Generation Me?

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Never before has media and the internet played such strong roles in defining one's identity. We tweet, we blog, we e-mail, we google (ourselves) and constantly change our Facebook profile photos. Newscasts have become interactive, and any John or Jane Doe can get their 15 minutes fame by signing on to reality shows.

Politicians tweet their campaigns and have Facebook profiles. Business- and career oriented people go to LinkedIn. Going to college? The curriculum , the schedule and even the faculty is only a mouse click away. Professors launch podcasts for their students to download. Bands and musicians have fan pages with videos and mp3 files. Celebrities and wannabes create "LIKE" pages on Facebook. And who doesn't have a blog? If you have a question, a problem or a topic.. google it! Up comes video tutorials, instructions and definitions for almost ANYTHING.

Following the Baby Boomers there was Generation X, then along came Generation dot com. And what do we have now? Generation Me.

We are probably living in the most narcissistic decade of all times. With Twitter and Blogger, anyone can be a journalist. News spread fast, but what or who can we trust? If you want to know what your friend has been up to, nevermind a phone call. Facebook tells you who broke up with who, who's pregnant, sick, and who's eating what for dinner with whom and where. It's getting to be information overflow at times. Seriously, do you really need to know who's suffering from constipation? Do you need to see your friend flashing her boobs at some frat party? Do you really need to pinpoint every location you're at via iPhone? Thankfully we have to option to block, unfriend or hide what we don't need cluttering our feeds on Facebook. And yes, there's an app for that.

But I am wondering... what is behind this constant need for attention? Because, that's after all what this is, right? Or is it the need to share? Educate? Engage in conversations? Are we online narcissists or spies?

Digital Art 101

I've been using Photoshop for many years now, but the thing is... if you don't use it regularly - your technique gets rusty. I use it daily for work, and sometimes I have to stop and think, "wait, how did I do that again?"

I came across this tutorial site that contains several "how to"-videos for digital art. Brilliant! If you're a newbie, you'll love this.

Check out the site here.

Image from Deviant Art.com

Facebook faux pas

Am I the only one who's getting annoyed with all these trivial Facebook status updates? I want those short little tidbits to be funny, intriguing, informative, sarcastic, mind blowing... or at least... somewhat interesting.

Weather updates make me yawn, unless we're talking major tornadoes, hurricanes or other natural disasters. 'It's raining out again' doesn't even pinch a brain cell. Really? It's raining? Whoooooa! Or summaries of what you did that day, unless, of course, you did something extraordinary. 'Went to work, did the dishes and some laundry, and had a glass of milk...' booooooring. I also don't want to read about your health issues, pregnancy woes or other body-related challenges in details. If you are obsessed with breast feeding or that little Timmy isn't pooping... join a mommy-forum or write a blog. I don't need to know about your heart burn or swollen feet. You're the one who joined the baby-factory movement, so deal with it! I also don't need to read today's Bible verse, or what day you think the earth will collapse. That' your problem, not mine.

I'm glad I have the 'hide' button so I can get rid of all these insignificant matters. Or I can just delete 'friends' altogether. Just because we're 'friends' on Facebook, doesn't mean I'm really your friend.

But please! Engage me! Shout out about what you think about the latest trends, news, movies - anything! Use those little phrases or sentences to challenge people to think! Share a quote! Antyhing!