There are plenty of reasons to be down about the state of the world.

We’ve got financial crises occurring and then being forgotten and then occurring over and over again in an endless cycle of incompetence and greed.

Cars and buildings and people are blowing up left and right, with various clusters of irrational and fervent extremists to blame.

Governments are becoming more and more totalitarian. Information is being hoarded by the highest bidder. Soulless corporations are taking over people just keep getting fatter and fatter.

And did I mention the impending Singularity? We’ll all be robots soon. Shit.

Despite all this, I think there are a great many cold, logical reasons to be happy that have nothing to do with sunshine, rainbows and spirit animals, and everything to do with nice, clean, rationality.

1. Science is evolving, and so are we

I know, I know, it seems like every time you turn around there’s a new world-ending problem popping up somewhere. If it’s not the chance of nuclear winter, it’s an oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico.

It’s easy to look at this and say ‘well if we would just slow down a bit and stop being so technologically ambitious, we’d be just fine!’ I mean, if we hadn’t developed The Bomb, no Cold War, right?

Wrong.

If we didn’t have the problems we have now, we’d just have a completely different set of problems, and possibly ones that would keep us from fighting back. There will always be problems plaguing us, what changes is our ability to live with them and the quality of life we enjoy beside them.

For example, if we hadn’t developed the Internet and other methods of mass communication, we wouldn’t have nearly as many medical breakthroughs as we have today. We’re coming up with cures to diseases left and right, and surgical procedures have become far more effective and efficient since the Web made the sharing of techniques more doable.

Okay, but now that we have the Internet, we also have Spam and hackers and the possibility of being Rick Roll’d and all kinds of other horrible Web-based problems. Have we really solved anything?

Yes we have. Think about it this way: we’re going to have problems either way, but as we continue to develop – to create new solutions to problems of the past and create new realities for the future – in addition to increasing our quality of life in the meantime, we also increase our chances of coming up with something that is truly problem-ending.

Some new technology or philosophy or who-knows-what COULD conceivably come about that would solve every current and future problem. Maybe it’s a mind-melding device that allows all humans to communicate with and be one with every other human simultaneously? Maybe it IS some kind of Singularity event where we merge with machines and are able to combine the best of the flesh and the bolt and end up with some impossibly excellent superhuman species? Maybe it’s…well, you get the picture.

There’s no way to predict for sure what will happen in the future, but it’s nice to know that we’re going SOMEWHERE. I’m filled with joy every time I see a new invention or hear a new idea: I think ‘we’re just one step closer to making everything all right.’

If we’re not working on a solution, we’re no better than any other animal…the ones that don’t have the brain-parts to even think of trying.

2. The Law of Attraction is bullshit, but being positive actually does help

There’s no voodoo involved in it, but it’s been shown over and over that if you have a positive outlook on life, things just tend to go your way more often.

This isn’t a sign of spirits smiling down on you, but rather the summation of all the little things we do when we’re feeling good and motivated.

When you feel like something is attainable, you’re more likely to keep pursuing it, even when it seems impossible. You’re also more likely to put in extra time and effort, and to see past short-term barriers. Bigger-picture problem solving is also easier, as you will have taken the time to think through the details…if you are pessimistic about the chances of it working, you’ll likely spend more time thinking about escape plans, instead of throwing yourself wholeheartedly into a project.

Positive people also tend to have better posture, healthier bodies and to be more socially magnetic.

Think about it: would you rather hang out with someone who is excited about life, or someone who sits around and mumbles about how bad everything is?

Even if you truly feel that things are going badly, why not be positive and optimistic about the opportunity to change the way things are going? It all comes down to attitude, and at the end of the day, being a pessimist holds you back while finding something to be optimistic about pushes you forward.

Which makes more sense to you?

3. We’re frickin’ alive, maaannnn

This will seen a little nebulous at first, so bear with me here for a moment.

Take a second to really think about reality. Go ahead. Sit back in your chair, feel it give as you lean back; the texture of the armrest under your fingers.

Look at the things around you…I mean, REALLY look at them. This is not a TV show or a cartoon. Everything you see exists in tangible reality. You and your thoughts and your family and your dog are all real.

And you can change this reality. The social constructs we’ve built in our heads are just that: constructs. The rules we’ve followed since birth can be bent or broken. No one knows how we got here or where we are going or if we even really exist (and anyone who says they know for sure is a liar, and probably trying to sell you something), which means that you cannot be wrong in an absolute sense.

