Social Networking and Friendship

Social Networking, when the concept first came out... especially via internet, was amazing! We could now find our friends of childhood past at the click of a mouse.

As long as they had internet and access to the website.

Before which Social Networking was an art form, and one had to be typically extroverted to be able to network, collect phone numbers and addresses in a handy little book, and keep in touch via  visits, phone calls, and letters. Yes snail mail and actual voice phone calls. No voicemail. No caller ID.

Can you imagine a world without smart phones, geotagging and facebook?!

It's almost like blasphemous!

God forbid we ever live that age again!


At first I remember connecting with my highschool and childhood friends, everyone was thrilled to find each other.

I recently found myself with over 1000 friends.

People I barely knew commenting on stuff on my facebook wall.

Suddenly it struck me where are my real friends? The one's I see weekly and contact day to day? They are busy living life. So who are these people? Why are they even on my friends list? So future me can contact them at a future date when I am in need?
But if they are commenting the comments right now, and I really am not close to them now, will I want to hang out with them? I think not. Why did I add the annoying girl from highschool? Why did i add the stalker boy from college? Why am I still friends with my ex? and my ex's best friend?

If we were meant to be friends it will happen on its own.

Another scenario: I need to contact friend who lives in California because I want to catch up with an old high school friend. I try desperately to contact her on Facebook, the email listed on her FB and her cell listed there. All to no avail. All this over a couple of months. Yeah I am a fool.

Fool me once shame on you. Fool me twice shame on me.

I decided to do some weeding. Yes I took out the weeds, and am still doing so.

Facebook feed, facebook ticker, privacy settings... for 1000+ people?

I just want my good friends to be in touch with me NOW. Future me can fend for herself.
Past me needs to leave the childhood, and highschool stuff behind.


Present Me is happy for the people in my life now, and for the ones in the past and the ones to be there in the future... but I don't need to label everyone, and I don't need to "friend" everyone.

What has Facebook done to the term "Friend"?

This is an email I sent out to my nearest and dearest, when I got so frustrated with trying to track people down, despite "facebook", "geotagging" and the rest of the social networking mumbojumbo.

so lately realizing that the term "friend" is so watered down.
thanks to Facebook especially.
when you "friend" someone you are just collecting a person.
how many of those people are "friends". does being a good friend matter?
what does "friend" even mean?
it's either very simple or very complicated... however everyone has their own definitions now.
own rating systems... so how do you even know where you stand?
I found it tough to keep in touch even with social networking and thus no use for adding people or even trying.
what happened to "let bygones be bygones" I found my self still holding on. Is this healthy?

Just had these random questions recently and was wondering what you thought and/or experienced.

I have friends who will be my friends even though we haven't talked in years and I know they are my friends despite time and space.
I know they will reply to my email/text/call back eventually.
We know how to each other that intimately.

I have acquiantances who I talk to everyday might hang out with, but does that make them my "friend"? Privy to my life details? Must we categorize all the people in our lives in a filing cabinet?

Am I over analyzing?

The School KFI (I was lucky to have gone to a school founded and based on the philosophies of J. Krishnamurti - Indian philosopher. Please look him up if you have never heard of him) taught me to question, so I am questioning! Or is this a totally wrong approach? :-P

I guess ultimately my question is: Dear friend! if I am to reach you what is the best method?
phone? text? email? letter? facebook? twitter? Honestly tell me so I don't get frustrated and give up on our friendship (if it even exists) due to waiting for a reply from the wrong mode of communication!

Funny because my friend finally got a texting plan and an iphone... I had no idea! But phonecalls just work way better between us. However I can still text her!

I have another friend who texts, but she often keeps her phone in her bag and doesn't hear it. :-P Annoying but we learn to live with it. These devices, connections have helped us make life so much more convenient, at the same time annoying for those who don't succumb to the culture of it all.

Then again meetup helped me find the awesomest group of climbing friends in the world!They reply to my texts/ calls and put up with my autocorrect issues!

I don't know... we are at a strange time in the world.

What are your thoughts on this issue? I am so open to hearing ideas, opinions, solutions...



Breathe!!!!

Becks

Shelbs

Manders

Alice

My friends from climbing!

Ry

Impermanence

Sometimes in life we are so caught up in the "Maya" the illusion of it all and make up expectations...

"this will last forever"
"this is so ultimate"
"I am so awesome"

Let's pet the ego a little bit. Let it grow out.

Let's pretend what we have is the best on earth... Egocentricity.




Time goes by.








Things Change.




Ups.

Downs.

Lefts.

Rights.


We begin to see patterns. Finally remembering and realizing the impermanence of it all.


Enjoy the NOW thoroughly, live life to the fullest,always remembering time changes everything.


We can't know the whole story until it unfolds!         (Phil Snow)
Just be prepared for it all!






Breathe

Setting Goals

It's a crappy day.

After this crap who really cares anyway right?

So I check in with Mun to see what's going on, if he will meet up for climbing.

He will! and he is aiming for "the gauntlet" climbing 24 routes.
Insane I think.

I set my goal for 5 routes. Less than mediocre. I might have to up the ante just a bit.



Thinking about it just gets my adrenalin going and my heart pumping faster.


It's only shitty because I let it be, and it spiraled downward from there.

I forced myself to smile more and it slowly turned up... yes sure enough. The sun is out, people were friendlier. Laughs all around!





Tomorrow:

List of things to do at work
smile a lot, greet everyone
send out love to the universe

Breathe

Battle Wounds!

My Climbing Guru- Carlos, Climbs!

Walking Alone

Although I am blessed with many wonderful people in my life, who love, care and support me there are times I have to walk the valley of darkness alone.

The day when the true test is thrust upon me; and due to circumstances, situations and life's eb and flow, those are moments I face alone. I have to get my own back.

From I seek out friends, family, and help I can get. Sometimes the help comes from the most unlikely source. Sometimes the support I need does not come at all.

These are moments when I see everyone's true colors.

These are the times I realize my own potential, which I hide from myself.

I am ready for the next easy hike, and the tougher climb after it.

Usually I try to use my own images, but lately I have googled some, and this is what I got for "Valley of Darkness" Images. Battlestar Galactica! Made me smile!

Breathe!

Rise

Struggles:

Sometimes just to get out of bed in the morning
To smile when the sky is grey
The driver that cuts in front - steer away from frowning
To talk when you have nothing nice to say.

To love when anger envelopes your being
To find compassion when you scrape through the day
Find the light when darkness is all you are seeing
Fighting the winter blues even though it is almost May.

Being motivated even when there is so much to do
To discipline yourself against all temptations
To run, to move, exercise and to even just get up and go
Patience for all those slow moving situations.

To find beauty in the ugliness
To taste the sweet in the most bitter
To remember our pureness
To turn a bad moment into something better.

To spare your loved ones the brunt of frustrations
To find a peace amongst the chaos
Feel warmth among cold companions
Within the millions to find the "us".

Rise:

We will overcome these and be higher souls
We will be our own warriors
Sing louder than the bell tolls
Breaking all our barriers.


We will strive to day to be better than yesterday
Love endlessly
To be warm and shine: be a brighter ray
Smile continuously.

Smile - For everyday is a new day

Remember -The beauty of life itself

Breathe.

(I wrote this because I was having a hard time being motivated, and a colleague said he had a hard time getting the day started, a friend having a hard time getting out of bed and getting on with life, a friend letting go of the old and embracing the new... Let's remember we struggle with little things everyday but need to overcome them to be stronger and the higher person. Some of our struggles might be bigger than petty everyday ones, but we have to rise above be our own warriors!)