New Goal: Connect Like Kramer

This 30-second sequence from the 90s TV show Seinfeld brings me back to life every time I watch it.

The clip follows Seinfeld's neighbour Kramer (actor Michael Richards) as he fails to get a seat on the subway.

It's got a lot to say about being human and being alive.

Here are my 5 main thoughts.

1. It's pure physical storytelling. There are no actual words spoken. In fact, it's completely non-verbal until the very end of the sequence. The very antithesis of notification icons and sounds, AI summaries, chat windows, alerts, screens. It's about balance, space, shape, senses, strength, emotion - 100% human.
2. You can't just ask the AI to make you one just like it because it's incredibly hard to recreate. This kind of spectacle can only be created by a combination of people who have practiced hard-to-master skills for a very long time.
3. The rhythm does not miss a beat. Everything is breathtakingly perfectly in sync. It's digital in its precision but it's made of flesh and blood actors. It stays on time even when the tempo changes dramatically at the end as he slowly squeezes his way into the only available space.
4. I see it as a 'comedy system' composed of multiple parts like a complex piece of machinery. Yes, Kramer is central and gets all the focus. But the other actors hit their marks perfectly, precisely choreographed to block him at just the right moment and heighten his failure to find a (comfortable) seat.
5. It completely loses all impact when it's broken down into isolated data points. You can't just read this breakdown to experience it - Kramer enters the subway in a crowd, two people beat him to a corner seat, a man pushes him away, he grabs a support for balance etc. Not funny at all. To take it apart kills it. You have to ride the journey end to end, watch the whole thing.

I want to Connect Like Kramer as I make my way through the world.

I want to experience, to touch, to interact, to care, to win, to lose.

To break out of digital worlds trapped behind glass rectangles and leave the paths dictated by algorithms.

To be part of something larger than myself.

To be offline with every sense online.