As an approaching (far too rapidly) 40 year old gay male, I find myself wondering myriad thoughts, ranging from the far reaches of the Galaxy and my place in it to why it is that no matter how many times I sort out my socks, whenever the next batch of laundry is done there always seem to be “single” socks in the bunch.
Is there an evil troll in my dryer or do socks, like relationships, just part ways after too much wear and tear? A little too often, I consider what some people are thinking when they get dressed to go out in public (hey … I am gay!!!). As I sit here, alone (as has become the norm) in front of my well-worn keyboard, I have several things floating in and out of my semi-consciousness.
As of this moment, I am thinking of the English language and how certain terms have come to be a part of the ever-growing lexicon of communication. Be it from “texting” (which I find so entirely annoying, I had it turned off my cell phone). I have to rant a bit further about this “texting” phenomenon … what happened to just picking up the phone and saying hello? It takes far less time to verbalize your insipid thoughts than it does to sit there, some while driving and downing mocha-chinos, to say “what’s up” than to type the words into those far too small number/letter combinations on most phones!
OK, that’s out of my system … felt good. This brings me to “Tweeting” (which I, as something of a techno-phobe, have yet to try). I’m not even sure what exactly it is, I just know that everyone but me – and perhaps my parents – knows how to do it and what it is. For pity’s sake, let me get used to one “latest thing” before they come up with anything else. And last, but certainly not at all least, my beloved Facebook.
Ah, Facebook … the perfect way for someone who rarely feels the need to leave the house to have a social life, such as it is. Friends and acquaintances from high school (not always people I would have otherwise sought out, but there they are all the same); others who had simply moved away and fallen out of touch or married or just plain dropped off the face of my little corner of the Earth. To my shock (still gives me the chills), I re-discovered one good friend who I thought was deceased … I kid you not! All thingsconsidered, I must admit I am an avid fan of Facebook. There is one term used incessantly on Facebook which, finally (I know, I tend to prattle on until someone stops me) brings me to the point of this: ”POKING”.
What the hell is Poking? I’m led to believe it’s a cute little way of letting the people you don’t actually converse with as much as you should – or get to see face-to-face – know that you are thinking of them. That sounds nice, doesn’t it? Just a quick hello from a friend to let you know someone, somewhere is thinking of you. A little happy thought from an old friend or even a “friend” you’ve never actually met in the flesh. A virtual little nudge from that guy/girl/or somewhere-in-between person who you can barely remember but are now “friends” with, that you crossed their mind at some point in the day. “Poking,” therefore, would seem like a nice thing then, wouldn’t it?
Then, of course, my mind thinks of other definitions of “poking” … the x-rated one … let’s just say that poking leads me to think of boinking, which leads me to think about … well, if I have to go into detail, you mustn’t have much of an imagination or no idea of what these terms of which I speak mean. In in either case, go watch TV. Poking, boinking, etc., all lead down a path I’ve traveled many, many, many, many times in the past. Did I mention I used to have an actual sex life? But, here again, that’s another story that took place long, long ago in a Galaxy somewhere downtown.
Now, excluding the aforementioned definitions of “poking” that have come to my deluded mind, I’m left with one more way in which to be poked that would not
be so pleasing. As in to be poked with a stick or some blunt object. That would not be at all satisfying (unless you are into that sort of thing … and who am I to judge after all the different ways of “poking” I’ve tried?) I ask you: Do you really want to be poked in this manner on a fairly consistent basis by pretty much the same people? Would you want to, let’s say, be poked in the face by a baseball bat from your Facebook friend in Utah? Personally, I would prefer not to have things poked in my face (let’s just leave that one alone, shall we?).
If someone does “poke” you on Facebook, is it rude to not poke them back? The way I figure it, no matter how you look at it, you have to. They took time out of their blogging/video downloading day to poke you, so the least you can do is poke them back in a timely manner.
So, I leave it to you to decide if “Poking” is good or just another little evil in the world. If I tune into Facebook tomorrow and find that I have been poked more than usual … I’m not quite sure how I’ll feel about it. Someone please let me know!
