serving as a nice comfortable Freudian couch, generating wonderful displays of personalities and lives, asking to be seen, read, or referred to… I always wondered whether the abundant “controlled” free flowing thoughts reflect accurately those who produced them or rather some self-desired identities, but... does it matter? I am pretty sure they also reveal quite well self-rejected existences (and are, in fact, catharctic acts), but I have decided that blogs are not necessarily the diaries that psychotherapists would successfully use to scrutinize the hidden corners of their clients hopes and fears, but rather a new form of communication, a new way of expressing, and why not, a new form of existence. I am sure Descartes would agree with me because he and all those of his sort would have certainly used the blogs, if they had them back then. Many of their works are in fact, some archaic forms of blog. Of better quality, of course, but that’s a different story. I have been though, not once, challenged to think while reading some of those spontaneous writings on the web and many times I felt the need to put my fingers on the keyboard and to let them go crazy…
But I never did - until now. I stayed away from writing a blog because I probably always was, and still am, more interested in a conversation face-to-face (or face-to-faces), coffee or wine included or not. It might be my residual Romanianness that manifests itself into a certain level of conservationism when it comes to digitalizing the human interaction. For a long time I thought that online dating is the saddest expression of the lonely modern lives and not much different than the arranged marriages that we, those who live in “advanced” societies, look at with some mix of condescendence and pity, or at best, pure cluelessness. I finally realized that just like with everything else, there is some logic to all those new manifestations of being human, which are certainly the result of a more structured and socially controlled life, yet not necessarily unnatural, superficial or desperate. They might not work for everyone, or they might work for certain people only at certain times. They are, however, an experience, and as long as one views them as such, I’m in. I just made a profile on the (in)famous Facebook, to the surprise (or even shock) of many of my friends, most of them ready to bring up a crucifix whenever I mention the word. But they are now used to my “unlikely” acts and probably wonder what is going to be my next move. I wish I knew – and that’s just a joke, because I actually like to surprise myself, too. I’ll probably say more about Facebook later, for now I’m just enjoying “becoming friends” with people I already know and communicate by mail, phone, and in person - but why not also add some PDC (if you didn’t figure it out, that’s “Public Display of Communication”). Yes, I am making up words and expressions, that’s a sign that I am becoming more of a blogger. So blog away… it is, at some extent, creative.
Speaking of which - back to the blog (see, although I beginner, I’m quite good with throwing in random thoughts, which is another parameter certifying you are a blogger). It’s not that new. After all, in 2000, when I came to the US, I was writing what one could probably call an “emaillog”, sending to all my friends and family back home my first impressions on the American life. I should post them here (I will). I am sure most of the things I wrote back then would need serious editing to fit my perceptions now, and that’s one of the wonderful pitfalls of a blog: what you write now might not fit at all with the future you. I am sure many bloggers regretted, looking back, some of the things they spilled on the internet. However, it is probably more regretful when we have no record at all of how we understood the world at a certain point in life because we forget, reinterpret, and redefine our stories in a way that fits with whatever we are about in the present moment. So blog away… you can learn from it.
Last, but not least: privacy. Of course an issue. But really? Should I care that some closeted mind will profile me based on my blogged expression of interacting with the world? Sure, there is an imbalance of information, which is usually linked to an imbalance of power. But that’s only if you care about such things. My experience with privacy paranoia (just like any other paranoia) is that the less you worry about it, the less you suffer from it. It’s a trade-off, but I think obsessing on your privacy in order to maintain your freedom is like selling your soul to the devil in order to get your ticket to heaven. I have started my new year with infringing on basic privacy rules, but I had fun with it. So blog away… and enjoy it.
Enough. Blogging about blogging is kind of vicious. But Descartes would be proud of me. Or he's just turning in his grave. |
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