LJ Idol Week #21b - "Imaginary Friend"

[prog_schlock]

This is my second entry for Week #21 of therealljidol.

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Joey and Me

We are what we pretend to be, so we must be careful about what we pretend to be. ~ Kurt Vonnegut

I'm my own imaginary friend.

Literally. In the classic sense of "literally."

Joey Michaels started out in 2000 as a joke - an extension of a silly online improvised sketch at a now

Comments

[ext_3620796]

Parts of me relate to this on several levels. I'm not sure which parts. I've been so many different versions of me that I've lost track. But "I" like this a lot. So make of that what you will. :-)

[prog_schlock]

I completely get what you're saying here - there's enough facets of all of us that some facets are, to extend this metaphor, catch a glint of light and some aren't.

Thank you for reading and commenting!

[kathrynrose]

Facets. Just sometimes the light shines brighter on one than the others.

I changed my name to Kate because I had hated my name so much, and I liked the me I was online better than the me I was in the "real" world.

[prog_schlock]

I just borrowed your facets metaphor to respond to the first comment on this entry.

I am fascinated that you changed your real name to your chosen name. That's brilliant. Sometimes we just have the wrong name and another name suits us better. I have a similar situation in that, while I'm comfortable with my name, the world has decided I have a slightly different name and everyone calls me that instead. I don't encourage it, but I guess I'm this alternate name in people's heads. Life!

Thank you for reading and commenting!

[halfshellvenus]

Despite how people go on about "On the Internet, nobody knows you're a dog" and projections of persona vs. real persona... there are many times where I feel I am seeing the "truer" person online that others around them in RL might. Seeing into them rather than the surface.

And yes, you can shape your online persona to be whatever you want, but in a blogging site... it's just easier to be more like yourself.

This is where it can be a surprise when people on my friends-list "announce" that they're unattractive-- unpretty, terribly overweight, what-have-you in typical social conventions. If this is someone that I know to be a beautiful person inside, I'm going to assume that the outside matches. And really, the important part? IS beautiful. Helping them to see that is my job, as a friend.

I think Peking Opera Joey is my favorite, above. Though damn, the Jacket-Detail on rock-star Joey is really good. I don't have the mousing to do THAT kind of work. :D

[prog_schlock]

I drew that years ago and it just fit well into the entry. I'm proud of the jacket detail so I'm glad you mentioned that!

Yeah, its easier to let my insides out online - and easier to express what I'm actually thinking because I have some time to ponder it before I put words to it online. So many social barriers to speaking truth in reality!

Thank you for reading and commenting!

[whipchick]

Peking Opera Joey is pretty awesome :)

I kept an anonymous blog for about two years, and met a couple readers in person. It was a fascinating experience, balancing identities!

[prog_schlock]

Yeah, the first time I met "online people" was kind of mind blowing because everyone was and wasn't like they were online. Its like when friends from different periods/parts of your life meet each other and suddenly you realize you've been two slightly different people around the different friends. But, like, when you meet online people, one of those "friends from another part of your life" is who they really are and one is who they are online.

Thank you for reading and commenting!

[murielle]

Love this!

As a child I didn't have imaginary friends. I'm making up for it now. :-)

In a way, aren't all online friends imaginary friends? This is where I would wink...knowingly.

[prog_schlock]

You know, this is exactly right. In some ways, the words on the screen that constitute online friends are actually more real than real people, if that quantum physics link is to be trusted. :D

Thanks for reading this one too!