i was out wandering this neighborhood i had never been, looking for The Apartment, of course, when i ran into this person i had not seen in almost a decade, but who remains present as a Facebook friend. She waved to me from across the street and I could barely recognize her, and I was surprised she recognized me because i was wearing a hat, and i feel like i have an entirely foreign identity while wearing a hat, which you may already know about me. i can barely recognize myself.

She asked me, “what’s new?” which is always the hardest question for me to answer, especially when I had not seen the person asking in 9 years. it took me a long time to think of an answer. I told her that I was wearing new pants, and she told me she had a new hole in her shirt. and then we were at a complete loss over what to say next. Which was strange because we speak so fluently over Facebook.

which leads me to wonder if people, including myself, spend so much time cultivating our avatars, while our physical presences and connections slowly atrophy. it’s kind of a cognitive schism. i am sure i am not the first to notice this. fortunately, there are ways to de-atrophize and return to the physical world, as i have done so many times and will probably do again… starting… now.