Let me ask you all (ya’ll) a question – how many friends do you have on Facebook? How many of those people are actual friends that you know, care about “what’s on their mind”, and want to converse with? How about Twitter? Do you strive to have more followers? Do you follow everyone who follows you? How often do you get to read all the tweets in your Twitterstream?
We’ve created a monster.
Inspired by an article in the latest issued of Wired he read on the flight to LA this week, our friend Tyler just announced he had cut his Facebook friends list back from more than 2,000 to around 300 total. The article, by Clive Thompson (In Praise of Online Obscurity), analyzes the way we have turned social networking into something very unsocial. No longer are we using social networking as a means of fostering relationships with people we actually care about – we’re using it to create new relationships with people (and “reconnect” with people from our past) and quite frankly, we can’t keep up with it. We’re faced with countless hurdles to jump to maintain these relationships, weeding through updates from networking contacts we barely know, distant friends from our childhood, friends of friends and ex-boyfriends. All people who, the second you click accept, can see all your info, as well. As Thompson points out, when your list gets too big, social networking is no longer a possibility. Social networking starts to break down.
Nowadays, people use Facebook as a means to notifying their friends about developments in their life (and granted, some stuff we could care less about – “Makin’ quesadillas tonight!” – I’m guilty of that.) In the last week I found out that I missed news from two of my good friends because their updates were lost in my enormous feed. One of my friends adopted a rescue puppy and the other one got engaged. Both are things I actually would have liked to know, but because of all the noise in my feed, I didn’t.
So what was the result of Tyler’s massacre on his friends list? A list of status updates that he – SHOCK! – actually cares about. Imagine truly wanting to read each and every status update on your list, instead of clicking “Hide” on that person you added, but only because you had 30 friends in common, all of whom are people you met at conferences. Imagine not having to worry that you’re missing something important, funny or interesting because your feed is filled with information and people that honestly, you could care less about.
Of course, this is just my opinion.
Thompson emphasizes the value in obscurity – of keeping your network small and manageable, because once it grows to a certain size, the conversation dissipates. It becomes silent. Mark Zuckerberg famously declared at the recent Crunchie Awards that living publicly and having minimal online privacy is “the social norm, now.” I disagree. Living a public life is not something everyone should be obligated to do, just because they want to use social networking to keep in touch with friends. Now, online privacy is an entirely separate issue as far as I’m concerned (albeit a very, very important one, I have quite a bit to say about this what with having my identity stolen online several times). But aside from the security aspect, I can’t help but agree with Thompson’s stance on online obscurity – how on Earth are we expected to keep up genuine relationships with 3,000 of our closest friends? It’s just not possible. Not unless you give up your job, your family, your hobbies, eating and sleeping. And then what would you have left to talk about, anyway?
In a way, it’s just like high school again – one big popularity contest. So many people striving to be the next Gary Vaynerchuk, the next “online celeb” who millions turn to for entertainment and advice. First of all, this isn’t realistic. That kind of fame is just not feasible for most of us. And whatever happened to good old human relationships – conversations – not soapboxing?
I’m not suggesting everyone go on an “unfriend-ing” rampage or to stop trying to gain followers, I suppose it depends on the purpose of that particular network, but I do think that if you plan on using social networking as a tool to strengthening relationships, you might want to scale back or segregate your relationships by dividing them on different networks (LinkedIn, for example). I know many are of the opinion that in order to create a successful business relationship, you have to first start with a personal relationship, and to some extent, I agree. But you’ve got to make it genuine. Adding me as one of your 7,000 friends on Facebook does not make me feel like I am getting in a close, personal, trusting relationship with you to where I would ever want to enter a business partnership with you. The same way I would feel if I were one of 300 people invited to your birthday party and only had 5 minutes to celebrate with you.
By the way – I realize this might sound a bit hypocritical because I have this blog and a handful of fans, but in no way do I tout myself as a “guru” of any kind or someone that people should “turn to for advice.” I’m nobody. Just a random girl with a poorly written, stream-of-conscience blog and a need to share pretty, interesting things. I have no goals in terms of popularity or fame. This concept of scaling back on social networking just resonated with me, perhaps because of my own struggle to maintain intimate relationships these days via social networking. So – I ask of you…
What’s your method when it comes to managing your online social scene? Do you have rules for adding new friends? Do you only use certain networks for certain things? I’m very curious to find out!
Another day, another award to vote for. Not that I would ever be nominated for one, so don’t get too excited. This time, it’s the 2010 Bloggies – perhaps one of the biggest and most coveted blog awards. With the ever-growing blogosphere, the competition is tough, and the nominees this year are more than deserving.