Sure, you can do things that don’t fit with the rules we’ve built as a society. It’s not okay to run around naked in most cities, for example. But really, what are the true consequences if you did? What rules can you dodge and twist and dismiss entirely?

Most of what we take for granted as being true and solid and an anchor to cling to is much more malleable than we tend to think about on a daily basis (or even throughout our entire lives, in some cases). There’s so much untapped potential it’s unbelievable!

Knowing this, and understanding that there’s so much you don’t know about yourself because of it…you can’t help but feel pretty good about what you’ve already accomplished from within the confines of perception, right?

4. Nothing you have ever done or ever will do matters

I probably get more complaints about this concept than any of the others on this list, but I think it’s important (and probably the biggest contributor to my own personal happiness).

The world we live on is in constant motion. It’s a complicated machine wherein things grow and then erode away. Living things are born and then die; the organic parts whittled down and reabsorbed into the stew of atoms the make all things, living and dead. Climates shift, compositions change, and everything that happened before is eventually washed away by the sands of time.

At the most basic level, our brains are made up of particles that have arranged themselves in such a way that chemicals have been formed and electrical impulses can be conducted from one side to the other. This allows us to transfer information from different sets of particles that are arranged into the various muscles and bones and nerves and capillaries that make up our bodies, and the end result, after billions of years of evolution, is that we can manipulate and change our environments to a degree that seems almost scary at times.

But what we need to keep in mind is that no matter how much we think we have control over our planet, we are still just footnotes on a very long timeline, and throughout that timeline there may have been other creatures who felt the same way (but are now so totally forgotten that we aren’t even aware they existed).

This sounds like a downer statement – saying that humans are so insignificant that everything you’ll ever do is meaningless in the grand scheme of things – but I like to see it as a reason to set myself free from the inhibitions and responsibilities that come with the alternatives.

If I felt like every moment of live I had on Earth was meaningful and preordained to mean something, I wouldn’t be having nearly as much fun as I am now. I would spend most of my time worrying if I were living up to my purpose, fulfilling my destiny, yadda yadda yadda. Instead, I’m able to take the road that I like best at the moment, make mistakes, have adventures, grow to become the best me I can possibly be, enjoying the time I’ve got, and to help others do the same.

If you had no place to be, no role to fill….what would you do?

These are some of the concepts that keep me moving along through life at the steady clip I take.

Tell me this: What inspires you? What coldly logical reasons do you have to be happy?

You are probably fairly well aware of what your best is in a given circumstance.

Even if you’ve never pushed yourself to your absolute limit, it’s usually pretty obvious whereabouts it is, and knowing this helps you judge how much effort to put into a given activity for the maximum results for the time that you have.

But what about those situations where the resources are limited?

The math changes. Whereas before you would calculate based on 2 variables (your skill level and how much time it takes to achieve it), now you are forced to include a third (availability of necessary resources).

In many instances, this added complication will limit the positive results you’re able to achieve in the amount of time you’ve allotted.

If you’re able to be creative, however, this additional limitation can actually result in higher yields.

As long as you’re willing to be creative and roll with the punches, the box you’re forced to work within can actually become a foundation to stand on, allowing you to reach greater heights.

Keep this in mind the next time you find yourself confronting a new barrier and freezing up at the prospect of dealing with it.

When you’re on the road, it’s always the details that trip you up, pull you down and stomp on you a little before moving on to the next unfortunate victim.

You’ve procured a regal meal, but you don’t have a fork.

You’re all kinds of ready to ask directions in the local language, but you have no idea where you want to go.

You find yourself covered in grime and walk to the shower with your toiletries in hand, but you don’t have a towel.

It’s in these situations where resourcefulness and the willingness to bend your expectations and perceptions can come in very handy.

Are you willing to eat with your hands, or figure out a way to eat with your bread instead of utensils?

Are you prepared to wander aimlessly until you come up with the name of something local that you can use as a reference?

Are you open to the possibility that – under the right circumstances – a big wad of toilet paper can look a whole lot like a towel?

These aren’t ideal solutions, but they ARE solutions, and they’re just as practical as they are uncomfortable and strange.

They are not, however, wrong, and coming to grips with this opens up a whole new world of taking life as it comes, hurling oneself into opportunities as they arise, and generally being able to adapt to new circumstances in a way that is conducive to success.

Going on a road trip has given me a lot of time to talk about the blogging process with two very talented members of the field, and while talking yesterday (about what to do with an extra 24 hours we found in our schedule), we decided to act on something we’ve all been wanting to do for some time.

