before people celebrate me too much wrt recent shit i inserted myself into, i also think it's useful to have a discussion about irony and jokes; specifically, we can all try to keep in mind that shit can and will be misused. and also that on the internet, via text-based communication, we lose the nuance of tone of voice, facial expression, etc. which means it's even easier for a joke to be read straight.
i also think it's worth keeping in mind that, while i love dark humor as a coping mechanism, there can always be too much of a good thing. if a thick layer of irony and jokes is keeping you from connecting with others, it's a bad thing. if you feel like you can only interact with others by being The Jokes Person, that's also a bad thing.
humor is often a defense mechanism in that it's how we keep from feeling vulnerable - but we can only make true connections while being vulnerable.
so yeah, if you feel like you have to cw for being sincere, i would say (in all my armchair fuckin quarterback glory) that maybe it's time to take a step back, recalibrate, and examine how you're doing. sincerity is how we connect with others on a fundamental level. sincerity is recognizing your gestalt whole, not just one aspect of yourself - the Jokes, for example - connecting to someone else's one aspect.
and yeah, i struggle with this shit, too.
but also honestly i've seen a lot of people who cloak themselves in irony, in jokes, in shitposts, and then in the rare moments of sincerity talk about how they feel disconnected, unsatisfied, and lonely - and exhausted because they feel like they must be "on stage" doing their bit to be loved.
humor is sometimes a way to feel safe. but you can sometimes be, in essence, too safe.
opening yourself up and being vulnerable is fucking terrifying.
but it's also worth doing.
in the words of Carrie Fisher, drowned in moonlight, strangled by her own bra -
be afraid, but do it anyway.
