One of the things I look forward to the most every morning is getting up and checking out some of my favorite comedy/parody accounts on Twitter. Funny people such as @shitmydadsays, @jesus_m_christ, and @sexcigarsbooze are just a few of the great accounts to follow. These talented people have turned Twitter into something more. For some, it’s just another comedic outlet. For others, it sparks a once-in-a-lifetime experience. But when all is said and done, these people have sought out interaction with us over Twitter. In their case, that interaction creates a bright spot in our day.
I’ve drawn a parallel with these online characters with my interactions on Twitter. Instead of sitting behind my computer, I’ve decided to go out and “live my digital life”. For the past year or so, since ramping up the blog once again, I’ve been taking to the city of Birmingham, Atlanta, Chatanooga, Mobile, Nashville, etc and done my best to interact with those who’ve I’ve met online (NOTE: I took many precautions before meeting people in person. You should as well).
Interacting with people online and in person can be awkward and awesome, all at the same time. If you’re reading this, I’m pretty sure you’ve experienced this. Recognizing people in public by their Twitter avatar is one of those things. You hear a random comment, glance at the person, and realize that you read that same thing that morning from the person’s account. You say their username, cautiously, then when they turn their head you introduce yourself by your username. That moment when it dawns on both of you, you let out a slight laugh and a big smile. Then you awkwardly end the conversation and go on with your life.
But for that moment, you realize just how powerful Twitter can be. You understand how tweeting from the dinner table at Buffalo Wild Wings, using a hashtag at a concert, or simply checking your feed during lunch to discover a tweetup that evening, though seemingly un-interactive, creates chance and planned encounters with virtual friends. By taking those virtual relationships and making them real, real things start happening.
For instance, @tammyhart got together with several of her friends to celebrate her birthday with dinner and a movie. Though not everyone could come to both, no one who came had, to my knowledge, had known Tammy for more than a year. And all of us had met in some form or fashion thru Twitter. If you had walked up to the table, you wouldn’t have been able to tell, though. We talked, laughed, interacted as if we had all been friends for years. It was an incredible experience.
Something similar happened just a few months ago with the poker league to which I belong. In this case, the offer to participate in a points poker league came over Facebook and Twitter from @garrett98. Fellow Twitter personalities like @ikepigott, @rebecca_morrow, @spencerwyatt and others played poker for hours, like old friends who had been laughing together for decades.
My point is this: Laughter should remind us of the community that we’re building. While we’re all building our communities for different reasons, we should make sure we take the time to remember that sometimes there’s more to this than we expect. In my case, the more is establishing relationships that have provided me with awesome opportunities.
What’s your more?
