About two weeks ago, on an application called Nextdoor.com which is intended to help communities knit together, I put out a notice that I was willing to organize a critique group for aspiring writers in the area. I received replies from several interested parties. After I’d received a number of them, I announced the first meeting of the group to be at 4:00 PM today, at my home, and that I would provide coffee, tea, bottled water, and snacks of various kinds.
About half those who had expressed interest said they would attend. Accordingly, I did a lot of cleaning and tidying-up, bought some very nice snacks, and generally made everything ready for the arrival of the other attendees.
A few minutes ago I received the last of the cancellations. Not one of the “interested parties” who said they would attend is coming. Most gave no reason for their cancellation.
“They” say that no good deed goes unpunished. I think I’ve just had a demonstration.
5 comments:
The Nextdoor app is actually kinda useful, in limited areas. "Lost Dog", comes to mind, as does "Free Kittens". I pick up the odd bit of handyman work through it. The neighborhoods are defined to an extent that I suggest it as a guide to furriners moving into a neighborhood, particularly for foreign students moving to Houston and looking for cheap lodging. The kitten to crime ratio is useful.
When my daughter tries to organize parties of people she knows, many won't respond, and some just don't show. We call the wrathful attitude during her clean up and preparation for an event as "Party Daughter."
Something must be in the national water. People won't commit to much, and having committed won't follow through. I find it discouraging and lamentable.
Keep in mind these may have been 'wanna-be' writers. They LIKED the idea of a writers' group, they just weren't prepared for the actuality.
Smartphones are finishing what the automobile began - the loss of the extended family and the physical sense of place. We become a consequence free game that can be rebooted. With no ties in, or to, reality, why keep promises that are just virtual?
Good point. I once lived in N. Virginia and after eight years of residence in a particular area went to dinner at a local restaurant. It was full of people and only about 200 yards from my house as the crow flies. I was depressed to see that I did not know one person in the room. I had one neighbor with whom I had any kind of normal, daily interaction. For the rest, with rare exceptions, it was either a girl friend or work friends who were the mainstays of my "community." Urban life sucks the life out of you and requires effort to go somewhere to find a community of some kind.
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