The part of most social interaction I don't like is feeling phony. With most people, I have to be nicer than I really am, and keep the conversation general, and light. I have no idea whether the person I am talking to actually has anything interesting to say, but they don't, and so I don't, either.
I am pretty good at interviewing people, say, sitting in the waiting room of a doctor's office, or someplace where there is a lot of down time. Sometimes I warn strangers to be careful, because they are going to tell me all their secrets. They smile, noncomprehendingly, and we go on, and some time later, after the most appalling secrets come out of their mouths, they stop, and give me a look of recognition. People find the prospect of telling their secrets to someone irresistable. (Not me. I never tell my secrets. Never.)
Cyberspace is better for me because you can meet a better class of people there. One neighbor, for example, lectures me on "women should stay home and take care of the family." Another has half a dozen company trucks in his driveway, has run his wife off, and seems to drink beer at all hours.
If we were interacting in 3-D, we'd have to deal with enormous logistical problems, I don't suppose many of us would come to Oregon, even if you'd let us in. |