Ash, Andi and I all have ambitious audiences, full of people looking to shake things up and take control of their lifestyles.

The biggest hurdle we hear about, however, is money. The next step can’t be taken, some fear, because they don’t have enough money to pay someone to set up their site, design their logo, do some basic PR or some other small thing that they personally don’t have the knowledge or skill set to do personally.

We decided to take these 24 hours and attack this problem head on. Enter the Reader Appreciation Day Sale.

For the next 24 hours (ending at noon, Central Time, tomorrow) we’ll be HEAVILY discounting the prices on our services. For me this means everything from design to branding to consulting on whatever business endeavor you have going on to development to writing content for your site. I’m hunkering down with a bottle of wine and free food from my family (thanks family!) and knocking out as much as possible while I’m here.

What really makes this thing special, though, is that I’m joining forces with the lovely ladies I’m traveling with, who have their own special skills to throw into the mix.

Miss Andi Norris is a very talented and creative designer, not to mention a whiz with development and an excellent writer. She brings some really unique skills to the table, too, like content analysis (where she essentially goes through your existing site and gives you a really detailed rundown as to what’s missing and what messages are confusing…can really help to take things up a notch).

Miss Ash Ambirge is a PR specialist with mad skills she can leverage to get the word out about you and your business (or blog). She also writes content of all shapes, sizes and purposes and can help you to leverage what you’ve got (or build what you need) to get the best results from your time and money.

MOST of the services will go for $100-200. Only the slightly larger endeavors (like setting up a website) will be a tad more (but still at a discount of over 75% off). Click here to get your quote!

A video of me wearing glasses explaining the sale:

Here is a partial list of services we provide between the 3 of us:

DESIGN
Logos, one-sheets, business cards, stationery, banners, ads, posters

OTHER
Chit-chatting, karaokeing, playing online video games, watching us dance, interviews, tell us jokes and we’ll laugh at the right times

These are all just suggestions! If you need something else done, let us know and we’ll see what we can do!

If you want to get your name on the list for the sale, click here and fill out the form. One of us will get back to you faster than probably should be allowed.

Think about something the next time you want to needlessly honk your horn at someone else in the car.

Or make a snarky comment on someone’s blog post.

Or subtly insult someone else’s efforts.

Or dismiss someone else’s opinion.

Why do you feel the need to punish them?

Because that is what you’re doing.

When tearing someone else down needlessly, you justify it in your own mind by thinking ‘it’s for their own good. I’m helping them by forcing them away from their silly ideas.’

Is it? Are you really helping them to learn, or are you just making yourself feel taller by trying to make them feel shorter? Has anyone ever been convinced they are bad drivers by having another person drive reeaaaallllyy close to their bumper on the highway? Has a casual insult ever made you think ‘Well gee, I guess I AM an idiot and should go learn more’?

No. It’s just justification.

And is this the kind of person you want to be?

I try to avoid this as much as possible, but I still catch myself doing it from time to time. I don’t know if it’s hardwired into us as social humans, or if it’s just a flaw I deal with, but it’s a good thing to keep an eye on either way.

The reasons why we do things can set us free from them; otherwise we continue to spin our wheels out of habit, regardless of the mud we sling in the meantime.

The sandwich I snagged from a higher-end convenience store is average, though the components are wonderful. Fresh turkey. Fresh lettuce. Fresh bread. Everything SHOULD be excellent. But there’s one thing that’s keeping me from grinning like a mad-person while devouring it.

That thing is the mayo.

I’ve got nothing against mayo. Sometimes it really works, but for some reason the pre-packaged sandwich makers seem to think that slathering the thing in condiments is a good way to get return customers.

And it probably works in some cases. People like mayo. It was a smart marketing move. Just not for ME.

For me, it would be great if they had a few ‘roadwiches’ without mayo. Sure, it would take a bit more effort – expanding their product line a bit, and upping the man-hours to make the special orders a reality – but it would endear the product to me and I would actively search for any brand that made a special exception for ME.

This is definitely not possible (or probable) in many industries, but what about yours? Is there something you can be doing for a small portion of your audience that would elevate them from casual consumers into enthusiastic fans?

I’ve been thinking on this for Exile Lifestyle, and I’d love to hear what I could be doing for you.

I had a really great half-drunken discussion at a party in LA over a year ago wherein a biologist told me why he doesn’t like to be called an Atheist, despite the fact that he technically is.

