Umm... yeah, that is not an actual phrase. I just made it up. In my mind, it goes something like this: being at peace with yourself while interacting socially. Now don't take this too literally. You get the general idea, right? Just a word of warning, though. You are going to read the opinions of an almost-a-non-social-animal. Now, lets dig deeper.
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Most of us judge our self-worth by measuring the degree of approval we can generate (for the lack of a better word) from the people around us. Sure, that's one way to go about it. But the term 'self'-worth becomes ironic then! Thus, in order to maintain a certain image, and not because it comes from the inside, we start cladding our interactions with a fake, saccharine-like sweetness.
I guess that's enough with the serious talk. Lets get down to the fun stuff that germinates from the above phenomenon, shall we? <tone type = "Obama"> Yes, we shall. </tone>
As shown in the illustration, I'm sure we have been either the human or the pig, a lot of times. I tend to gravitate towards the pig most of the time. For that, I've received a bit of stick from elsewhere, but I guess its all worth it. Plus, if I would've gravitated towards the human, I'm sure this blog wouldn't have materialized (if you know what I mean).
Answer me this now. Where can you see this phenomenon magnified to the extent that it seems like a giant Kevin James about to tickle your funny bone unintentionally? Its not a trick question and you get no points for guessing this. But yes, you're spot on. Social networking sites. Shall we take Facebook as an example? Time for another shout-out: <tone type = "Obama"> Yes, we shall. </tone>
You log on to Facebook to, lets say, chat with a good friend you've fallen out of contact with, lately. And then curiosity kills the cat. Who can resist the seduction of a seemingly never-ending homepage filled with posts, photos, videos and status messages? You take the leap of faith and start scrolling down. Instantaneously, you see your leap of faith turning into a comedy club with your mind acting as the hilarious stand-up comic making you chuckle throughout the scrolling-down session.
First up, you see a status with one of your friends (say, !@#$) tagging another friend (say, %^&*), stating how much the first one loves the second and stuff. So you ask the second one, %^&*, where she is. She says she is at home. Then you ask her where the first one, !@#$, is. The second one says the first one is right beside her. Then you just can't stop yourself from making a comment (to her face, not on the status). But before you do that, the second one goes "Isn't she sweet, with the status and all?" Suuuure... At that point, you so want to call upon your friend, Sarcasm Man, and let her know just how sweet it is. The stand-up in your mind is starting to make the audience chuckle now, right? With his opening bit done, he moves on to the main routine.
Then, as you scroll down with a doubtful nudge of the finger, you come upon an interesting status or a nice profile picture. That's not that bad now, is it? You want to leave a "like" or an appreciative comment or something. Then you see an enormously expansive list of tagged names, while the picture or status itself has no reference to any of those people. "Like whores" are such endearing people, says your friend, Sarcasm Man, involuntarily. The live audience at the club bursts out laughing, signalling the success of the stand-up's main routine. He's about to move on to his final act.
Your finger braves one storm after another, until it reaches some random gibberish posted by someone you know. Wait. That's not random gibberish. It does have some resemblance to English. Hey, that's a 'mah', right? And there's a 'kewl' somewhere in there. And the worst part is, you know how different he or she sounds in real life. You ask Sarcasm Man, "Is he retarded?" He replies, "Hey! Don't say that. That's offensive." You ask, "To him? Really?" Sarcasm Man responds, "No. I meant, that's offensive to retarded people." Meanwhile, the club erupts in loud pulses of laughter. The stand-up's job is done, as the audience cheers him on till he strolls off the stage.
I'm telling you, these people would want to do what this curious person did. You have some people even answering this truthfully. This makes me feel there's still hope for this world. (Step away from the keyboard, please, Sarcasm Man.)
Thankfully, you don't have to notice this much of assorted faking in the real world, though its not that less here, too. Here's something to get you to start noticing stuff on your own.
An earnest greeting: Hi, <insert name here>! vs. A long-drawn,fake greeting: Heeeeeeeyyyy, <insert naaaaaaaaammeee here> <insert rhyming naaaaaaaaammeee/nicknaaaaaaaaammeee here>!!!!
Now I won't spoil your fun. Move around. See who's saccharine and who's actually sugary. And just like the real thing, the saccharin cannot ever replace the sugar. Alas, Saccharin is ruling the world right now and that's why, I think, the state of Social Nirvana is a tad difficult to achieve.
