INSTANT_RESPONSE

LOG_DATE: [2025-12-28] | CATEGORY: SOCIAL_GLITCH | STATUS: AVAILABLE

> INITIATING PROTOCOL: ZERO_LATENCY
> RULE: If a message arrives, reply within 60 seconds.
> EXCEPTIONS: None (Even during bathroom breaks).

// THE PROBLEM WITH GHOSTING

I am a "Bad Texter." I see a message, mentally reply "Haha," and then forget to type it for 3 weeks. Friends hate this. They think I hate them. Actually, I just hate the interruption. So, I swung the pendulum to the other side. Radical Availability.

// THE FLOOD (09:00 - 12:00)

Hey, you free?

Yes, I am! What's up?

Latency: 0m 12s

Cool, just wanted to ask if you saw that movie...

Not yet! Is it good?

Latency: 0m 08s

The Trap: Usually, a 2-hour delay kills a boring conversation. By replying instantly, I signaled: "I Am Here. Talk To Me." Conversations that should have been 2 texts became 40 texts. I was trapped in 5 simultaneous mediocre chats about nothing.

// THE INTERRUPTION HELL (WORK HOURS)

I tried to work. Ding. "Did you see that reel?" -> "LOL yes." Ding. "Project update?" -> "On it." Ding. "OTP is 4532." -> "Thanks." I couldn't finish a single thought. My brain was fragmented into 30-second chunks. I felt like a customer support agent for my own life. Productivity: 0. I wrote 3 sentences in 4 hours.

// THE POWER DYNAMIC

Whoa, you're replying fast today. Everything ok? Laid off?

This hurt. When you reply fast, people assume your time is cheap. "He's not busy. He's just sitting by the phone." Slow replies signal Status ("I am busy/important"). Instant replies signal Desperation ("Please validate me"). I was being incredibly polite, but I lost respect.

// THE EVENING CRASH

By 8 PM, I was mentally fried. I had typed 2,000 words, but said nothing of value. I had pleased everyone but myself. The phone felt like a leash.

// CONCLUSION

We delay texts for a reason. It's a boundary. "I will process this information when I am ready, not when you send it." Removing that boundary destroyed my agency. Ghosting is rude. But "Asynchronous Communication" is survival. I will go back to replying... eventually.