Being out of the loop

[daughter]

The general board has so much activity that it is easy to fall out the know if you can ever say that you are in the loop in the first place. I wonder if sometimes we misread members silence or absence. Cyberspace and online communication has some serious drawbacks including basing our perceptions largely on what we see on the screen and pure speculation.

I'm seeing plenty of new threads, and when I open them, I feel too out of the loop to have a clue who's talking about what and why. Sound encrytic? That's just how it feels when you haven't actively participated in a discussion. Coming in late, can be a minefield.

I'm wondering about the pros and cons of absence from the board. Can anyone relate to what I said and didn't say.

Sometimes it's good to be quiet, eh?

Peace,

daughter

 

[lovetoread]

Well hello there,daughter.

Missed you around these parts.

To answer your question,when I am away for a long time,its like you have to relearn everything,as its never the same.

Be well.

 

[Dillinger]

I know what you mean. I travel frequently and after being gone a week or so - without following the boards closely - I come back and am fairly lost as to what's going on. The board is so large now, the membership constantly growing, that it takes quite a large amount of time to even attempt to catch up.

So you just do the best you can. One thing I use a lot is the search function. I search on my own name to see if anyone mentioned me and if I might owe them a response. I search on the names of people that I know start threads, or participate in the type of threads, that have interested me in the past. I skim the first few pages to see if any of the titles of the threads might interest me.

Hope that helps?

 

[MunchinMark]

That can happen after a single night sometimes.

You're here for your own pleasure, so do whatever you please about it.

 

[daughter]

Dillinger

I do pretty much as you do.

Munch, I'm not worried about it. Just wonder how folks feel when they come to the forum and they feel clueless about the controversies and how they navigate through topics that clearly have histories.

I've stepped in a few minefields so I'm more cautious these days or so I hope.

Peace,

daughter

 

[RawHumor]

Daughter, you know that *I* know about minefields... but basically, I come here almost ever day and I STILL feel like an outsider with a lot of these threads.

I don't think it's anyone's fault, exactly, it's just how it is.

Know that you're far from alone in your feelings, daughter.

 

[Black_Bird]

Welcome back Daughter. How have you been doing?

 

[MidnightAngel]

I don't stay gone for too long, but still......As Mark said, it happens overnight sometimes.

I guess I pick thru the threads kinda carefully; especially lately. If a thread seems to be loaded in controversy or their seems to be an "undercurrent" of something, I just back out quietly.

 

[estevie]

Being out of the loop is a good thing..I like it here.

 

[Quiet_Cool]

There's a loop?
Woah...I really don't spend enough time here...

 

[alltherage]

I feel out of loop whether i am here everyday or not. I often have no idea what the latest ruckus is all about and mostly I don't care to very much. It is fun to come back after being away for a while and see who is raging against who. It is as though you've been dropped into some unchartered universe. It is kinda funny, actually.