So, guys and girls, keep calm and be sugary.
Until next time, when I burst some more bubbles of humanity, seeya you!
Most of us judge our self-worth by measuring the degree of approval we can generate (for the lack of a better word) from the people around us. Sure, that's one way to go about it. But the term 'self'-worth becomes ironic then! Thus, in order to maintain a certain image, and not because it comes from the inside, we start cladding our interactions with a fake, saccharine-like sweetness.
I guess that's enough with the serious talk. Lets get down to the fun stuff that germinates from the above phenomenon, shall we? <tone type = "Obama"> Yes, we shall. </tone>
As shown in the illustration, I'm sure we have been either the human or the pig, a lot of times. I tend to gravitate towards the pig most of the time. For that, I've received a bit of stick from elsewhere, but I guess its all worth it. Plus, if I would've gravitated towards the human, I'm sure this blog wouldn't have materialized (if you know what I mean).
Answer me this now. Where can you see this phenomenon magnified to the extent that it seems like a giant Kevin James about to tickle your funny bone unintentionally? Its not a trick question and you get no points for guessing this. But yes, you're spot on. Social networking sites. Shall we take Facebook as an example? Time for another shout-out: <tone type = "Obama"> Yes, we shall. </tone>
You log on to Facebook to, lets say, chat with a good friend you've fallen out of contact with, lately. And then curiosity kills the cat. Who can resist the seduction of a seemingly never-ending homepage filled with posts, photos, videos and status messages? You take the leap of faith and start scrolling down. Instantaneously, you see your leap of faith turning into a comedy club with your mind acting as the hilarious stand-up comic making you chuckle throughout the scrolling-down session.
First up, you see a status with one of your friends (say, !@#$) tagging another friend (say, %^&*), stating how much the first one loves the second and stuff. So you ask the second one, %^&*, where she is. She says she is at home. Then you ask her where the first one, !@#$, is. The second one says the first one is right beside her. Then you just can't stop yourself from making a comment (to her face, not on the status). But before you do that, the second one goes "Isn't she sweet, with the status and all?" Suuuure... At that point, you so want to call upon your friend, Sarcasm Man, and let her know just how sweet it is. The stand-up in your mind is starting to make the audience chuckle now, right? With his opening bit done, he moves on to the main routine.
Then, as you scroll down with a doubtful nudge of the finger, you come upon an interesting status or a nice profile picture. That's not that bad now, is it? You want to leave a "like" or an appreciative comment or something. Then you see an enormously expansive list of tagged names, while the picture or status itself has no reference to any of those people. "Like whores" are such endearing people, says your friend, Sarcasm Man, involuntarily. The live audience at the club bursts out laughing, signalling the success of the stand-up's main routine. He's about to move on to his final act.
Your finger braves one storm after another, until it reaches some random gibberish posted by someone you know. Wait. That's not random gibberish. It does have some resemblance to English. Hey, that's a 'mah', right? And there's a 'kewl' somewhere in there. And the worst part is, you know how different he or she sounds in real life. You ask Sarcasm Man, "Is he retarded?" He replies, "Hey! Don't say that. That's offensive." You ask, "To him? Really?" Sarcasm Man responds, "No. I meant, that's offensive to retarded people." Meanwhile, the club erupts in loud pulses of laughter. The stand-up's job is done, as the audience cheers him on till he strolls off the stage.
I'm telling you, these people would want to do what this curious person did. You have some people even answering this truthfully. This makes me feel there's still hope for this world. (Step away from the keyboard, please, Sarcasm Man.)
Thankfully, you don't have to notice this much of assorted faking in the real world, though its not that less here, too. Here's something to get you to start noticing stuff on your own.
An earnest greeting: Hi, <insert name here>! vs. A long-drawn,fake greeting: Heeeeeeeyyyy, <insert naaaaaaaaammeee here> <insert rhyming naaaaaaaaammeee/nicknaaaaaaaaammeee here>!!!!
Now I won't spoil your fun. Move around. See who's saccharine and who's actually sugary. And just like the real thing, the saccharin cannot ever replace the sugar. Alas, Saccharin is ruling the world right now and that's why, I think, the state of Social Nirvana is a tad difficult to achieve.
So, guys and girls, keep calm and be sugary.
Until next time, when I burst some more bubbles of humanity, see
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