“I don’t like to be identified by what I’m not, I prefer to take on labels that say what I am.”

This discussion has had a significant impact on me (which is hopefully clear from the fact that I still remember it in detail a year later), as the point is so simple yet oft-ignored.

When we identify ourselves by what we are not rather than what we are, we put limitations on ourselves and tell others little except that we are contrary people.

Using a more trendy example to emphasize the point, say someone tells me that they hate the iPhone.

What exactly have I learned about this person?

I’ve learned that they don’t like the iPhone – for whatever reason – but wouldn’t I have learned more if they would have told me they are big fans of Android phones? Or prefer Blackberries to the alternatives? All I get from this statement is negativity, while if they would have focused on a statement of what they actually enjoy, I would have been able to glean more useful information from the conversation.

Back to the original example, if I say that I am somewhat of a Rationalist and a bit of a Humanist, this implies much, including that I focus more on the Secular than the Faith-Based philosophies, but it doesn’t go out and slap anyone else (or their beliefs) in the face, either.

And perhaps most importantly, it doesn’t limit me. If I were to be given rational evidence of the existence of a Higher Being, for example, the Atheist me would have to change my belief system completely, whereas Rationalist Humanist me is able to continue on, philosophies still intact.

Don’t limit yourself by telling others what you’re not, instead tell them what you are. Try this for a week and see how you feel.

I’ve found it to be immensely liberating.

What are you?

Expectations influence every aspect of a culture.

There are parts of the world where people subsist on very little food and water, live in ramshackle homes (if that) and deal with the constant threat of disease and crime. The streets are dirt (or nonexistent) and the level of education is incredibly low.

There are other parts of the world where some people grow up wanting for nothing. They are so well-off and tended to by society that instead of worrying about eating to survive, they make sure they’re seen at the best restaurants, paying what some people make in a year for one meal (and the social status that comes with eating so luxuriously).

I’m not trying to make anyone feel guilty – in fact, ideally we would all be in the latter situation, even if we didn’t make use of the resources in the same way – but I do want to point out a very important similarity between these two cultural experiences.

In both cases, the only lens through which one can view the world is the one they were brought up with. They can hear about other people from worlds away, sure, but that’s not the same as really, truly living that lifestyle.

Bring a Congolese refugee to LA and have them live the high-life and they’ll be just as big a fish out of water as Paris Hilton would be if she were tossed into the middle of an impoverished warzone.

Both of these situations come with their own benefits and hinderances.

In Miss Hilton’s case, she’s able to move mountains with her influence and wealth, living as if the world is her playground and piggybank, and she’s right. On the other hand, the culture she comes from (my culture) is one that is held back by it’s own success. We have become accustomed to an incredibly high standard of living (on an historical scale, as well as contemporary) and this means that if an advancement (technological, culture, whatever) would inconvenience even a small chunk of the population, the process will instead be staggered in order to keep people living in their bubble.

The refugee, on the other hand, has detriments galore, hardly able to go about their daily life without being oppressed or suppressed in some way. Inconvenience is hardly an issue, as there are so many other pressing concerns, and this is both a boon and bane to their existence.

It’s terrible that other human beings should be kept at such a standard of living in 2010, but at the same time, the hardships that they are enduring will allow them to advance and maneuver in a way that the so-called ‘Western World’ cannot.

There’s an uproar every time a road goes under construction in the US, but if a road is paved in the Congo, it’s reason for celebration.

Our expectations color our experiences, and the way we see the world is influenced by both.

Keeping this in mind makes it much easier to see the forest despite the trees.

Today I’m proud to feature a co-guest post from Brett Hagberg (of Ask Experience) and Joel Runyon (of the Blog of Impossible Things), two talented and very intelligent bloggers who took part in a bit of a debate in the comment section of a post I wrote last week.

I asked them to put together a point-counterpoint guest post, and instead they came back with this, which I honestly believe is a lot more useful, and nicely expounds upon the point of the original post in question.

Joel’s words are in italic, and Brett’s are normal text.

Last week Colin wrote a post on a pretty hot topic. Well it actually wasn’t that terribly controversial but it seems that anytime someone says the word “gay” there’s always some sort of an uproar. Colin meant the post to mean that we should take pride as well as responsibility for beliefs we hold. That is, we should understand our beliefs and why we have them — using a rational process to certify that our beliefs are, in fact, the truth. If we don’t know why we hold our beliefs, then why should we accept them as dogma? I agreed with Colin’s post wholeheartedly.

