Peculiar end to my Facebook saga: After trying unsuccessfully to quit, numerous times over the years since 2007, I was unceremoniously banished on December 24, 2024. They won’t tell me why other than that they can’t confirm my identity. Well, that’s a chuckle, because, I can’t, really, either! Who am I? OK, well I mostly know. Eric Din. Eric Roy Dinwiddie. Same same.
But FB. I could go further with the effort to get back in, but nah. I wasted some time there, as one does. It’s a time-wasting engine, designed to suck your energy oh and yes they are ruining society in myriad ways. Bye bye. So the 1500 or so people who I was friends with there, they can still find me if they want to, and anyway FB wasn’t showing most of them my posts anymore, which was frustrating. If I shared a cat photo it would get all sorts of likes and loves and awwws, but post a new song and like, two, three people respond. I get it, I prefer cats too. But how much is indifference from my pals, and how much is FB simply not showing the Bandcamp or other external links to them? No way to know, and weeds grow in the mind.
I have less weeds in the absence of all that.
Twitter, I quit that venue the day whatshisbutt took over and called it “X,” I mean, come on, the worst rebrand since New Coke, and as much a failure. Everyone should quit but they won’t cos I don’t know why. I guess the more followers one has there, the harder to leave, and I get that.
So now this blog is a tree falling in the woods. I wonder if anyone sees it. I could look at the stats but I don’t care that much. I’ve become indifferent to indifference. I feel at peace with myself and my work and my art and my cats and the earth.
Last year saw some monumental disappointments, near and far from me. My longtime friend and more recent career coach died by his own hand, a little more than one year ago, and that’s still very hard for me to even comprehend. His choice, he rests in peace, no judgement here, but I do wish he had chosen to stay. Then the Nov. 5 debacle to end all debacles. And right now not one but two of my dear old friends are dealing with cancer, and I pray for their victories and health.
What does it all add up to here for me on this Thursday morning with a little welcome rain approaching this weekend? Gratitude. For this moment and all the moments. For all the moments with each of the aforementioned friends, which I remember so vividly. I have in this life tried to spend my time with people who savor life and music and art and tend to treat themselves and others with love and respect. And the mind in its vastness can hold so many memories and some in startling detail.
60, I’ll be 60 soon. With some amount of surprise, I now feel that’s an accomplishment in itself. I like the number, I like the age, so much more than I had earlier expected to, somehow. I keep my memories with me, they are wealth. Even the hard ones, all gifts. And in some contrast to the state of the world, my own life has been full of luck and good work and good play and wonder and joy over these recent years. We never know when something will go awry and I am grateful for every good moment.
This song, which went live in the streaming worldly world today, was a nice step in my journey, dealing with some of the above.