Remote Coworking and Gratitude for Technology

The view from here.

It is often the unexpected that makes us take stock of things. Last week, I broke my ankle. Right, not exactly in the plan. Since then, I have noticed and been thankful for a number of things.
Although it means that driving and walking are out of the question for the moment, two working arms and access to technology has allowed me to keep working, from my couch, foot hoisted in the air to reduce swelling.
What I'm finding most comforting is the friends that actually feel nearby. A simple change to my "status" in my Gmail and my facebook accounts and many of my friends now know what's up with my life and what's important. It's a feature I sometimes find mundane, but have recently found more interesting as both I and my friends use the feature more regularly. The couch just doesn't feel as isolated with those little green dots next to my friends on gmail. Friends in Atlanta, Portland, Chicago and San Francisco are just a button click away. Even if we never "talk" via email or IM, I think of them and somehow feel closer by the mere presence of their name and their little green dot. In the morning I see a colleague in the UK, and friends on the east coast log in. As the day goes by, those on the west coast become more active. Later at night, we get to see who the real geeks are (present company included) by who's online late at night.
Facebook, though the applications are way too vast for my taste, also brings a closeness to my own circle of friends at this time of some isolation.
I know these social networking opportunities have been around for awhile. Normally I prefer to meet my friends ITRW (in the real world), but for now, on my couch, alone, pumping ibuprofen every few hours, those little green dots sure do make me feel supported and surrounded by the important people in my life. :-)