The Vine

Here’s a bit of “social” web humor courtesy of Dan Piraro, aka Bizarro.

I saw this and laughed at the irony, then realized it’s closer to truth than I care to admit.

Somewhere along the way, the ease of digital interaction has made a simple phone call seem invasive, and a drop-in visit borderline stalking. For crying out loud, you can now use sites like Avoidr to see where your ‘not-friends’ are hanging out—so you can steer clear of them.

And so we applaud GOOD Magazine’s Candy Chang for creating a simple device that helps overcome this tendency and brings people back together.

Candy’s Neighbor Doorknob Hanger is a low-tech means of sharing resources with the people around you, whether offering or requesting. Cut out the card, hang it on your front door, and swap stuff.

Ostensibly it’s a non-intrusive way of saying, “Can I borrow…” or “If you ever need…”.

Its real purpose, I think, is deeper than that. It’s an ice-breaker for human contact.

Sad that we should need one.