Going online and off the wagon to find love

Most people live a very mundane periodic Groundhog Day existence. That's why so many find ways to escape. They can range from going on vacation, getting drunk/high, taking workshops/seminars, to going online; these are just various forms of spicing up their lives.

I recently had a discussion with a friend about the popularity of Eckhart Tolle, Oprah, self-improvement, wealth-building seminars, seduction workshops, to reading blogs like this one. This goes back to our inherent biological drive for novelty, to find something new, to be different, and to be that special unique snowflake. Day in and day out, most of us pretty much repeat the same activities/tasks everyday. On the one hand, we find comfort in doing the habitual, but on the other, we also have this deep seated yearning for something different, and may be it's better. Are there more to life than just this?!

Some seek answers in spirituality, others in religions, and many more in certain sets of beliefs. If I can trace this phenomenon to one thing, it's another of our biological drive, that we are, after all, pack/herd animals. So we often participate what is already out there rather than creating something unique. That's why, at a fundamental level, almost all activities in life are about popularity, winning the approval of the group. And for many people, when they have failed to win that approval, whether the love that one desired to being the popular person that everyone talks about, they often turn to other ways to fulfill that need. Many engage in chemical means of escaping, e.g. alcohol, narcotics,... to go into state that is free from the current reality and to absolve responsibilities from one's behaviors and conduct. This is why women drink to have fun and of course, to hook up with random strangers. Almost every culture has a way of allowing this: alcohol, smoking, dances,...

What drove me to blog about this was another article about how people are now finding love online. Then I thought, being online, this activity is yet another way for people to escape. This is why it's proliferating so quickly. So instead of dragging ourselves to go out, people are getting online to get their fixes. This would include finding that special someone. Someone who will appreciate us, someone who gets us, someone who we can relate to and have this amazing connection with.

The reality is that we are just satisfying two biological needs. Our desires to be popular, to seek approval, and for something new, something different.