So I joined Twitter last year. At first, it was more like stopping by that new restaurant in town that everyone’s been talking about; you walk by several times, and maybe even peek in the windows. But then there’s that day when you finally give in and walk inside. You look at the menu. It’s simple, but it’s got that one dish you’ve heard so much about. Just as you walk in the door, you realize that a few friends are there, and after trying the signature dish, you become a regular. Before long, the waitors know your name. They call you Tuesday as a joke, because that’s the day you always come for your usual. Months go by, and you love being Tuesday. It’s your thing, and you can now join in the conversation around the water cooler at work about this great place.
Then it starts to happen — the flavors and atmosphere that were once so hip, so enticing, slowly become less interesting. Maybe even bland. You still like it, but Tuesdays just don’t have the spark they used to. This is where I am now with Twitter. I still love it, don’t get me wrong. But I am beginning to become disenchanted with it. My new social media avenue is a site called Tumblr. It’s like Twitter unleashed; you can follow other people, and they can follow you. What’s more, you can post links, pictures, quotes, audio, video…just about anything you could possibly want to post. It’s like a blog with a pulse, and a community. I see it as a 2.0-esque merging of Twitter and blogs. There is a feed of followers, yet the content looks like blog posts in that it includes a variety of media. You can even call in on your phone and leave an audio post, should some sort of brilliance strike you while you’re away from the computer. Users can also install themes, both free and for charge. These themes are more like the blogger themes made available on WordPress and Blogspot. Twitter keeps it basic, and that’s certainly part of its allure; as a design geek, though, I like being able to customize my site a bit more, and to edit HTML should I decide to. I literally joined it this past week, so I’m still getting used to it, but I already love it. Whether I’ll maintain it as much as I did Twitter remains to be seen. For now, though, I’m Tuesday again. And I like it.
Hey!
I love the simile you use, comparing Twitter to a restaurant. It makes it simple for anyone not familiar with it to understand. I only started my Twitter account last week, so I’m still in that first stage you mentioned. I just walked in, and I love the atmosphere.
Tumblr sounds interesting too though. I love the thought of being able to leave audio posts, because I always think of things I’d like to add to material I’ve written at inopportune times.