I on the other hand, raised a few issues with what Colin was getting at. I agreed with the basic premise of what I saw Colin getting at, but took issue with how it seemed Colin seemed to be taking sides in the situation. A few words in the comments set off quite the debate between Brett & myself (seriously check out the comment section). The unique thing about this was that at the end of the argument, we didn’t hate each other. In fact, we realized that even though we disagreed, we actually still liked each other.

We both realized how refreshing it was to have an debate that didn’t end up in complete hatred, especially in society  today that seems to have lost the the ability to disagree civilly, so we decided to break down 5 key things that allowed us to have a solid debate, minus the hate.

Respect

One of the first things I mentioned we we started to “debate” was that respect was paramount. Without respect, arguments escalate to yelling matches and fights. Here’s the thing about respect: in order to get it, you have to give it. So many times people demand respect while refusing to give the same to others. Rather than asking questions, they lash out. Instead of giving the other person the benefit of the doubt, they assume the worst.Without respect, arguments turn into fights and fights turn ugly. Pretty soon, whole groups of people hate each other. This all could be avoided if you simply start the debate with a healthy dose of respect for the other participants. Thankfully, both Brett & I started out with that attitude and that really paved the way for the rest of our discussion.

Thoughtful Responses

After Joel disagreed with the post, I figured I’d challenge his logic and his interpretation of the post. I didn’t think he was stupid or anything of that sort – I honestly thought he just read the post incorrectly, and I figured I’d try to clarify. Screaming expletives and insults at the other person does not get anyone anywhere in any type of debate or argument, so I automatically avoided going down that route. The best way to win an argument or a debate is to have a sound argument, and I presented mine in the most thoughtful, clear way possible (without bothering to edit it, admittedly). When people substitute shouting and accusations for an actual argument, as we’ve seen in countless examples (i.e. your government, wherever you happen to live), it simply doesn’t work.

A logical consequence of giving someone respect is responding to their reactions thoughtfully. If you respect someone, you should at least take the time to listen to what they have to say and respond accordingly. Too many times, instead of listening, people lash out. Lashing out isn’t usually the best method and responding to someone’s personal opinion with “you’re stupid” isn’t one of the fast track methods for endearing you into someone else’s good graces. When you attempt to articulate intelligently what your viewpoint is, the other person at least knows that you’re trying to actually discuss the topic rather than simply being obstinate. When Brett responded to my mini-book of a comment, with his own mini-book, I appreciated the fact that he took the time to respond with a thought out response rather than just chew me out.

Admit Uncertainty

As much as I like to pretend I’m really smart, the fact of the matter is I don’t know everything. In my opinion, the world is far too big & complex for anyone to pretend they know everything or that one person has all the answers. It’s okay to hold certain beliefs and believe them strongly, but you need to come to a conclusion about which ones you really want to hold on to. If you’re bullish in everything and think every single thing you believe is so important that it has to be right, you’ll have a hard time discussing anything with anyone. It will come across like you’re pushing an agenda rather than holding a belief. You need to be able to give in on some beliefs where other people make valid points. This doesn’t mean you have to concede your entire arguments, but when you’re able to concede that your “opponent” (for lack of a better word) is a thinking person and recognize that they have valid thoughts, you gain credibility, even if you still don’t agree with their end conclusion.

If you’re super Machiavellian, certainty will make your arguments more compelling. We’re biologically wired to respond to the person who’s the most certain; if we’re coming from a neutral spectator’s point of view in an argument, with no prior knowledge of the subject, we will likely agree with the person who is more certain of their point of view first.

However, in our debate, we sought to understand each other, rather than win at all costs. Since certainty and winning weren’t the end all, be all of the debate, we could afford to introduce a level of uncertainty in our debate.

Now, I’m normally very certain of my views, so writing this section was, admittedly, a bit of a challenge for me but the best way I can put it is this: be certain enough in your beliefs to make a good argument out of them, but willing to concede that your opponent is right if they use superior reasoning.

Use Humor

You always have the most fun in a debate where you don’t care whether you win or lose – and introducing a little bit of humor in the argument is a great way to make everyone relax. For all you hardcore debaters who are all about winning, let me ask you this – if you present your argument well, is there anything else you can do to win? No. So have a little bit of fun, argue well, but don’t get all bent out of shape if you don’t “win.” And, by all means, laugh a little bit. It’s not war; it’s conversation with another human. Just don’t take things too seriously and you’ll be good. Your life doesn’t hang in the balance if you lose. Slow down. Breathe. Smile.

