New Age Communication

This was an unfinished entry dated 14th of June, I have many such unfinished entries. You know, short notes about things that had happened or a sudden thought, which may or may not ended up being written. But this is one that I really want to get posted.

In fact, this is my third attempt, and I intend to get it done for good.

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It is because of that e-mail.

Well, to be precise, it's because of that virtual pinky promise in that e-mail.

Pinky promise? You know, the crossing of your little finger, the pinky, with another person as sign of commitment to a promise. =)

That virtual action threw open my emotional flood gate.

On the one hand, I was really glad that despite our near non-existent communication lately, leading to being totally ignorant about the recent happenings of each other, when I extended my virtual pinky saying to try our best from then onwards to pop by each other's cubicle for a quick greeting or update, that virtual gesture was reciprocated.

Some colleagues are just colleagues, some colleagues are friends. This colleague is a friend and in the past, we had almost daily face to face brief chat. It's a friendship that I cherish.

On the other hand, a lot of feelings, sadness, gushed out of that opened emotional flood gate. Why is most comminucation nowadays done in such impersonal way? Instant messages, e-mails, SMS, blogs, replies or comments on a social networking site.

So virtual, so feelingless electronic.

Unlike hand-written mails and phone calls, more personal, more 'real'. Handwriting is literally a personal touch, but hand-written mails are probably extinct now due to e-mails. As for phone calls, I am one of those weird persons who don't like to use a phone. I find it intruding, demanding the receiver attention whether or not he or she is free.

Nothing beats face to face communication, it's the purest form of communication before technology gave us, for better or worse, all those other alternatives. Seeing the expressions, the gestures while listening to what's being said, left little for misunderstanding. And being together with friends is a nice feeling.

In our rat race and under our mountain of works, we lost sight of what's important. The friendship, the effort to maintain it, to care for each other and to keep in touch.

The work place will be such a dull place if there were only colleagues and no friends. Heck! I am finding it difficult to get lunch buddies on a Friday nowadays. I need more friends.

I know I know, it's strange for a borderline antisocial person to be saying this. But there you go, I said it.

I'm a quiet type and I'm slow on the feet, I need time to phrase my words and the freedom to edit before I present what I like to communicate, so written communication is my preferred form of communication.

I am not saying it's the best form of communication, cause it's not. It just suits my personality.

I truely am borderline antisocial, but I do still like to be with friends. Contradicting, I know, but that's just me.