There’s something unsettling about knowing what old classmates are eating for dinner yet not knowing what they’ve been doing for the last 20 years.  For many of us in our thirties, Facebook reached a tipping point in the last year and we are being deluged by friend requests from old high school and undergrad classmates that we had completely lost touch with.  People in their twenties or younger had the Internet when they were in school so they very likely never lost track of people – I think this is mostly a pre-Internet phenomenon. 

So for us older folk, pockets of our friends are connecting in waves that get bigger as the months go on.  I’m adding at least one old friend a day, sometimes three or four.  At this rate, I just can’t keep up with my Facebook email – I gave up about 70 friends ago.  Every time I look at my Facebook inbox I cringe – there are dozens of messages in there from people I have really missed but I don’t know where to begin.  There’s so much to say, so much to catch up on, so much to respond to (often years of photos, links, blogs, etc).  So I haven’t said anything.

This is causing my brain to be put through some very strange paces.  It’s hot wiring memories – jumping over the normal gates and straight onto the third rail.  I know what these people think of the latest episode of Lost, yet I can’t connect these new bits of flotsam to my former memories.  All of these new data points jumble around in my mind, mixing with the other bits of unprocessed data from my day, and appear in my dreams.  For weeks I’ve dreamt of people I haven’t seen or even thought of in over 20 years.  They are baking brownies, they are skipping stones, they are talking to each other.

I think the only way to stop the dreams is to just start at the top of my inbox and work down.  So if you are my long lost Facebook friend, you’ll be hearing from me soon.  I may even have a dream or two to tell you about.

1. At first the notion of email chain migrating to Facebook was so distasteful that many of us resisted.  Then as we read a few and wrote our own lists, some included snarky comments like “I’m not tagging anyone” and “The buck stops here”.
2. Most of my friends are really interesting!  I think that is what has made this so compelling and challenged even the most snarky of us to submit to the meme and write their own.  I read 18 different lists a few nights ago over an hour – it was truly great reading
3. Most of my friends are really funny!  Many have an amazing sense of comedic timing which is one of my favorite things ever
4. OK, there were a few that weren’t interesting or funny.
5. There’s a gap in what Facebook is offering us in terms of communication.  Micro-blogging (our status messages) are too superficial.  We want more substance
6. The flexibility of the platform Facebook has provided is impressive.  They gave us tools but we created the meme
7. Whoever thought to start a chain using Notes was pretty clever and I wonder if they thought it would turn into the tsunami it has
8. You can tell people some pretty intense stuff in this forum because people don’t have to respond.  Death, adoption, addiction – it’s all fair game
9. Many of us have had “other lives”
10. This is a great way to give the details about the most impressive things on your resume
11. This is a great way to fill in holes in your resume – the life adventures that taught more than any school ever could
12. This is a great way to give the flipside of your resume – the horrible jobs you wish you could forget
13. A lot of people have OCD (including me)
14. Music is intense for people
15. Kids do really creative, telling things
16. The most creative kids become the most interesting grownups
17. People can overcome major tragedies and turn out OK
18. Some of us are aspiring writers, philosophers, pundits
19. 25 things is about 6 too many.  See?

What have you learned from 25 things?