Haha, true true. And i was driving just before earlier today and my phone just blew up with text messages completely out of the blue. Shocked me, and then i just said "Nup, can't answer you there." so i understand that feeling, and you've listed a lot of reasons why i shouldn't worry aswell. It's just my anxiety get's to me first, and i haven't exactly had the best experiences with people. I get let down. ALOT. So, i am used to jumping head first. If and when i do. I am usually quick to apologize and i just honestly explain to them and they're like "It's cool man" So, yeah. Just need to learn not to stress so much. But, life is cruel. And i mean you see those little green dots on Facebook and whatever all the time, and it's like "Dude, why the hell can't you talk to me right now?" There are times were people just flatout ignore me on purpose. And yes, there may be reasons. But, i can't just cut people off from my life. Gotta deal with it at this point.
As I've stated elsewhere on this forum (er... I think) online communication just isnt as simple as people seem to think. I've been on the Net since there's BEEN a Net, and that's one lesson I've learned many times over. Those little green dots, or other indications that someone is online? Ignore them. They dont have as much meaning as you think.
Like with the texting, you cant know why someone isnt responding. The machine tells you they are there. But that's just it: It's a simplistic system with zero intelligence. All it registers is that someone has connected to the server. That does not mean they are actually there. Someone's physical presense at the PC is not required for the connection to be maintained. Not to mention the nature of today's computers. They're designed for massive amounts of multitasking, AND serve as huge distractions from basically anything else.
If someone tries to contact me for instance when I'm online, even if I'm sitting right there, there's a really high chance that I wont even spot it. Chances are I'm in some game/program, or maybe using Youtube. And then there's a chance that I'm NOT there, off playing with the dog, or even out of the house entirely. I cant even count the number of times I come back home from the store or something, and find out that someone spent like 20 minutes trying to talk at me. The machine has no idea that I'm not there, so the only option is for that person to figure it out themselves. But it's so easy NOT to figure it out. Instinctually, we feel that we're simply being ignored in that situation. Words are put out there, no response is given... it's a natural response.
My point is, long distance communication of ANY sort just isnt so simple. If you're not physically right there with someone, you cannot, I repeat, *cannot* know for sure that you're being ignored, period.
However, your thoughts on the whole thing are the correct attitude for dealing with it. Frustrated you are, but as you said, you cant just cut people off. That's the correct response. Kudos to you for that.
If you *really* want to know what's going on, the only way to do that is to engage them directly. No tech between you. And ask directly about it. Most people have busy lives and are as easily distracted as a cat, and chances are, the response will fall into one or both of those two things. Keep that in mind as you try to deal with the frustration.
Dont get me wrong: It's certainly possible for someone to be a jerk towards you. But even in that case, you cant quite know the situation. Maybe they're going through depression and stress... maybe some bad event has happened. Who knows? Only they do... unless they tell you. I know I can act like a total snot towards basically everyone if I'm in a bad mood or just plain stressed out. Or in alot of pain. Doesnt mean I have any dislike for whoever I'm snapping at.
Anyway, I hope you can feel better about it. You can always feel free to come to the forum here and vent a bit, if you need to. This place is good for that. Usually.
