JAKOB'S JOURNAL

Online Friends

March 29th, 2020

An internet friend (whom I’ve never met in person) sent me a message yesterday:

“…Though we’re separated by thousands of miles of land and water, I feel like you’re somebody who I’ve known, like a true friend…”

Later in the evening, our neighborhood held a ‘block party’ via Zoom (photo below). Not everyone attended, but of those who did, we laughed and told stories. One shared a poem and the other played a song. The 18 or so of us (none of whom I’ve ever met in person) all mingled for about an hour. Those living alone, and especially those quarantined for health reasons, had a chance to see faces and hear voices for the first time in weeks. Better yet, it gave us all an EXCUSE to interact with one another when we’d not done so before. As social as I am, it felt odd that all of the people on this call were folks that live within 4 blocks of us, and we’d never interacted, not in person or online. I know a ton of my neighbors, but none were on this call. Despite how difficult it is right now, with the stay-at-home and shelter-in-place declarations, to maintain any sort of social life, I’ve found laced within this ‘new interaction’, an abundance of curious opportunities. This has been quite enlightening!

This is the conclusion I’ve come to—not easily, might I add…

If we, as a society, are going to spend countless hours engaging with folks on the internet, then we ought to operate under the assumption that WE CAN MAKE DEEP CONNECTIONS THIS WAY.

Or, if we do not believe that, then we ought to give it up entirely.

Why would any intelligent person waste such a large portion of our life using online versions of communication if we knew, full well, that the end-game was at best shallow, meaningless, temporary banter? I’ve long been a skeptic of web-founded relationships, but what’s the alternative? Right now, there isn’t one.

This “Virus Life” as I’ve been calling it, is a great trial period to find out how deep we can go building relationships online — work, play, family, friends, debates, education, ideas, thoughts, news, entertainment.

Right now, we don’t have much of a choice—communicate online, or don’t communicate.

The aloneness could be a good thing for many people—TRUE.
It is not feasible/realistic that we suddenly go completely off-grid, not only for survival, but because that’s ‘what we really want’—also TRUE … otherwise we’d already have done that. We’ll need to make contact at some point, and you know what I usually say: Let’s make the best of it.

Mt. Botl — make the best of this life.

I’m climbing it every day.

My best friends, for the foreseeable future, are going to be online friends, and I’m not going to let my skepticism about the limitations digital of communication be what prevents me from building deep, lasting, meaningful relationships with them, because I believe that we can.

Cheers — raising my glass to many, but touching glasses with none.
Late start? Who cares?

March 28th, 2020

We’re 2 weeks into this stay-at-home experiment, and my wife hasn’t gone totally bonkers. I’m shocked. Yesterday is the first day she’s gone outside the fence that borders our property. What an odd time for our world right now — more connected than ever, AND more isolated than ever.

As we look upon the progress our peers have made on their side-hustles and personal development over the last 10-12 days of quarantine/social-distancing, it’s easy to feel bad about what we may or may not have been able to accomplish thus far, or feel ashamed that we’ve (maybe) even let some sinister habits sneak in, like sloth or gluttony or lust.

Don’t be silly.
You just need to go out into the woods for an evening, and relax.

Nobody even knows how long this will last, and the only person measuring your progress is you. Besides, everyone else is preoccupied telling everyone about their progress.

If you’re feeling guilty, though, do yourself a favor and kick it into gear sooner than later.

A small step today is better than the promise of a big leap tomorrow, and small steps aren’t nearly as daunting, but they’re damn effective.
Internet Me – 2

March 27th, 2020

I decided, as a response to my last journal prompt (as promised) to choose Instagram.

