Regular tweeters and twitterers (I am still unsure of the correct noun, if there is one) will be familiar with #followfriday, whereby users can tweet their suggestions for people they are following whom others in turn might like to follow. This is a great way for others to blow your trumpet for you, and for you in turn to blow other people's. This is what Twitter should be about, in my 'umble opinion: people sharing information and opinions on things. You know, like, stuff.
Of course, what makes Friday special is that it's, well, Friday. Usually. End of the week, that relief and excitement, that 'Friday feeling'. But what about Saturday? This is why I have proposed we do something similar on Saturday. If the founding principle of Twitter was to tell people, in 140 characters or fewer, 'what you are doing', then perhaps the distinguishing ethos behind #showsaturday should be to 'show' people things: that is, via the picture services that Twitter can be linked to. Think of it as 'show and tell' day, but without the 'tell' bit (which is already what Twitter is principally about anyway). After all, a lot of people head out and do interesting things on Saturdays, it seems; so why not show us where you are, what you're doing, &c?
I know, I know, you're probably wondering: well, how the hell is this any different from what twitterers are doing already? If they want to post a picture of something, they'll jolly well do it. Twitter isn't stopping them. I'm not proposing that this change the face of Twitter or anything; after all, there was nobody stopping people from recommending potential followees to others before #followfriday came along. But if a topic or idea starts trending, then it can become more and more popular as people think: that's a simple idea, but I've never thought to do it before.
Or maybe others have better ideas? There must be many out there. Do please let me know if you have any. (And, if #showsaturday were to take off, I hereby absolve myself of the blame for any unsuitable or disgusting images people choose to upload. There. I've absolved myself. That's a performative, it's legally binding. Prob'ly.)
My suggestion is #badchoicesat where we would tweet about bad things to do on the weekend:
ReplyDeleteUrgent care on a Saturday during flu season? Bad choice.
Target on a Saturday with your children? Bad choice.
Drunken serenades outside your ex's house while his new paramour is inside? Bad choice.
I like it. Very much indeed! Saturday should be a time to reflect on bad choices one has recently made, and to discuss them with other twitterers. I encourage all readers of this to post something today (or on the next Saturday) with the hashtag #badchoicesat. Get those octothorpes propagating!
ReplyDeleteHmmm. I'm inclined to think that serenading your ex (whether or not his new GF is inside) is a bad choice no matter what day of the week you do it. :) Come to think of it, I think serenading is a bad choice at all times.
ReplyDeleteSerenading is always a bad choice for me, who have the singing talents of a dying weasel. Or a seagull that's just caught its wing in a particularly tenacious bulldog clip.
ReplyDelete