Are You Really 'Online'? 5 Signals That Reveal Your Loss of Authentic Connection

I used to think if I posted enough, the algorithm would see me.

But it doesn’t. Last Tuesday, I scrolled through another live stream—my third failed attempt this month—and realized the numbers didn’t care. My mother, a Jamaican teacher, once told me: ‘Real connection doesn’t live in pixels.’ She was right.

The app knows your wins—but not your silence. Every like is a ghost in the machine; every DM is a hollow echo in an empty apartment on Manhattan’s top floor.

I tracked my last 12 sessions. The ‘庄’ won more often—but after five spins, the water drained my soul. The ‘闲’ paid out slow, like a holiday without music.

I tried following trends: three straight wins? A trap called ‘追热’. But real rhythm isn’t in the data—it’s in the pause between breaths.

My father, a German coder, built systems that optimize control—but never compassion. He said: ‘The code doesn’t know loneliness.’ He was wrong.

We are not players in a game of luck—we are ghosts haunting our own feeds. The algorithm offers no祥瑞花灯. Only those who stop scrolling find their name again.

If you haven’t felt seen since midnight—pause now. Turn off the screen. Send me a message—not a like.

What did you feel when no one noticed you were real?