Ghosts in the machine...

LtCmd.Lore

http://www.jehovahs-witness.com/6/129464/1.ashx

Tetra's recent 5000 posts post made me think... what happens when a valued board member dies?

What if Tetra had died? How would we know. A lot of us have pretty strong friendships online, it would be a pretty big bummer if one of our friends just disapeared from the face of the internet one day.

Or all of a sudden, one week we log on to read blondie's latest Comments You Won't Hear, and it isn't there? In fact, she hasn't posted anything for several days? You send her a PM and you don't get a response... turns out, she's just gone.

I mean you don't generally assume: "Oh she must be dead..." in fact that's probably the last thing that would uccur to you.

What about other things you may do online? You may be part of a project or something, with people relying on you to do something, or you might be the sole confidant of a depressed person, then BANG, you're gone and this person has no idea, they just know that you stopped talking to them.

You're still getting emails, questions, requests, people are looking stuff up for you, people are selling you stuff or buying from you on ebay, match.com people are sending you desperate love notes.... or whatever.

Just something to think about. Especially for people like me, who is a student stuck at home with an entire bussling social life online... it's not just a hobby, these are real people. I like to think that somebody would miss me. Or at least notice.

http://www.citypaper.com/news/story.asp?id=8182

LtCmd.Lore

Edited to add: By the way... sorry for killing you Blondie and Tetra.

What-A-Coincidence

here is my IM [email protected]

if u don't see me on there. i'll see on on the other side

see ya "big and small letters".

wac-o "of the wanting to be a valued member class"

hubert

That thought often occured with me, too.

Who would know if I kicked the bucket?

I guess if you have a few close friends here that know where you live and could inquire about you, then someone would post it. In fact, I've seen it done in the past.

But, if you are new, then no one would probably know that you died, or was in a hospital, or nursing home.

Hubert

jaguarbass

When someone dies life just keeps going on, thank goodness.Their dying like flies out there. Everyday there is a new batch in the obituarys. The important thing is to keep your name out of the obituary page. Every day above ground is a good one.

Madame Quixote

Awwww . . . ((((Lt.Cmdr.Lore)))) . . . we're all just cartoons and sock puppets, doncha' know?

Just kiddin'! What a thoughtful post you made.

I sometimes think about those things, too. But, what jaguar said above is true; focusing on who is available today, and on how you can be available is more important than worrying about dying; we're all gonna' kick the bucket eventually.

Maintaining and building relationships (something I need to work on) is healthier than worrying about losing them. Focus on the positives; what you focus on increases.

I suspect that few here and few in my immediate family would miss me, as most of my family have no contact due to d'f'ing issues. I try to stay in touch with the family who cares, and I recognize that they are the ones who will miss me, few though they be. And they are the ones I will miss.

I would rather be missed sincerely by a few than insincerely memorialized by many. There are many people at these boards. Some I will someday miss; some I will not. It goes both ways, you know. Just stick with people who care, and surround yourself with as many sincere people as you can find, because people coming and going is just part of life, online and otherwise.

I know there are posters here who mean a lot more to me than I do to them; for the most part, I am okay with that; there are actual human beings who come to this board regularly and whose posts I would really miss if something bad happened, but ultimately, I have no control over that.

Just be here, LCL! Here and now, like TPS suggested in his post. Does make you think, though, doesn't it?

uwishufish

If some person stops posting (continuing the fine life saving work here on jwd) my first thought is that, that person has been raptured ( just vanished no earthly remains.) HA HA