I’m not sure if this is a blessing or a curse, but I’ve always been big on wiping the slate clean and starting from scratch when things get too boring or monotonous. That includes when things are running too smooth, as well. I’m bad about not leaving well enough alone. But I’m okay with that.

I like the challenge of starting back at square one. It’s a matter of rebuilding what you lost, but with the experience of having done it already.

Like playing a brand new video game for the first time vs starting over from the beginning after you’ve played all the way through. You’ve already figured out the lay of the land and all the quirks, so you’re going to take a different, probably more efficient approach. You can focus on the stuff you missed the first time or just enjoy the scenery while sidestepping traps and defeating enemies with ease the second time around.

Anything can be destroyed without notice. Whether it’s due to a house fire, freak weather event, malware or a failing hard drive, you just never know when you’re going to lose something. Or everything. Some of those situations are salvageable, but that’s not always the case. Sometimes you’re forced to start over. It’s not very fun under those circumstances.

Life is without warranties; all sales are final and there are no guarantees.

I’ve started looking at social media this way lately too. I used to feel such a sense of accomplishment and satisfaction seeing a big number of followers on my profile. It was something I would guard with my life. It’s proof that some people want to hear what I have to say. At least, enough to click a little “Follow” button and refrain from unfollowing. For the most part.

I have fun starting over though! I’ve always heard “you’re the summation of the five people you’re closest to,” or something like that. It’s no different online. Once you get a decent sized circle of mutuals, you start using the same slang and clicking the same links. You become part of the super organism that is Bluesky, or Mastodon or Threads. You sorta blend your sense of humor with theirs and the things you post are influenced by that circle, to a degree.

It’s like the pecking order in a way; there’s always a hierarchy, everyone has their own role and no matter which link you remove from the chain, a new one will be spliced in to fill the gap.

Starting over gives you a fresh perspective. It resets all the errors and negativity and you’ll probably take a different approach. Sometimes a big revision history is more junk than progress.