Status Update

The notion of the profile pic has also changed the way we use the shutter.

The art of journaling and introspective self-exploration has lost its meaning. No longer are these explorations private and personal, kept locked away and permanently inked into journal pages. They are tweeted, updated, and blogged openly for the world to see. We all know the "oversharers"; the SNS junkies who feel the need to tell their 430 "friends" every little thing they do, say, or feel. Each person utilizes the status update in a different way. Some clutter news feeds with emotional diarrhea, news of adopting virtual cows, or as simple heartbeats to say I'm here. And that, to me, is what the social networking world has become — a way to not only keep our fingers on the pulses of our friends, but a virtual heart monitor. One that bleeps along with each tweet, update, or blog post. While I share my status once or twice daily, I try to keep it mysterious and less conspicuous so that it remains a reminder to myself of feelings felt, or moments that I wanted to document in snippets of 140 words or less as unforgettable.

I have been in the SNS scene for a long time now, but have decided to begin a list of all of my FB status updates from the very beginning and in some way document the transitions between each bleep.

I also realized that Facebook and Twitter were the reasons that I started to abandon the blog. They serve as an easier way to tell my story; keep in touch with friends and family and act as personal yet permanent reminders of landmarks of my life. 

The following blog entries will reflect my status updates in clusters of times and places. They are a 140 word or less collections of reflections and observations and will also serve as a personal social commentary on how I use social networking to document my life. I am excited to see how it will evolve, and hope it entices my readers to consider their own views of the way that social networking has molded our relationships, influenced our thought processes, and provided us all a way to share that past generations never got the chance to do before.

Please comment below on how and why you use social networking sites like Facebook and Twitter in your day-to-day life.