The new isolation

[wiseheart]

I really miss the times when we were still discussing our shared interests online; on the Yahoo mailing lists or here, on LiveJournal. Since I don't truly have people around me in RL who'd share my rather eclectic interests, the internet was the place where I could break out of my isolation.

Those times seem to be over. With a few cherished exceptions, most of my online acquaintances have vanished from the Net. And to find new ones is very hard, now that the younger generations have all wandered off to BookFace, Twitter and other hectic places. I do understand that those places fit the short attention span of today's youth better. Nothing seems to be of endurance in these days; nothing seems to be important enough.

I find it a shame, though, that at least we, older ones don't try to keep in touch. Yes, we all have our lives outside the internet (don't even let me start about the insanity that is my working schedule and how utterly exhausted it leaves me most of the time), but are we really so willing to give up that little fun that used to help us overcome the general greyness of life?

No, this is not an elaborate wink to gain more readers. I'm beyond trying to do that. What I'd like to still do is to discuss things with people. In length. I assume we still read the occasional book or watch the one or other film or TV show. We've met through our shared interests, mostly - is all that really gone?

If yes, then it's a sad, sad thing, IMO.

Comments

[ma2d2.livejournal.com]

I am sorry to hear of your feeling of isolation and loneliness. While i can empathise with you, and I do, i am a sad excuse of a communicator.
I have loved your stories and am still catching up on reading your TW series in FF.net. My time is not my own and I never quite know when I might get a break to get online and read/chat. If i can help, i will.
Not sure how we go about having a conversation on LJ yet, might need pointers.

[wiseheart.livejournal.com]

Well, part of the problem surely is that many people of my own age are so swamped under with work that we can barely breathe. Also, many of the shows we used to follow aren't live any longer, and the discussion stuff is running out in the communities.

[ideealisme.livejournal.com]

I'm finding that some people are migrating back from the soulless marketplace that is facebook. I like twitter, but it doesn't have the sort of sustaining discussions I enjoy so much here, and I can't talk as frankly about stuff in public either.

[wiseheart.livejournal.com]

I find these social networks utterly confusing. I'm probably just too old...

[lindahoyland.livejournal.com]

I'm here if you need me!I guess I'm lucky as I still have a small group of LJ regulars though some folk I really cared about have vanished.On the other hand though, I got all of one comment for a new drabble set I posted on LJ.

[wiseheart.livejournal.com]

I haven't posted my stuff to LJ for a while. Hand-coding is sooo tedious, and I've got behind the programme in the six weeks or so while I depended on my iPod and on the shared school computers that I simply can't face the gargantuan task at the moment.

[lindahoyland.livejournal.com]

I just copy/paste from another site like ff.net into the visual editor and the coding is done! I moaned too soon as I got some nice comments later.

[wiseheart.livejournal.com]

What is a visual editor? Getting around the coding would be a blessing - I write so ungodly long things, as you know, and I just can't bring up the energy to do it.

[lindahoyland.livejournal.com]

Click "post" and you will see "Visual editor" next to where it says HTML at the top right.Click on it.

Post your story somewhere that it adds the coding. I usually use SOA and add a chapter I never publish. Copy the text and paste to LJ.

[wiseheart.livejournal.com]

Thanks, I'll give it a try tomorrow.

[aviv-b.livejournal.com]

I miss a lot of folks who used to be here. And I find my writing has diminished without the stimulation of reading other peoples stuff and having that spark ideas. Ihave joined several kitty groups on Facebook, so now I'm addicted to watching kitty cams. Easier but really lacking in any creative stimulaiton.

[wiseheart.livejournal.com]

Yes, I feel the same about writing. Even if I never got all that many comments, I miss the chance to discuss various aspects with the few faithful readers I used to have - and to read other people's stuff.

[tyellas.livejournal.com]

My life here is full - but yes, I miss those times, too, the palmy days of the LOTR fandom ten years ago, and I do try to stay in touch with people. But others change and drift - and sometimes, when other people don't change, that can be separating, too. I still send holiday cards to about 10 fandom people.

For two and a half years I wrote a short fiction blog - http://www.itsawellingtonlife.com - and now I have a rather irregular style blog - http://www.everoscrumptious.com. I poke my nose into Tumblr, too, but damn, they're so young.

[wiseheart.livejournal.com]

Yes, they're young, aren't they? Which is my main problem with all those sites, aside for my utter technical incapability. As a school teacher, I'm surrounded by young people, and I love them to pieces, I really do, otherwise I wouldn't have held out in this job for 39 years. But for a proper discussion, I prefer someone of my own age, who happens to share at least one or two of my interests.

[jenn-calaelen.livejournal.com]

*hugs* sorry for not being around - this year has been crazy for me so far. Lots happening good and bad, and I never seem to get as far as posting to lj about any of it (and I have actually been writing a story for btme month because I looked at the prompts and got grabbed by plot bunnies).

I saw your posts about Sherlock but haven't actually watched all of s3 yet, so was avoiding spoilers (or trying to - I found out quite a lot by accident). I'd love to discuss things with you, and will really try to be around more (things should be calming down a bit, providing nothing else comes up).

[wiseheart.livejournal.com]

Be careful with the good intentions! Fate just loves to nip them in the bud, at least in my experience. :)

But it will be good to hear from you again; you are one of the very few who are still around.

[rcfinch.livejournal.com]

Sorry to hear you're feeling so isolated... I feel a bit guilty, but I'm one of those idiots who switched over to Facebook. It's not as bad as it often sounds, the spam and the silly memes are easy to shut out and I find it a helpful tool for staying in touch with faraway friends and acquaintances in the superficial way which is all I have time for at the moment (my 88 year old mother takes up much of my spare time). But yes, it's sad the old Tolkienfic group has scattered.

[wiseheart.livejournal.com]

I didn't say that people who switched to Facebook are idiots, mind you. I just said that it isn't the thing for me. And I know what it is to take care for an elderly relative. I had practice with Granny, and Mum isn't getting any younger, either. A good thing is that she's still healthy and clear in the head, but the tiny little problems keep multiplicating without us even realizing at the given moment.

But yeah, I mourn for the old Tolkien group very much. I hoped that the coms and mailing lists will raise of the ashes after "The Hobbit", but fandom has obviously moved on to other online places, where I can't and don't want to follow.

[lhun-dweller.livejournal.com]

Now RL is settling down a bit (she says hopefully), I'll be online more often. Please know that you are in my thoughts daily: your lovely embroidered cards are on the bulletin board at my worktable, right here beside me as I type, and I can see them from my pillow now in our new home. They always bring me warm thoughts of you!

[wiseheart.livejournal.com]

So, have you settled in the new place? I want details. Pics were nice, too. ;)

[lhun-dweller.livejournal.com]

Not fully settled yet: for example, the bulletin board still has a plastic bag around it to protect the Preciouses. But we are making visible progress, and the number of boxes continues to decline. A number of boxes of books have been unpacked and put on shelves, but I was just throwing them wherever they would fit so we could empty boxes. I'll have to go back and organize them at some point. And I've been wearing the same soft, grey cardigan to work for at least 2 weeks now because we haven't sorted out what to do with the strange closet arrangement in the bedroom. Fortunately, it's a well-made piece, and my workplace is pretty casual!

As for pics, I'll see what I can do when I'm feeling better. I've come down with a sore throat and a cold, so I came home early, and I'll be retreating to my bed again shortly, where our dog has already nestled in between the pillows. I know we have a digital camera now, somewhere amidst the boxes slowly being emptied and piles of things slowly being distributed across our flat, so when I figure out how to use it, I'll share.