Here are a few of the folks that earned my votes, many of which I read on a daily basis. Even if you don’t vote for them, I highly suggest reading up on their blogs! Each is fantastic and a perfect solution to wandering internet-eye-syndrome!
This week’s Things I Love Thursday is going to be a little more condensed, a little more rambley, with lots more tiny stuff. Kind of like a stream of consciousness, but with only stuff that is incredible. Sometimes it’s more fun to think about the little things that happen everyday in between the big stuff – the things you usually forget when you remember that you’re late on a bill or that you have a looming project deadline in front of you. Let me know if you hate this format and prefer the way I have been doing it. I love love love feedback (and e-mails!!), but chances are, I’ll just keep doing it the way I want anyway. Fair warning.
Scout hissing at Julian while he’s trying to get her out from under the bed – hilarious because she NEVER hisses!; girly smelling air fresheners in our office; my Mom getting one step closer to finally launching her online store; fiances who do the dishes for you; Trader Joe’s massive bags of frozen chicken breasts for only $7; Corner Bakery’s pesto cavatappi with red pepper flakes on really crummy weather days (the ultimate high-calorie comfort food); soft lighting in the office instead of fluorescent (SUCH AN IMPROVEMENT); going to sleep before midnight and not waking up to feeling like a zombie; having a wood-burning fireplace; mentally decorating our future newlywed lovenest; collecting inspirational photos of my wedding day; thinking about things to add to our wedding registry (so far my favorite part about planning a wedding. Everyone should get married, if not for the love and commitment part, but for the registry and free gifts part); asking all of our siblings (ten total) to be our bridesmaids and groomsmen; my sister’s reaction to me asking her to be (one of) my Maid of Honor(s); friends who are enthusiastic and willing to help me plan!; perusing Craigslist in search of bargains; coming closer to finishing The Pioneer Woman’s love story with Marlboro Man, Black Heels to Tractor Wheels; “Queen Scooba”; The way Julian looks like a 7 year old playing video games when he’s sitting on the floor working in front of his 42″ TV/monitor; mason jar lanterns and centerpieces;
Breakfast for lunch (Egg-in-a-Hole, to be exact, best breakfast ever, especially when paired with turkey bacon and gallons of coffee), which is way better than lunch for breakfast; finally watching movies I should have watched years ago (Lord of the Rings, Philadelphia); calling everything ‘my precious’; taking all my covers from the bed to the couch; Victoria’s Secret yoga pants; free wedding cakes (thank you, Nicole!!!!); pyrrha jewelry, who is opening a store in West Hollywood in March. Most incredible vintage-looking jewelry cast from 19th century wax seals AND they support local animal rescue farm Animal Acres. Perfection. Thanks to my Aunt Jenny for turning me onto them!; reminiscing about the days of middle school fashion, buying L.E.I.s and shopping at 5-7-9 and Uptons; rumors that Brad Pitt & Jennifer Aniston are getting back together – even the more “legitimate” tabloids like Us Weekly are saying it’s true. Not going to lie, I really want it to be; yukon gold mashed potatoes from Tender Greens; helping find a home for a girl kitten that a coworker’s friend found in the rain in a parking lot on Thursday (congrats to Stacey and Clement on your new calico kitty!); realizing I know all the words to Nitty Gritty Dirt Band’s Fishin’ In The Dark; people who help me relax when inside I feel like I’m filling up with hot steam and am about to explode; finding out that my neighbor’s Mom is a big fan of my blog - HI CLAY’S MOM! Mrs. Morrison is it?
MY FRIENDS. My friends, my friends, my friends. And my family. You cannot put a price on having people around you who love you, care about you, and want the best for you. There are a handful of people in my life that I thank God for everyday and honestly do not know what I’d do without.
And, everyone in the world needs to watch this video. Especially if you’re having a “blah” day and could use a little joy in your life.
My favorite parts are as follows:
the orangutan somersaulting
the orangutan feeding Roscoe bananas with his mouth
the orangutan wearing a life vest in the swimming pool
the orangutan spinning around in circles
when the orangutan falls flat on his back, just for the fun of it.
Trying to find a wedding dress that is well made, beautiful, fits my style and doesn’t cost as me a month’s pay is quite a challenge. I’m thinking of saying to heck with it and following this bride’s example and going for the shiny ruffled top and white denim look.
What do you think? Could I pull it off?
