Small World... Literally

How often do you start talking to someone and come to find out that you just happen to know their brother’s girlfriend’s roommate’s parent’s neighbor’s kid’s teacher’s husband? You connect all of the million little dots and then exclaim, “omg… small world!” This seems to have become a common occurrence. Which begs the question: Is it really a small world? Or has technology and the convenience of travel given us the ability to hold the world in the palm of our hands (almost quite literally with an iphone)?

For example, I posted something on my church website and got a response from a random girl who doesn’t live too far from me here in Portland. In preparation for meeting up with her later this week, I checked her profile on Facebook (typical). I saw that we have several mutual friends and that she “likes” Restoration Gateway. So I emailed her back, confessed that I FBSed (Facebook Stalked) her, and told her about my connection to Restoration Gateway. To which she responded… “omg, small world!” Maybe. But maybe the fact that a) traveling to Uganda has become somewhat trendy, and b) Facebook made all of the relationship connections for me just means that the likelihood of me meeting someone in Portland who knows my aunt and uncle in Uganda isn’t that far-fetched.

Another example, a couple who is friends of my family moved from Waco to Portland about a year ago. Neither of them went to undergrad at Baylor, but I just happened to be in the same sorority pledge class as the woman’s youngest sister. And my sister was roommates with the woman’s brother’s wife. And I was roommates with my sister’s roommate’s sister. Did you get that? And now 8 years later, I’m friends with said sister-in-law since we both live in Portland. Small world? Nope, that’s just Baylor for you. We’re all connected somehow.

So next time you meet someone who just happens to know your mom’s best friend from high school’s ex-husband’s coworker’s daughter’s roommate’s dog’s girlfriend’s owner’s hairdresser’s niece… just remember the world is getting smaller and smaller every day. We’re able to connect and network with more people now than ever before. We may each literally be 5 degrees from Kevin Bacon, or at least his coworker’s son’s college roommate. Small world!

Literally…

Another word that is used too often in conversation and most of the time makes no sense is “literally.” Sometimes I don’t think people understand what that word means. This weekend I heard a college girl at a restaurant complaining to her parents about her roommates: “They are like so annoying, like so totally loud that I like literally wanted to go in their room and kill them.” Really? Because if you literally wanted to kill them then I think you need to be checked into a psychiatric clinic asap. And if you literally killed them then you’re about to be wearing some nice shiny handcuffs.

I can’t help but laugh when I hear people say things like:

- “I literally cried my eyes out.” Really? Then what are those things you’re looking at me with?

- “I’ve been studying so much that my brain is literally about to explode.” Really? You must not be studying neuroscience because I don’t think that’s physically possible.

- “That is literally the dumbest thing I’ve ever heard.” Really? Have you been keeping a list with ratings of dumb things you’ve heard throughout your lifetime?

Anyway, I literally don’t know how many times I hear people misuse the word literally, but if they literally can’t stop it then I literally might go crazy.