Would be funny if there were no comments here
Today
On comment threads, every day.
- Do I want to put this out into the world?
- Do I need this in my life right now/is it worth the time?
This reflective exercise has saved me many excessive fixations. And yes, sometimes I do need to make that snarky overly-researched comment that nobody will see.
I hate that when I abandon a comment, the annoying little “are you sure you want to leave the page?” dialogue pops up.
If you click “Cancel” on the comment, it does not do that, at least for me on the web UI.
Right n
Just n…
Bravo
Came here to day something like this but, as usual, I
Usually when I back out of a comment, it’s for one of two reasons. Either I start second-guessing my level of knowledge about a subject, or (being an over-sharer IRL) I decide I was giving too much personal information.
A stupid argument I was having about how DND isn’t the best tool for many stories that aren’t about combat + resource management. I know people can have fun with anything but it bugs me when people are like “I do a political intrigue game about secret modern vampires in DND 5e” the same way it might bother some of you if someone was like “I put in my screws with a hammer” or “I add up the numbers in my spreadsheet by hand and type them into the totals row one at a time” or “I don’t use copy-paste I just retype everything”
Like, it doesn’t matter but it bugs me a little.
But I was getting down voted into oblivion so I gave up after someone begrudgingly admitted that yes different games have different focuses.
I wonder if you use a series of controlled taps you can get a screw to screw in with a hammer.
Just a few minutes ago. It was a thread about someone losing a beloved pet rat to old age. I want to say something comforting, but can’t think of anything that doesn’t seem trite or cliched.
10 mins ago, and I frequently decide against it because I am either unsure of whether I read something right or because I don’t feel like actually engaging in a conversation about the topic.
Literally just now. I was going to agree and add detail about my own thought process, but… meh.
Nearly every day. Sometimes it’s helpful to write out my thoughts, even if they’re too rude or just too banal to actually post.
Lately I’d say I end up not posting the majority of my comments.
Literally every day.
About three minutes ago.
I had actually written a few paragraphs in response to another thread, but it wasn’t coming together right and would’ve had to have been rewritten almost entirely to get it to my standards, and I just didnt care that much, so I closed it instead, then went to the main page and saw this.
Overall, I would guess that I post less than half of what I write, either because I’m struggling to get it to my standards and don’t care enough to keep going, or because I stop and realize that if I go ahead and post it, it’s likely that if it gets a response at all it’s just going to be some tunnel-visioned ideologue hurling disinformation, fallacies and/or tired emotive rhetoric.
Don’t be so harsh on yourself. This is all informal conversations. You don’t have to hold yourself to such high standards. Your ideas aren’t any less valid because you have trouble articulating them. If someone disagrees or has a problem with what you say then they can just say so and you can clarify.
I choose to hold myself to high standards. Writing is one of the great joys of my life, and there are few things I enjoy more than the satisfaction I feel when I do it well.
Additionally:
If someone disagrees or has a problem with what you say then they can just say so and you can clarify.
Would that that were so, but the reality of the internet in this benighted age is that many (most?) who misrepresent another’s position do so not because they sincerely try but fail to understand it, but because it serves their purposes to do so, and no amount of clarification is going to overcome that. It’s a waste of effort at best, and is actually often detrimental, since saying more just provides them with more fodder for even more fallacies and diversions.
Which is another reason that I write for my own satisfaction.
Thanks for the response though.
I sympathize with that. I’ve been that kind of person for most of my life. It sucks that the internet can be the kind of place where it discourages people to speak comfortably.
For what it’s worth, I think you write very well. Based on these two comments only :).
I’m trying to get better at the whole “If you don’t have anything to add, don’t get involved. If joining in won’t be good for you, don’t join in.” thing. I’m still bad at it, but I at least now know it’s a problem.
