[HJCotW Spacemonkey]

This is an uncharacteristically optimistic and nice thread from me, so hold onto your hats.

I have been meaning, for quite some time, to get in touch with a load of old friends, and generally touch base with people I just don't speak to anymore. A few of you will know my views on Facebook - I only add people I actually know, and would consider (or at least would have considered) pretty good friends. I've had all manner of friend requests from people I was in high school or primary school with that I've rejected as, well, I never really knew them or cared what they were up to then, so why would 15 years make a difference? Similarly, I have regular culls of people that annoy me with their asinine (or, more often, copy/paste) status updates. As such, my friends list is at a trim 254, and, of those, I see or speak to many of them fairly regularly.

Anyway, just before K, I finally got my arse in gear and sent out a load of messages - probably about 80 or 90 - to people from high school, primary school, college, university friends that have moved far away, old colleagues, all kinds of people. And, over the last week, I've had all kinds of responses.

I'm currently working my way through over forty replies. I'm speaking to people I haven't been in touch with for almost twenty years. Sometimes it's just been a few lines to say hello, and keep a tiny flame of an acquaintance alive, and sometimes it's a whole re-opening of a good friendship. I'll be meeting up with some people that I was very good friends with, and haven't seen in years, in the next few weeks, and, hopefully, we'll be able to do it regularly.

So often we share our lives with people who are incredibly important to us one year, and practically forgotten the next. In years past, we had to really try if we wanted to stay in touch with people. Ironically, now it's so much easier, people bother less. Facebook, Twitter and so on make us feel as if we're always in contact with everyone due to updates and photos, but they should supplement, rather than replace our interactions.

We don't use our social media platforms, for the most part, for their intended purpose, but we should. I've found how rewarding it can be when you do, and just wanted to encourage others to maybe give it a go too. After all, we all know how much of a misanthrope I am, and I've gotten something out of it, which means, I imagine, pretty much anyone can. And, as most of you are infinitely nicer than I am, and like people an exponential amount more, I'm sure that you'll reconnect with a hell of a lot of your past that you thought was forgotten. Which is nice.

Summary: Use Facebook properly, not just for awful updates.

MoT
HJCotW

[Joinee Mum White]

Well said, that man!
I do use Face book for playing daft games to amuse myself, but I love it for keeping in touch with my kids. It will never replace phonecalls and seeing them for real, but it does keep me up to speed with what is going on.
I have got properly back in touch with a few people I had pretty much lost contact with, (and I am a person who does not lose touch easily). It is brilliant for if you lose someone's address or phone number.

Good for you Sean - you're not nearly as grumpy as you make out! Mum White xxx

[Captain K]

Joinee Mum White, on 11 December 2011 - 12:46 AM, said:

Good for you Sean - you're not nearly as grumpy as you make out! Mum White xxx

And *that* is why Waura wubs him.

[Joinee Varwell]

That's great Sean. A great idea to contact so many people like that. I agree, Facebook is at its best (all a relative term for Facebook) when it's used for keeping in touch with people as it is set up so well to do so. Same with Google+ in a way, though it can easily do so much more than Facebook.

I take a different view on Twitter, though. I use itor keeping in touch with friends, for instance, because it's too open, short and snappy for that. It's much more the home of the interesting thought, the viral, the snappy breaking news item or the witty quip.

Social media does have to be social, though, I agree. Though how you define "social" is a whole other kettle of fish...