In all fairness, the venue itself (“Appalachian Party Barn“) could be pretty if decorated the right way – minus the hay flooring. And seriously, what do you expect to find when you’re looking for wedding venues in the South. The photos of past weddings are half the fun of looking.
I am baffled by the amount of apps available for the iPhone. I’m even more baffled at how some of these most useless apps get approved yet highly practical and awesome apps sit in queue for months only to be denied over some d-r-a-m-a. My man Julian Smith totally gets it – and his newest sketch pokes fun at some of these wildly ridiculous apps.
I give you, the latest video I heard being edited non-stop for days, One Bad App. Just in time for Apple’s OTHER big announcement (the Tablet… being announced sometime soon according to the 4103710327431 people ignoring their work to tweet and blog about what features it may or may not have.)
As you all know, I love cats. Especially my own cats, Scout & Pepper. If you’ve had the pleasure of meeting my girls, you know why I have such an affinity towards them – quite simply, they are the best. Both are rescue cats (I adopted when they were only a couple weeks old), are cute, smart, funny, I mean they pull “awwwws” out of even the most radical feline-haters (and I’ve met MANY). I’ve had a few requests from people who aren’t friends of mine on Facebook to see pictures of my ladies, and I’m happy to oblige with at least one half of the duo today.
Chunka Monka
Scout is the younger, fatter, grayer of the two, and one of her best qualities (aside from her record-setting bowl-cleaning routine) is her ability to make people laugh. This cat has a ton of personality, and she refuses to be ignored. She is an in-your-face, class clown. While she uses her charm and wit to get her way with more than one naughty behavior (like knocking water glasses off the nightstand or slamming my bedroom door/window repeatedly to wake me up), she is also very cute and clever about the way she drinks water. You see, she won’t drink from a bowl. Scout much prefers the sink. See below.
Scoutie (or as I affectionately call her, Scooba) picked up this habit as a kitten when she’d jump in the tub after I took a shower and start licking from the faucet. She quickly discovered the same water came from the bathroom sink and in all five apartments we’ve lived in together, she’s found her way to the sink almost immediately. Maybe it has something to do with the fact that she was born in a boat (on land, mind you). Over the years, she’s switched her method from lapping directly from the faucet to dipping her paw in the water and then licking the wet paw. It’s precious and all, but it’s also kind of a pain in the butt, not just because I have to leave the water running (huge waste of resources), but because I always fear she isn’t being properly hydrated when I’m not at home for hours or days. I really need to look into buying one of those waterfall cat water bowls. Not that her majesty has ever been willing to settle for second best.
Anyway, that’s my short story for the day. Big ups to Julian for ever-so-coyly catching this on film and for loving Scout and Pep, too.
A little bit of this, a little bit of that. That’s what you’ll find in this post. Here’s a list of fun/funny/interesting/awesome/educational/snoozeworthy things I’ve come across lately. Enter at your own risk! Happy Saturday everyone!
- First up, this phenomenal Macbook cover that disguises your 21st century device as a vintage book. So distinguished.
- Before the Haiti earthquake, we had the San Francisco earthquake, and a couple weeks before the San Francisco earthquake, thousands of seals disappeared from Fisherman’s Wharf – where they had been hangin’ out for TWENTY YEARS! These smelly yet adorable seals totally knew something was up.
I find this fascinating… animal’s sixth sense! The newsroom security camera footage below shows a dog freaking out a full six seconds before the earthquake actually hit.
- Calvin & Hobbes snowmen. So much respect for this guy. I know this exact cartoon, too, because my Dad is a HUGE fan of C&H and my brother and I used to read his comic books over and over again when we were tikes. Calvin & Hobbes forever! Sidenote: I miss the snow so bad.
- Some nutcracker actually thinks Stanley Kubrick filmed NASA’s footage of the first moon landing and “revealed” his plan to the world in The Shining. This guy is cuckoo for Cocoa Puffs! Imagine the time it took him to figure that out.
- My own Mother’s soap kitchen: Isn’t it the cutest? This is where she mixes, mashes, molds, cuts and labels all her soaps that she sells at the Farmer’s Market (and soon, online!) I plan on doing many, many giveaways of my Momma’s soap, because it is BY FAR the BEST soap you have ever washed yourself with. And it smells GRRRRREAT! She even makes man-friendly scents.
