How can you be alienated without first having been connected?

"Don't be reconciled. Turn off your television sets," Peterson said, "cash in your life insurance, indulge in a mindless optimism. Visit girls at dusk. Play the guitar. How can you be alienated without first having been connected? Think back and remember how it was."
A man on the floor in front of Peterson was waving a piece of cardboard on which something threatening was written but Peterson ignored him and concentrated on the camera with the little red light. The little red light jumped from camera to camera in an attempt to throw him off balance but Peterson was too smart for it and followed wherever it went.
"My mother was a royal virgin," Peterson said, "and my father a shower of gold. My childhood was pastoral and energetic and rich in experiences which developed my character. As a young man I was noble in reason, infinite in faculty, in form express and admirable, and in apprehension." Peterson went on and on and although he was, in a sense, lying, in a sense he was not.

Excerpt from "Shower of Gold" by Donald Barthelme, 1963. Donald Barthelme was a short story writer and novelist who dealt with themes of absurdity, existentialism, and postmodernism. This little gem is one of my favorite stories of all time, and yet I've found that this man's work remains largely obscure and unknown - even among my literary geek friends and avid readers.

You can read the full text online here, if you're interested. I hope you enjoy it as much as I have!