Oh, the pain!
Posted by Ray @ 8:20 pm
Interesting things happen when your instant messenger client allows for quick and easy alteration of your nickname. You get all kinds of people using the feature for all kinds of things - announcements while away, advertising, humour… you name it, it’s there. In many cases, at the very least, they make for interesting conversational pieces. Take, for example, the following scenario:
Ray says: Hey, I know that song!
Hold me closer, tiny dancer says: Really?
…and the converstation goes from there.
Unfortunately it’s getting harder and harder to talk to anybody for anything. Being an almost-constantly connected ‘net junkie, I’ve noticed a disturbing trend propogating across my most oft-used instant messenger network: horribly depressing and/or irritating nicknames. *Shudders*
This is wrong on so many levels.
Now first off, are you so lazy that you can’t bring yourself to just call someone and tell them about your problems? It’s really easy you know. You pick up the phone and dial a number, usually that of a friend. When s/he picks up the phone you may start your tirade.
What’s that, you say? You already did that? Oh I’m so sorry then, you must be one of those people who’re so starved of attention that you need to show the whole world and their aunties that you have a problem. Boohoo.
No? You insist that you’ve got a serious problem? Something worth mentioning? Something you really, really want to talk about? Well, consider the mind of the potential listener when they come across your nickname. You think they want to talk to someone who sounds suicidal?
Note: that the person who’s listening to you whine now actually inquired as to your nickname, does not matter. What matters is what they felt as they asked.
…
Yeah, I thought so. There’s a word for a feeling like that. It’s called dread. Don’t you feel just wonderful knowing what you’re putting your friends through?
And just for the record, none of the people I know who actually have problems of note, have horror nicknames.
Which still leaves the matter of the… irritating… nicknames. These are people who inevitably belong to one of the following categories:
A) Leeches
B) Hypocrites
C) Hypocritical Leeches
I mean come on people. You can do better than changing your nickname and hoping someone will toss you a bone! You could grovel and beg, for instance. Or take the consequences of not having studied japanese / attended lectures / done work like a responsible adult and go unprepared. At the very least message someone and pretend to be a “friend”!
But enough of that (a certain someone would be only too happy to agree).
(To all my friends - don’t worry, Ray still loves you ^___^)
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