- Tweeting Tags for your Dog! This dog tag is a wireless device that connects to a USB receiver on your computer and transmits tweets based on your dog’s activity – barking, sleeping, eating, etc – it’s actually pretty clever! Not technically available for purchase, but when it is, it’ll only be about $25. This is pretty funny because Julian and I were just talking about putting Scout & Pepper on Twitter this morning. I know, the world doesn’t need yet another animal Twitter account, but our tweets would be SO funny I PROMISE!
- I’m totally geeking out on wedding planning at the moment, but a week ago I would have gladly flown to a foreign country and eloped. This PRECIOUS New Year’s Eve elopement was serving as major inspiration behind that idea! Now that’s how you elope in style!
- Choosing organizations to donate to after Haiti. Anytime you give your hard earned money to non-profit organizations, especially in the wake of of a natural disaster that has international attention on all levels, you have to choose wisely when deciding who to contribute to. This blog post has some sound advice from aid workers about the best ways to help, what to donate, when to donate and who to donate to. My personal advice is to NOT give to the Red Cross. I prefer Direct Relief, but there are many, many great organizations out there who will use your full donation to provide help.
- Arguing about whether Heaven will serve Chick-Fil-A or In ‘N Out (Part 1 and Part 2). This is old, but so awesome. And I really miss Chick-Fil-A.
- A YouTube enabled microwave. It chooses from millions of videos to find one that is the exact length your food is cooking, so you don’t have to just wait around with nothing to do. This is kind of sad, actually.
- Cheap, easy and beautiful Mod Podge projects. I am especially loving the $3.99 tray from Goodwill and the baby food jar magnets. Oh, and the coasters. All of this stuff was found on Flickr!
The magnets.
- Love making lists of places you want to see or go? How about a list of places you’ll never get to go? We’re talking top secret, underground, exclusive places here. Sucks, because a lot of those places look awesome.
The Vatican Archives
The trailer for the new Banksy documentary premiering at Sundance, “Exit Through The Giftshop.” First time he has ever appeared on film!
Martha Stewart pole dancing. Work it, honey!
This post is dedicated to Casper, the famous cat-riding bus, who wasrecently killed after being hit by a car. RIP, Casper! You gave the world much laughter.
Isn’t the internet fancy? With just a few clicks, I can see how many people around the world are visiting my blog, where they’re coming from, what they’re clicking on, and sometimes even how old they are and what city they live in. The past few days, I’ve been getting a lot of search traffic for the keywords “boho bedroom” and “boho vintage bedroom.” I don’t recall ever writing about either of these things, though I am a big fan. So I decided to do a little Google search of my own….. guh, gorgeous!!!
Behold, the beautiful results:
Glebe Place in London. Jack Nicholson and Mick Jagger have lived here!
Yes please!
Ah, yes. I did post this picture once. That explains the traffic. Still my favorite bedroom OF ALL TIME.
I'm not sure Carrie's bedroom from SATC counts as boho, but I love it anyway.
I could do some serious relaxing here.
I am including this one because it fits the theme - I was going to talk about this in a separate post about inexpensive home makeovers. Click to read about this bedroom's transformation!
Greetings readers. I’m slacking pretty hard on the Things I Love Thursday, aren’t I? Yet I have more love worthy things in my life than ever before. What gives? I know you forgive me! Let’s get this party started.
Wedding planning, and not hating it. For the first few weeks after I was engaged, I was kind of sick of people asking me “So, have you set a date? Where will it be? What kind of theme are you thinking?” etc. I looked at wedding magazines and went to theknot.com once or twice, but I was pretty overwhelmed and underenthused. There is just so much to figure out and decide on, and I personally hate making decisions (though I’m pretty stubborn… figure that one out.) Something finally clicked this week, though, and I’ve been in crazy wedding planning mode! We’ve set our date (May 8, 2010), which is not far away at all, so there is much to be done. I’m making lists, brainstorming, delegating, daydreaming, etc. I can’t wait for this day to be here – it will truly be the best ever. We’re making it very personalized and not super conventional. I’m going to try to spare my blog readers the details of wedding planning because I realize it isn’t of interest to most (I mean, I didn’t even glance at this stuff til I was actually engaged). Instead, I might post that stuff on our wedding website, which is in the process of being launched. We bought the domain this week and it is perfect… something we can use even when we’re celebrating our 5 year anniversary and start having kids!
Rain-rain-rain-rain! We’re in the midst of a torrential downpour in Los Angeles at the moment, and I’m lalalaloving it. It rains maybe less than ten times a year in LA, and almost always in the winter. Everyone is whining about awful the weather is, but I think it makes for great coziness. The constant trickling outside makes me super relaxed and I always fall asleep so easily. Last Sunday for example, I took the best nap ever with Scout after having brunch with Heather, and it was heavenly. I don’t think I’ve slept that hard in months. The rain DOES make it harder to get out of bed in the morning, though – a small price to pay.
