Thursday, 02 August 2012
-
in which I am dying
Technically, we are all dying from the moment we're born, but that's sort of morbid. Yeah, I think I have a sinus infection. Feels like I have a fever. Of course, can't rule out the interference of allergies on top of that, since I was sneezing every 2.5 seconds today at work.
Aside from the sneezing I didn't actually feel too terrible, just exhausted. I was reluctant to take allergy meds because I could have fallen asleep sitting at my desk without any sort of assistance whatsoever. Despite the Loud People doing their usual f@*#ing yelling about the g#*@(damn #*@$ as they usually do.
I was supposed to go this weekend to the city to watch accordion wrestling with Mr. Five. Wait, let me find the link so you won't think I am delirious from the fever and making this up. Here is the Link: LINK. Also, dinner beforehand. What sort of cuisine would go well with accordion wrestling? I dunno. Anyway, I emailed him a short while ago to say that I hope I can make it but as of this moment I feel pretty crappy. Oh well.
So I got home from work and laid down and slept for about two hours, then woke up and laid in bed for a bit. Brother called me and said, "You sound sick" and I said, "that's 'cause I am." Duh. I debated calling Mum just to whine at her, but then she would say, "Don't go to work tomorrow," but I have to go to work tomorrow because there's a thing I didn't do today that has to be done before Sunday so I have to do it tomorrow.
I might well depart early, though.
Anyway, I was going to write something about the Perceptions of Internet Peoples. Yesterday morning I pulsed that I had a dream about a Xangan, and @godfatherofgreenbay asked if he had long or short hair in the dream.
The dream was not about him, but I replied that I often imagine him with long-ish hair like the Beatles in 1964. Wait, let me find a photo. Here is the photo: PHOTO.
That doesn't work as well as it does with the Links. Sorry for having to pause. If I was feeling normal, I might have prepared these reference materials in advance. FAIL.
Where was I?
Oh yes, perceptions of Internet People. The Godfather told me that I was actually fairly accurate in my Perception of his Internet Hair, so that sent me into wondering, possibly influenced by the drugs, about how people "see" one another on the Interwebs. There are a few of us, including myself, who do not use actual photos of ourselves as our profile pictures. So, while I've posted photos of myself sporadically, the one you probably most associate with me is the tree with the birdhouse, which is the profile photo I have used since joining Xanga. Sometimes I consider changing it, but then I wonder if people will not know it's me anymore. This has happened to me in the past, where someone changed their photo and I was confused for a short while.
Anyway. For the people who have photos of themselves, I suppose we have no question about what the person looks like, and thus when we are thinking about them or interacting with them or fantasizing about them or dreaming about them, the profile picture will automatically be there in our minds.
However, what about those odd folks like myself who do not have human photos. Though I have seen actual photos of @randaness, I most often think of her as an evil black cat, even though for some odd reason the evil black cat photo will not show on my computer, only on my phone. In the dream, however, she was not a cat. I don't have very good visual memories even of real life events, but I think the way I imagined her in my head is close to the way she actually looks. Unless her wedding pictures were a lie. Hmm.
So. Where am I going with this? I'm asking a question is what I'm doing, okay? Do you find that you perceive Internet People in a way close to reality? I posted my photo fairly recently and a few people who had never seen me before said that I was not what they imagined I looked like. A similar thing occurs with DJs on the radio - they sound like awesome young guys, but in reality they're some fat, middle-aged bald dude. Even having seen photos of DJs, I find I often still imagine them as I originally did.
Yeah, so that was the question, I guess. How do you imagine others in your head, and does that head-image come close to reality?
Okay, I think I'm going to finish eating my microwaved tuna noodle casserole and then go back to sleep. Have a night, folks.
-
recommend
- recs 1
-
email
- sent 0
Related Posts
Post a Comment
- Back to leaflesstree's Xanga Site!
- Note: your comment will appear in leaflesstree's local time zone: GMT -05:00 (Eastern Standard - US, Canada)
Comments (22)
It's probably similar to the way we imagine characters in books. I still doggedly imagine the Harry Potter characters (for the most part) as I imagined them when I first read the books, and not as their sometimes-inaccurate movie counterparts. And I think I imagine you based on what you look like, or at least what I can remember you looking like, because I don't go back and stalk your pictures so I've only seen them a couple times.
