The Internet is a second world. It hovers, unseen, above the parent universe to which its physics and geography have no relation, yet from which it derives its entire content.

(Now, of course, in physical terms, most of the Internet is actually under you, but we "upload" to it, and "download" from it, so hovering is the implied metaphor.)

Would my life be easier offline? Sure. I'd have three or four more hours in my day, I might have normal interpersonal relationships, and I'd definitely be in better physical shape.

But I get to be here as this new world cools from its primeval fires. I get to watch and, in some small way, participate in the infancy of a radical new society. Life is changing, and I get to be here in the middle of it.