My new girly office with Lauren. Yesterday, Alex surprised me by asking me to swap desks with him at work. Alex sits in a two-person office with my work BFF, Lauren, who agrees with me on my “fluorescent-lights-are-the-devil” stance, so when he asked, I wasted no time moving myself in. Spending most of my day writing, being in a quiet office is a HUGE improvement to sitting in a bullpen full of loud men with their dogs. The ambiance is very nice, I might add… pretty white lamps on our desks, a tropical tree with Christmas tree, things that actually smell nice, etc. My mood and my productivity are both flying high right now. As far as why Alex wanted to move, I’m still not sure, but I think it’s a guy thing. It’s easier to watch funny videos and talk about sports with other males when you’re a few feet away instead of 20 feet away behind a closed door.
This hallway.
Neighbors who are awesome and have dinner dates with you. And give you cookies. You can’t put a price on good neighbors, seriously. I am mostly blessed in the neighborhood department, but I’m especially thankful for Clay & Molly, the newlywed couple from Alabama that moved in downstairs last summer. They’re both funny and very generous (Molly gave me the most beautiful flowers in an antique bottle for our engagement, and makes GREAT cookies), but they are also really fun to talk to. Clay and Julian have the whole ‘working with cameras’ thing in common, and Molly and I both love to cook and can relate about girl stuff. Last night we had the most fabulous dinner at home and then watched Man on Wire. I’ve never had neighbors as an adult that I can hang out with on a regular basis, and it’s pretty awesome. Except when you’re running late, because you can’t use the “oh man, traffic was a nightmare” excuse.
Purple. And gold. Recently, I’ve become really fond of these two colors. I still won’t wear much gold jewelry, but I’m loving it in home decor and art and things of that nature. When I was a kid, I hated the color purple. I loved pink (surprise, surprise), but I thought purple was kind of oogalay. I sometimes wear purple on my eyes because it brings out green eyes, and it looks pretty good against my skin tone, but I don’t own many purple clothes. That might need to change. I can’t wait to find new ways to use both of these colors a lot more in my life. I think the two of these colors together especially look so, so pretty. That reminds me, I saw a purple & gold rug at Target a while back that would be PERFECT in my apartment!! Wedding registry!
These floral boots from Free People. I want!! What’s with all the 90s comeback styles? I would have hated these boots five years ago – HATED. Now I think they’re the cutest things in the world.
Also:
high wirewalking (I am amazed by Man on Wire, a must-watch. Plus, Phillipe’s life in France looks excruciatingly blissful.); dreaming up new careers for Barbie and what she’d look like (Tech Startup Barbie, Blogger Barbie, Gamer Barbie); “Honey, don’t call my cat an It.”; smoking bans in outdoor restaurants in LA, yes!; listening to 90s R&B on the radio while driving to work…; Martha Stewart’s black bean tostadas – SERIOUSLY HEAVEN ON EARTH; in fact, Martha Stewart in general; “Aroma – you know, as in “look at that aroma”; layers and layers of blankets on the bed; the fact that when Julian mocks me it makes me laugh instead of get angry; writing my to-do lists in notebooks instead of using the computer, God knows I need less computer in my life; getting rid of cable TV; finally caving and watching Lord of the Rings trilogy; making plans to make a cat face out of Christmas lights on the wall of our office;
And that’s about enough for now. Until next time! Toodles!
Remember when I mentioned making dinner for two uber-awesome YouTube stars on Friday? Rhett and Link were in town last week, and while they were in town, they recruited Julian to direct, shoot and star in one of their fabulous music videos. The song is “Perfect Bathroom Trip” and it’s all about how to have the most hygienic trip to the bathroom possible. I’ve had it stuck in my head pretty much all week – “turn on the tap, apply some soap, lather up, rinse, dont stop the flow, first grab that paper towel you saaaaaved… use it as a BARRIER! when touching the fau-cet AREA!” You can see it in all its glory below, though I recommend watching in HD because Julian’s camera is that amazing. iJustine also has a little cameo in this funny, yet education, music video!
Wonderful, you found my blog! I'm Sarah, a writer, runner, RVT student, believer, lover of pretty things (and cats.) I'm also a newlywed, which I'm finding quite enjoyable. To learn more about me, just click here. I hope my blog brings you a little bit (or a lotta bit) of happiness today.
