March 6, 2018 - News Post

Ah, friendship.

Yesterday, I decided to step away from my desk and head to a friend’s house. It was the first time in weeks I had done anything remotely social. Naturally, I brought my laptop, and the two of us worked the whole time.

I’ve hung out like this for years with dozens of people. I’ll make a friend, hang out once or twice, and then ask what they like to do on the computer. Within days, our friendship molds into two people staring at their laptops without talking to one another. Eventually, one of us moves away, and the cycle continues.

This isn’t a complaint. I enjoy working alongside people. It makes sense that a lot of the friends I make share “computers” as a hobby. Yesterday, I spent 4 hours taking the first hour of a video tutorial. I exchanged only a few sentences with the guy whose house I had visited. It was productive and fun for everyone involved. You should’ve been there (for all I know, you were... I spent a lot of time staring at my screen).

I don’t work alongside everyone I meet, and I don't ignore everyone by working on a laptop. I simply do this to a disproportionately large percentage of the people I consider friends. That's all.

I'm not sure if I seek these people out or if it's the other way around. But I do know that I can’t be the only person who does this. You do this too, right? Right?!?

I'm sure you do. You're probably ignoring someone in the room right now.

That's what I'd be doing if we were in the same room.

-Jeff