A debate isn’t a fight, remember? So why be angry the whole time? Humor is one of the fastest ways to diffuse anger & bring you back down to earth. After all, it’s just a debate. Early on in our talk, I jokingly challenged Brett to a duel & he responded by quoting the famous line from the sword fighter in The Princess Bride “Hello. My name is Inigo Montoya. You killed my father. Prepare to die.” Later on, during one of our Skype chats, we were talking and he made a reference to one of Flight of The Conchords’ songs. How can you not like someone like that? I knew at that point, that even if we disagreed, I still thought he was pretty cool. Humor breaks the tension and reminds each of you that you’re both human & that life is too short to not laugh.

Find Common Ground

If you take the time to do all of the above steps, you’ll realize that you’ll find very few people who you disagree with completely. We certainly found that true in our situation. After talking thorough some of our points, we realized we not only had a very similar taste in tv shows, but also very similar world views. The things we did disagree on were fairly minor, so much so, that when Colin asked us to write a post defending our viewpoints, we realized we didn’t have anything left to argue. Sure we still differed on some points, but they were so minor that we didn’t even know if they were worthwhile rehashing again.

I got started in the argument because I found common ground in what Joel said. We both agreed that we had to & understand what the other person’s arguments before disagreeing with them. After talking  some more, we realized we agreed on a lot more than we thought, and, quite frankly, we were arguing semantics. Finding common ground in your arguments (and elsewhere in life) can make a friend out of someone you thought was an enemy. However, it’s up to YOU to find these similarities.

Wrapping It Up

You need to remember that in a debate that the other person is usually NOT trying to piss you off. Very often, they actually believe what they’re telling you. One of the things I appreciated about Brett was his honesty. We had a Skype call and I can remember Brett saying, “If I wasn’t certain that my beliefs were true, why would I even have them as beliefs?” He honestly believes what he’s saying. He’s not just saying it to make me angry by disagreeing with me. Sure, there are some people that live to disagree and there’s really not much you can do about that, but the majority of people out there are honestly trying to articulate how they understand the world.

The point of Colin’s post was the importance of knowing why you hold your beliefs — so if you ever get into a debate like Joel and myself did, you can do it without looking like a total fool. Being able to present your points with respect and thoughtfulness and a good measure of lightheartedness, to boot – does wonders any discussion. Staying cool and collected allows you to look past your petty disagreements with your “opponent,” come to an understanding and even befriend him.

There’s a lot of different viewpoints in the world & you’re not always going to agree with everyone, but you CAN start to understand each other. I don’t necessarily think I’ll ever convince Brett that he’s wrong & I’m right, but we can (and have) come to a point we can understand the other’s view in a respectful way and still get along.

If you didn’t know any better, you’d probably think I was a professional blogger.

And I’m not, but it’s amazing how much of my life – directly or indirectly – revolves around this site these days.

There are obvious examples, like the fact that I move to a new country every 4 months and own 50 things and spend a lot of time at my computer, tip-typing away.

But then there are the subtler things. The fact that most of my really strong friendships are with people that I’ve never met in real life. And that I seldom get more stressed out than when something is wonky with my server. And that a good deal of the ‘shop talk’ I take part in these days relates to the blogosphere and other bloggers and blog blog blog blog blog.

When you decide to become a serious blogger, it really is a lifestyle choice. You begin to surround yourself with birds of a feather, and when you talk about common acquaintances, you speak of them in terms of their work and ideas, rather than their physical appearance or even name (“Did you see what the guy from Random Example Blog posted today?” “Yeah, it’ll be interesting to see what the chick from Another Random Example Blog thinks about it…they’ve been fighting a bit recently, and she’s always takes him to term over posts like that”).

It’s a bit like high school in a way, though instead of making out with each other, we Skype.

It’s a bit like a complicated poly-amorous relationship, though instead of being involved in long-term tangible relationships with many people, we instead of have long-term digital relationships with many people.

It’s a bit like a family reunion at times, though rather than meeting up with unchosen relatives that you may or may not have anything in common with, you’re meeting up with your chosen e-family in REAL LIFE for the first time, which leads to a great deal of hugging and drinking and discussing the same stuff you would online, but with another set of eyeballs to look into, rather than just another pop-up window.

Bloggers flock.

And though we aren’t able to feel the breeze from each others flapping due to the great physical distance between us, we most certainly see the beautiful cloud formations shaped by the ideas of our distant e-relatives.

And sometimes that’s enough.