Below is a screenshot of my journal on the list: 1-25

And here are the follow up questions, answered honestly:

a — If I label, and then categorize the topics I posted about, does the ratio of categories represent what I want to be known for by other people? Yes, to the degree that I would like my writing to be a large part of my identity. I’m also realizing that for having been paid to be a ‘speaker’, I really haven’t produced much audio or video stuff to share with folks.
b — What thing or topic comes up most on your list? My writing. Which, is a good thing.
c — What are the 3 most important things/people/focuses, in my WHOLE LIFE? How many times do they or something about them come up in the 25? Family, living well, and love. It’s about 19-25.
d — If I was seeing me for the first time, how would I describe this person based on these 25 posts? Well, they like to write. They’re witty, but also have a bit of an ego… haha. Healthy living is important to him. He must be some sort of ‘coach’ or have an educational background.
e — If your list was taken over by stuff about COVID-19 or Political commentary or some other topic that seemed to fill almost all 25 spots, then ask: Am I the sort of person that publicly gets ‘out of character’ when the environment is chaotic? Is this really me? I didn’t fall victim to this. Of course, I wrote this question because I noticed it of so many other folks. Mine was taken over by my work, which, for some may not be there intent, but I certainly am trying to represent my thoughts and writing more than anything.
f — Who are 2 people that I truly look up to most? What are the most popular themes on their social pages right now? What are they all about, online? Naval Ravikant — minimal interaction, always potent. He’s actually involved more with the COVID-19 stuff than I would have expected, but he has taken a seriously critical and factual approach to this. I think his background as an investor is why he may be holding so much importance to this right now, but usually he doesn’t put out this much information. The other would be, Logan Gelbrich – former baseball player, deep thinking entrepreneur who’m I resonate with on many levels, and he’s constantly giving a personal input, but also has a strong presence on his professional pages that involves the gym business he runs, “Deuce”.
g — If you died today, and these were the last 25 things you shared with the world to see and hear, would you be please about the impression you left and the legacy you’d leave behind? I’d be pleased. I’d wish I could write more, but I wouldn’t be upset with it. At the very least, the folks that saw it might think, “he had so much more to offer, it’s a shame he died young.” At least, I hope that’s what they’d think. Else, they’d probably be like, “This guy thought he knew everything, good riddance”. Haha.

If you don’t journal much, I highly suggest it. If you need help, give me a shout. It’s one of the best things a person can do to start making the best of this life.
Internet Me

March 26th, 2020

Self Check! Here we go…

I know you all love when I do these 🙂

This is a Journal Prompt: (if you close this out after reading that, you’re afraid of personal growth. There, I said it. Now pull out a pen and paper and do it).

JOURNAL PROMPT:

1. Write down all of the social media applications that you use (IG, facebook, twitter, TikTok, etc).

2. Choose one from that list and log into that account.

3. Open your journal and make a list with #’s 1-25

4. Now, click on your profile page, and write down everything you’ve been POSTING, RE-POSTING, SHARING, SAYING, RECORDING, etc. — anything that YOU sent out into the world for others to see (1 post = 1 line, up to 25). Don’t skip any. Write it all down.

5. Go through and read these 25 pieces of information that you shared with others, and then WRITE DOWN answers to the following questions.

a — If I label, and then categorize the topics I posted about, does the ratio of categories represent what I want to be known for by other people?
b — What thing or topic comes up most on your list?
c — What are the 3 most important things/people/focuses, in my WHOLE LIFE? How many times do they or something about them come up in the 25?
d — If I was seeing me for the first time, how would I describe this person based on these 20 posts?
e — If your list was taken over by stuff about COVID-19 or Political commentary or some other topic that seemed to fill almost all 25 spots, then ask: Am I the sort of person that publicly gets ‘out of character’ when the environment is chaotic? Is this really me?
f — Who are 2 people that I truly look up to most? What are the most popular themes on their social pages right now? What are they all about, online?
g — If you died today, and these were the last 25 things you shared with the world to see and hear, would you be please about the impression you left and the legacy you’d leave behind?

If you’re up for it, generate your own questions, too. Have fun, and don’t cry when you realize that internet you is not even close to real you.

Tomorrow, my blog will be my list of 25 and the answers to these questions.
Did you?

March 25th, 2020

I won’t
I don’t want to
I can’t

Lead us down the same path as…

I should
I might
I will
I ought to
I’m thinking about it

All of that emotional halfassery is for the birds. The only thing that matters, at the end of the day is…

I did.

Online Friends

Late start? Who cares?

Internet Me – 2

Internet Me

Did you?