oh, THAT'S what the little green dot is . . .

so today . . . i was just hanging out on the internet, trying to decide what to blog about, when a little green dot appeared at the bottom of my screen. yesterday, i realized that the little green dot means that my friend wendy is online.

it took me a little while to learn this. usually i use my computer with the sound off, because i am typically also watching tv or talking to rollie or i'm at school, and i don't want the computer making noise. so i didn't hear the "ding" when wendy was trying to message me. i would eventually SEE that she had been online, but by then she would be off. she couldn't figure out why i wouldn't respond, which i could tell by reading her comments --"why isn't this thing working?!?!?!" she would say.

but yesterday, i finally saw the green light and was able to respond when she tried to talk to me. and then tonight, i saw the light and IM'd her first! i am learning . . .

when you IM someone, the conversation is a little weird, because there is a bit of a time lag. most of the time while i am responding to what she has written, she is writing something else. so you sort of end up having two parallel conversations with the same person at the same time. it's interesting. and fun.

some might ask, why not just pick up the phone and call? i think it is kind of like the difference between interacting on a social page like myspace or facebook, and writing a letter. a letter or a phone call needs an agenda, but you don't really have to have anything to say to message someone. it's just a little, "hey, how are you doing?" and then you move on. even the subject matter tends to be a little trivial and changes quickly. after all, if you had anything important to say, you would call . . .

some people bemoan the isolation of a society of people sitting at home communicating by typing messages to each other on their computers instead of getting out there and living their lives among others. i agree that it is probably not socially or emotionally healthy if all your relationships are electronic ones. but the truth is, i am finding that i am able to renew and sustain friendships with people who don't live where i do, that were all but lost to me before myspace, facebook, instant messaging, and blogs became a part of my life. if i wait until i have something important to say before i write or call anyone, it never happens. but the beauty of the internet is that sometimes just posting "hey, i was thinking about you today," can start an electronic conversation that helps connect people. (and besides, without twitter and blogs i would never know where diandra was . . . )

i wasn't going to blog tonight, because wendy and i IM'd for about 40 minutes, and i didn't have any idea of what to write about, and i was hungry. my plan was to just explain that, so at least there would be something for you guys who check my blog every day (thank you!) to read, and then i was headed for the kitchen.

but look what happens once i get started. the beauty of the internet strikes again . . .