It's interesting... when people on Xanga have pictures of their faces as their profile pictures, I often get them confused with other people who also have pictures of their faces as their profile pictures. Sometimes having a face photo will make me confuse you with someone else, at least until I get to know you (or them) a lot better. Especially if their screen name is comprised of words or letters that don't necessarily stand out to me as meaning something.
Also, I thought a long time ago about changing my profile picture. I think I actually do have a secondary profile picture, which is also a black cat, just because I figured that if people out there do recognize me, it's probably because of the black cat. I might have a profile picture of a titmouse that says "tits or gtfo," but I didn't ever really use it (not that I use the other black cat photo... maybe I should).
Oh, I also apparently have a profile picture of the same black cat with a Santa hat on. That's kind of fun. I totally forgot about it.
i don't think i imagine. but almost all of the people i talk to, i have some concept of what they look like. i remember your picture. :) it's not very fair of me, i know. since the only real picture i had i got rid of.
@randaness - I have used my real photo a number of times. One gals' husband thought I was a young guy trying to take advantage if women. My many photos ended that fear. lol
frank
I hear GodfatherofGreenBay is totally awesome and I am not GodfatherofGreenBay. I'm GodfatherofSheboygan but I'm on his account.
I am bad, so bad that I lose weight and gain weight which is not normal for guys. Plus I refuse to get dentures and have a toothless grin.
Probably in the next five years I will get white hairs and look my age too.
I don't think you broke any sneezing records but you probably felt like a contender. Those Finnish wrestling guys that go along with the accordian might be good competition to your date.
I can't remember how I pictured Carrie before she put up her picture. I may have thought she was blond, but when I saw her, she was immediately recognizable from the 2 or 3 photos I'd seen.
I remember what you look like, too, especially your curly hair.
I have found, though, that the colors which I associate with people may change the more I get to know them or after a face-to-face meeting.
The guy I dated from here was just as I expected him to be -- right down to being exceptionally handsy.
I hope you get well and go to accordion wrestling. That's not an opportunity that comes along every day!
Hope that sneezing stops soon and that you are feeling better soon.
@randaness - Yup, I thought of the Harry Potter books as I was writing this - or anything else that's been adapted to movies. My mom has a number of books that she listens to on audiobook, and so now she has the voices the reader uses in her head if she every actually reads the books herself. I think I remember your cat with santa hat, I assume it was the Christmas version, since a lot of people were "wearing" hats around that time.
@promisesunshine - It took me a little while to get used to you being a pair of shoes instead of a sunburst. I believe I've seen your real face but I don't remember it. I'm trying to imagine you but I'm getting Seedsower instead. Which is funny because I don't really interact with her much.
@a_thousandmiles - That's a good idea, posting old photos. I was very adorable as a little kid, I should post some of my photos from then and use them as profile pics. :)
@godfatherofgreenbay - Sheboygan sounds way cooler than GreenBay anyway. :P
@PPhilip - Ha, I have probably broken sneezing records in the past. I rarely sneeze only once, it's usually at least three times in a row. My mother has a policy: Two "God Bless You"s per day, otherwise she'd be saying it nonstop. She adopted that policy with my sister, who is also a world-record sneeze champion.
@lanney - Yes, my hair is probably my most recognizable feature. I haven't straightened it in quite a while - used to do that pretty regularly. It was funny because I'd straighten my hair one day and no one would notice, but then a week later I'd do it again and get a ton of compliments and "did you do something different?" I'm sad about missing accordion wrestling but I think I'm going to stay home tomorrow and rest. The sneezing has passed but now I am coughing and very congested.
@Grannys_Place - The sneezing stopped, but now I am coughing and congested. Feeling a little better though. :)
@we_deny_everything - You know, when you put it that way, it doesn't sound very appealing. I suppose Finnish guys aren't known for their sexiness?
@leaflesstree - I think someone was making the profile pictures for xanga. Seedless, maybe?
Aww, I hope the rest pumps up your immune system and you get well quickly.
@randaness - lol you mean Seedsower. She makes them every holiday I think.
@leaflesstree - Oh. Yeah. How did I mess that up?