A downside of the virtual community
Last night, for about two hours, I thought Fudge was lost. (That's her picture.) I had been taking the garbage to the curb, and at some point probably committed the risky combo of kitchen door open and gate open, though by the time I realized I couldn't find her, I couldn't remember whether I had or not. Anyway, there was a very good possibility she'd gotten outside.
This terrified me. She's a little pampered fussy princess of a Persian, quite bossy with me and the Shockmonster but in general very shy. We're also having a series of storms, with the worst to hit last night.
So I spent about an hour and a half roaming around outside with a flashlight, looking for her. (The other half hour was spent reporting her missing and looking up forms to fill in and print out.)
About a quarter to one I came back in for another cry break and wandered through the house again. She was behind the bed, tucked behind a blanket that was draped over the headboard and went all the way to the floor. I wasn't able to see her just by looking under the bed--I had to look over the headboard and down. She woke up and looked at me, sat up for a pat and a scritch, and in general everything was back to normal. Sort of.
The worst thing for me was this all happened around midnight, and I'm alone right now. The Shockmonster is in Indiana again until a week from tomorrow. I called him and woke him up twice (once with the bad news, once with the good) but other than that, I couldn't think of who I could call. So many of my friends are--elsewhere. If I'd been in Seattle I could have called Linz. If I'd been in Wenatchee I could have called my sister. If I'd been in Ben Lomond I could have called Marina; if I'd been in Oakland I could have called Lisa; and so on. Heck, Elena in St. Petersburg saw my tweets and tried to help, but that's a loooong way away. (Thank you, Elena!)
The kung fu family is local, but Carol loves Fudge as much as I do and I didn't want to upset her.
But also I'm just kinda bad about this social stuff. I think one of the things I like about the virtual community is that I can have friends from all over and still stay isolated. Is that what I want? Well, last night it sure wasn't. But in general, it's where I'm most comfortable. I'm horrible at actually showing up for parties--a lot of times because I just can't make myself go--there will be people I don't know, and I won't know what to say, and I just--can't--do it. Even if there will be people I know, they'll have other people they'll want to talk to more, and the people I don't know will outnumber them anyway.
This doesn't sound like me at cons, I know. I think at cons there are so many people that I can float and not be noticed. If I don't know anyone at a party, I can float to the next. Or I can stick with my virtual community, made real for a weekend.
Is this good? Well, after last night I'm not sure I think so anymore.
This terrified me. She's a little pampered fussy princess of a Persian, quite bossy with me and the Shockmonster but in general very shy. We're also having a series of storms, with the worst to hit last night.
So I spent about an hour and a half roaming around outside with a flashlight, looking for her. (The other half hour was spent reporting her missing and looking up forms to fill in and print out.)
About a quarter to one I came back in for another cry break and wandered through the house again. She was behind the bed, tucked behind a blanket that was draped over the headboard and went all the way to the floor. I wasn't able to see her just by looking under the bed--I had to look over the headboard and down. She woke up and looked at me, sat up for a pat and a scritch, and in general everything was back to normal. Sort of.
The worst thing for me was this all happened around midnight, and I'm alone right now. The Shockmonster is in Indiana again until a week from tomorrow. I called him and woke him up twice (once with the bad news, once with the good) but other than that, I couldn't think of who I could call. So many of my friends are--elsewhere. If I'd been in Seattle I could have called Linz. If I'd been in Wenatchee I could have called my sister. If I'd been in Ben Lomond I could have called Marina; if I'd been in Oakland I could have called Lisa; and so on. Heck, Elena in St. Petersburg saw my tweets and tried to help, but that's a loooong way away. (Thank you, Elena!)
The kung fu family is local, but Carol loves Fudge as much as I do and I didn't want to upset her.
But also I'm just kinda bad about this social stuff. I think one of the things I like about the virtual community is that I can have friends from all over and still stay isolated. Is that what I want? Well, last night it sure wasn't. But in general, it's where I'm most comfortable. I'm horrible at actually showing up for parties--a lot of times because I just can't make myself go--there will be people I don't know, and I won't know what to say, and I just--can't--do it. Even if there will be people I know, they'll have other people they'll want to talk to more, and the people I don't know will outnumber them anyway.
This doesn't sound like me at cons, I know. I think at cons there are so many people that I can float and not be noticed. If I don't know anyone at a party, I can float to the next. Or I can stick with my virtual community, made real for a weekend.
Is this good? Well, after last night I'm not sure I think so anymore.