Twitterific Times

At some point, you’ve got to make a choice. You’ve got to decide. You can’t have it both ways. If you’re into social networking, it’s one or the other: Twitter or Facebook.

Don’t even get me started on the other options out there. I take my learning slow, and though I consider myself a lifelong learner, always open to at least investigating what’s moving our world, for now, I’m good with these two.

I’ll admit, though, as my life has changed, so, too, have my allegiances. When my mornings unfolded primarily in my home office, I had time to meander over to Twitter in the a.m. hours and chat it up with my writing friends especially. They always seemed to have a little extra time on their morning hands. (I’m pretty sure it had to do with that universal writers’ tendency to procrastinate when faced with a new, blank page.) But eventually, I couldn’t Tweet-hang as much anymore.

Eventually, I turned more to Facebook to meet the bulk of my social networking needs. If Twitter is the worldly friend with a wide reach of resources, Facebook is the friend who has been with you through thick and thin, doesn’t laugh at your less-than-flattering profile pics, and doesn’t fault your propensity for sunsets — in fact, encourages the obsession through liking all those sunset-shot postings.

But no friend can meet all your needs, and I have found times when Twitter taps me on the shoulder and whispers, “Hey, can you come out to play yet?” And so I go.

It usually coincides with a big national or worldly event — like the recent presidential debates. In those times when a wider connection feels necessary, I find there is no finer friend than dear old Twitter.

During this last round of debates, having my laptop in place while watching TV was a must. It’s one thing to hear and see what’s going on on the tube about an event. It’s another to hear what Twitter friends from across the country — even the globe — are saying about it.

Yes, the television pundits will have their say, too, but just as important, to me, is what @Dakotapam and @northdakotamom are saying. Not to mention my Catholic mom friends from other parts of the country, like @KateWicker, or Catholic blogger extraordinnaire, @TheAnchoress. It’s also interesting to hear from my pals at The Forum, like @tracymbriggsj and @HeidiShaffer.

I’m not of the same political persuasion as every single one of my Tweetfriends, but that’s what keeps it interesting. Sometimes, we’re just there for a diversion, like when @tracymbriggsj and I start talking about what our kids are doing while we’re glued to the TV. Last debate, her girls were dancing in their room to the Spice Girls. I’m even connected to candidates’ Twitter pages, as well as some of the reporters from the major news outlets. Having all these raw opinions at my disposal in real time, and being able to exchange thoughts with some of them, makes for an exhilarating conversation with the rest of the nation.

And not just nation, but the world. At the end of this last of three presidential debates, I was curious about what the rest of the world was thinking, so I asked my Twitter buddy, @CyberManin, who happens to be from France, what he thought of the debates, and what the European community is saying about the two candidates. He gave me his thoughtful opinion of who, as well as why, just as the debate was concluding.

How could we have conceived this would be possible just a decade ago?

So, yes, Facebook is my true blue, but there are days when I find myself turning for a time toward Twitter, stepping into the channel of the great national buzz, and realizing that Twitter definitly has a place in my life, and when those play dates happen, it’s a wild and fun ride.

Q4U: What about you? Have you ever had a Twitterific experience?