IK is AFK

IK is AFK.

And that is where my trouble starts.
It is with a great degree of trepidation that I have come to realize that gadgets have become my default experiential nexus with the world. My mobile phone/ipod touch has become like a vestigial extension of my palm. My laptop screensaver has become the only sunset lit landscape that I see and headphones have become my major source of auditory information.

A day without Instagram-worthy photos and a smiley inducing caption feel wasted and thank God for emojis because I feel that I have become too cynical to enjoy an actual laugh. At this rate I have a fear that I might start vibrating the moment someone responds to me while having an actual face-to-face conversation. Most of the people I engage with it is through a digital interface.

Now the big question how and why did I slip this far; from being the last in my circle of associates to set up a Facebook account to being the de facto keyboard warrior?

The first reason for me has to be social anxiety. I have never been at ease being in the physical company of actual people. So slowly but surely I have receded to the background of social life and limit interaction to that which is absolutely necessary.

The lack of immediacy of an online conversation allows me the luxury of a buffer to self edit to the point where I can come up with responses that are intelligible and colored with a small degree of humor.

Online no one can see the sweat of your brow or hear the tremble in your voice. Thus, I can present the version of myself that I think will be most appealing to the world.

However, these qualities that seem like advantages are negating the biggest purpose of human interaction; true human connection. By polishing responses and opinions the spontaneity and authenticity needed for true connection to occur are thrown out the window in favor of mass appeal and political correctness.

So for the benefit of my sanity and the pursuit of a worthwhile life Irungu Kiongo will step Away From Keyboard and go live life.
Right after uploading this post, following Robert Mugabe’s interior design and dance move boards on Pinterest and learning how to do an afro into a man bun that is not too metrosexual.

Irosh. Out.

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