Time to Speak

[raspberry]

Alright, I've had enough.... I kind of need to post this someplace public, so here goes.

Let me start out by saying I completely respect any and all forums that let people like us converse. The TMF and its associates have brought happiness and gain to many of our members here, and I am quite happy for them.

That being said though, I'm sick and tired of how much crap I get on my end from people who think I'm less of what I truly am. Granted, most of my frustration comes from my own foolishness; I'm the one who chooses to speak with these people, and I know that I am risking my own comfort by doing so. The reason I choose to converse is for the euphoria received from some of the good conversations I have had, and there have been quite a few. The cold reality of the situation sets in quickly, though; I am 99% sure that I will not meet a single person from this forum in real life, and I find myself ever-increasingly frustrated from that 1% of uncertainty.

I know in my heart who I am, and those who respect me on here and TT also know I have nothing but positive intentions for everyone I meet. However, I have been too disheartened by some of the actions towards me to wish to continue what I am doing.

You could say I'm withdrawing most of my deeper feelings and connections from people I don't know personally. I simply cannot justify investing so much emotion into something so superficial after all the trouble it has caused me.

Any of you whom I have never spoken with, you will not hear from me.

Those of you whom I respect and appreciate, I will still keep in touch via IM, and will hopefully be able to speak with you about the subject.

Peace.

-r

 

[Marquis De Sade]

Huh. That was weird. I posted a random hello on your visitor profile and then saw this.

You've only made 6 posts. Are you talking about something that happened in chat?

Little confused...

 

[raspberry]

Yep, this is from the chat universe. That's where quicker conversations (and consequentially quicker fights) occur.

 

[Artoo]

I guess in a forum with over 80 000 members, it's easy to feel lost.
I'm sorry to hear you're leaving; I mean that genuinely, even as someone who's never spoken to you before. It's never cool when people are taken for less than what they are.

Well, whatever you do, and wherever you go, all the best.

 

[Babbles]

Shoot me, I'm long-winded.

I recently read a post somewhere, have no idea exactly where...

in which a guy was advised to go to gatherings, also NEST, but local gatherings are great as they're in your neighborhood, if possible, and meeting people face-to-face is much nicer, sometimes makes it much easier to socialize

and the unpleasant lurkers who might surface in chat rooms or elsewhere will most likely not be present since they may either entirely lack the social skills and/or the willingness to expose themselves (in a manner of speaking , hopefully ) to others in person
since they'd be identified to a better degree....

Or if any "trolls" DO go to a gathering, they might learn to behave better anyway, there's always hope I guess.... and sometimes those frustrated lunkheads just NEED more socialization

I have no idea, it's been so long (and it was so rare) since/that I've been in the chat room that I have no idea who you could be referring to,
but don't allow a few anti-social moles to sour you on what could be a long-term pleasant experience meeting others with the same innate interests...

I'm not the most social person myself, and I don't alway react appropriately either online 🙄 , but going to one NEST was a great experience,
I'm sure a smaller-scale cozy gathering ---
(especially one advertised here, more likely to be a safely publicized event ----

and/or one that takes place in a restaurant or such public place ---)

might be the more "normal" social interaction you need ---- Even just posting here, you basically got positive feedback, there is also more scrutiny here since what you post "out here" tends to stick rather than in the chat room where it's more difficult, I guess, to keep up with the less pleasant lurkers....
since both conversations & cheap shots disappear within seconds....

The chat room's fine, but I found it overcrowded & overwhelming when I peeked in once or twice --

Come out into the sunlight, in effect 🙂 Post & interact out here, and more importantly, out in reality.

 

[raspberry]

Thanks for all of the replies. 🙂

Just so we're clear, though, I'm not leaving (not yet, anyway). Taking a hiatus, yes, and soon. I cannot fit this reality (even NEST) into my own at this point, though. I need to step back and focus on who actually needs my attention.

Now that we're on the subject of the chat room vs. posting out here, there is an anecdote that's still in my head. The conversation I had, which, interestingly enough, was with someone who posts heavily as well, left an extremely bad taste in my mouth, and convinced me to decline attending a lower-key gathering. I'm not sure if it's my own maturity that needs work or not (it very well might be), but it was still very uncomfortable regardless.

I fit into a very small minority as it is, so that could possibly be why I have the stigma that I do. (combination of a lot of things)

You know.... perhaps I could briefly talk to one or two of you about the subject. I promised myself that I was through with meeting new people for the reason that I was (not hard to guess). I know what the reasoning is, and I am not destroying myself for letting a mature conversation slide.

My AIM is SMrrooney if any of you are interested in this topic (internet skepticism) and have issues of your own with it.