Facebook Pheno (nah nah) menon

Amanda and I joined Facebook in the beginning of October. Since then, we have populated our pages with gardens, aquariums, places we've been around the world, super wall postings, photos, video clippings, celebrity look-a-like meters (a favorite) and fan postings for our favorite teams. One person's page can be really busy or it can be pretty bare, but I think the more you have on your page, the more traffic you'll get amongst your friends.

There is this feature that is one of my favorites - Poking. You can poke a friend - just a simple pointer poke, as Amanda and I have been doing everyday since joining. And then there's the super-poke feature which is not so much finger poking as it is things you could 'virtually' do to your friends like dance with them, high-five them, cheer them on, or throw things at them. During the holidays, they have special things you can throw at your friends. For Halloween, you could throw a vampire or ninja at your friends. For Thanksgiving, I think you could throw turkey, mashed potatoes and other Thanksgiving-related goodies at your friends. For the upcoming holidays, you can light a menorah, spin a dreidel, throw an elf or sleigh ride with your friends. It's fun and addictive.

There are also groups you can join. People start groups so that people with similar interests can join. I've joined the following groups:
1) Purdue Young Alumni - so I can keep in touch with the young alums in the DC area
2) I don't care how comfortable crocs are, you still look like a dumbass - reference 'Croc me Amadeus' posting from a few months ago.
3) In Love with Julia Quinn novels - she's one of my favorite romance authors - read all her books
4) The 80s Cartoon Appreciation Society - because I am a child of the 80s and I miss Voltron and Thundercats and My Little Pony and the Smurfs.
I'm not sure what these groups do except chat on the Wall (aka - discussion board) and what not. I've been able to recommend other books on the Julia Quinn group. I've also been able to send out announcements to DC Young Alums on the Purdue Young Alumni site. So I guess there are useful things that come out of these pages.

Facebook is also a fun way to connect to old friends and new friends. I've connected with friends from college and old jobs. Plus, Amanda and I have both managed to connect to our new friends across the pond, that we met at the wedding we just attended. I guess this is the next step from email - except much more fun as we can see their friends, their interests (through their pages) and chat with each other via the Wall.

Finally - one of the more useful applications of Facebook is your status. You can have your status display where you are - I'm at home, the office, sleeping, etc. (those are generic). Or you can get creative and put your own status in there. Mine reads: 'Jennifer is freezing her butt off because it's freakin' cold over here!' That was yesterday's. I'll have to think of something creative for today.

So if you get a chance, I recommend Facebook -it's a fun place to be.