Well it sounds kind of stupid but in a way the “never actually connected” part was also comfortable. Like you could just blend in, it was never really about who you are, just about the topics. You could participate while simultaneously blending in with the mass of people around you, and nobody cared about you really. And thaz was nice. That’s one of the things which separated Reddit from other forums.

Not that I don’t also love a sense of community where people recognise each other personally more! I sure hope we can foster that on here. I feel like that’s one of the main strengths of the fediverse.