The Truth About Myself - Part 4 + The Latest Birthday Cake Chronicles Post

This is probably going to be the last post I make on this blog as a thirty-five year old man.

Mainly because in a couple of days, I'll be thirty-six.

And, I'll say this about turning 36.  It's been a hell of a ride so far.

Another year, soon to be another birthday cake.  And, as I've done with other years in the past (I did a whole series of birthday cake postings when I was celebrating the 4th anniversary of this blog in 2015), I'll take a look at some of the cool things that were popular during this time.

#1 SONG ON THE BILLBOARD CHARTS for WEEK OF 5/18/2017
"That's What I Like" - BRUNO MARS

You know, after having been disappointed with the #1 song on my birthday for the last few years, this is one that I can say that I enjoy.  It's a really great tune by Bruno, and it's one that I can say that I downloaded onto my iPod the moment I heard it.  Considering how the music industry has been bland as tofu the last decade, this is a bold statement for me to make!

#1 MOVIE AT THE BOX OFFICE FOR THE WEEK OF 5/18/2017
"Guardians of the Galaxy, Vol. 2"

No surprise here.  The first one was a huge hit (and really one of the few superhero like movies that I really liked).  I half expect the second one to make just as huge an impact even though as of right now, I have not yet seen it. 

I still have no clue what the highest rated television show is for the 2016/2017 season, as it's still running.  Time will tell, I suppose.

Okay, now that this is over with, it's also time to talk about Part 4 of the series that I have liked to call "The Truth About Myself".  And so far, I've come to the conclusion that my truths are unique.  Some may call it weird.  Others might call it fascinating.  Not many people would admit to being a person who potentially could be on the spectrum, is super sensitive to certain things, and who doesn't understand what true love is no matter how many times he listens to that P!nk song of the same name.

Well, here's another thing that I would like to share with you.  And while this blog post is meant for all of you to see - there are some people who I think will appreciate this a lot - and I think you probably know who you are as you read on.

You know that cool purple flower emoji that represents being thankful that people now have on their Facebook accounts?  Consider this to be a gigantic purple flower of sorts.

Which works great because purple is my favourite colour.

The truth that I want to reveal this week is all about gratitude.  Gratitude towards a group of people who have stuck by me for more than a decade and a half, and who have always been there for me even when I needed a kick in the backside or a friendly smile.

But here's the twist.  Would you believe that with a couple of exceptions, these are all people whom I've never met?  At least, not in person anyway.

These are all people who I have been fortunate enough to meet online.  And in many cases, I care more about my online pals than I do people in my own hometown!

Bizarro world, I know.  But you know what?  We're all a little bit bizarro every once in a while.  Some just show it more than others.  Like myself for instance.

Mind you, that's not to say that I don't have pals in my town.  I do like quite a few people in town.  One such pal that moved back to town recently has been my friend for almost thirty years now, and he is definitely one of my best friends.  Believe me, when it comes to friends that I interact with face to face, I'm extremely grateful and loyal to those who like me for me and who don't want to try and change me too much.

Because I haven't always been lucky in that regard.

I like to say that when it comes to the world, they might perceive me as being anti-social.  I don't see it as such.  I don't have my doors locked at all hours of the day, nor do I have an underground bunker that I hide in, nor do I purposely go out of my way to avoid people.  Well, unless I'm in a small room crammed with them.  Then my slight feelings of claustrophobia are ignited.

I do classify myself as being anti-society though.  Or at least the part of society that tries to morph you into what they deem "normal" or "cool" or "fashionable".  Most people spend their entire lives trying to be good enough for society to accept them.  I've never really wanted the desire to do that.  I just want people to like me for who I am without my feeling the need to change myself that much - if at all. 

And that's where my online pals come into play.  In the real world, people judge you based on a whole variety of things.  They might make fun of your weight.  They might trash your wardrobe (figuratively and literally).  They physically and emotionally abuse you because they are dared to by their peers.  They isolate you from the rest of the world because they deem you unfit to mingle with them.  And what's worse is that they do it sometimes without bothering to get to know who the other person in the middle of their crosshairs are because they are pressured by society to put down those who don't "measure up".

I think that's what attracted me to finding friendships via the Internet.  There's no pressure to be anybody that you aren't.  There's no pressure to wear the latest fashions or wear your hair a certain way, or be a size 2.  Heck, being online is the only way you could friend a complete stranger wearing just your underwear and one sock and not get arrested or slapped for it.

(And, yes...in a couple of cases, that's exactly what happened.  I won't mention which ones though.  That's unnecessary and creepy.)

DISCLAIMER:  Now, I will stress that at the time, I was an adult.  I certainly wouldn't recommend that any teenagers try this, as the Internet does have its share of dangerous people online.  In fact, if you are under the age of 18, I would strongly suggest against it. 

But it's amazing just how powerful online friendships can be.  You could literally be an ocean apart and still have a rock solid friendship.  It's amazing that once you get to know each other and start chatting away, you find that you can suddenly develop a lot more confidence in yourself (at least this was the case for me).  And while sometimes you can make some poor judgment choices in selecting friends (which I have now blocked on social media), in many cases, I've found that some of my best friends in the world have been made via a modem and a keyboard.  It's really cool to boast about having friends from British Columbia to Britain, and at some point I would hope that I have the opportunity to meet as many of them as I can so I can thank them for being my friend.

Of course, this does add a bit of trepidation about it.  Not necessarily about concerns for my own safety (though admittedly I have thought about it).  But more along the lines of...what if we meet in person and they are disappointed in who I really am?  Or what if I get disappointed about who they are?  It's a bit of a chance to take in hopes of not destroying the illusion that we have of each other...but it's a chance that I'd like to take.

Besides...the confidence that I get from both my online pals, and the few hometown pals I have will lead into the fifth and final truth.  And that will coincide with the 6th anniversary blog post!