My Friend Bob (not his real name) called me,
starstruck. He'd spoken to
Rob Malda! Damn it Bob, when will you learn to
Be Cool?
He'd been at the
Geek Pride Festival in
Boston. Funny that he lives in
a different state but is so much closer to there than i am. Not really that funny,
geography works that way. It pays no attention to our
political borders or psychological associations. It just is.
That's the hard part about distance: that it just
is. Its pure
existence disallows all kinds of
trysts and
reunions and
meetings and
communions. Even if you try to ignore it, you won't be successful for long. The space inbetween will pop up and in its own subtle way tell you clearly, No Go. There is
distance here. Do not collect...
I had a girlfriend who called anything having to do with
computers or the
internet "that email thing". She told me she feared the day when we would all communicate only on our computers - that we would sit across the room from each other, and she would send me a message:
ideath, i'm lonely. i need a hug.
and i would write back:
pauline, here you are: (((hug)))
I miss her. She lives in
Portland and doesn't have
email. She is never home when i call. I guess i could stand to learn to Be Cool myself.