you always go back to the things that you are accustomed to. you foray far and wide and try new things, but you are really anchored quite deeply into some things in your life and you have the tendency to really go back.

this realization hit me after i joined the rest of the world on Facebook. i've been shunning it for the longest time and trying to avoid it like the plague but as fate would have it, for the sake of my kindergarten, i had to submit and join the throng of people who are encamped in this site...almost 24/7.

i was comfortable sharing my thoughts and opinions here on blogger as well as on twitter, tumblr, and multiply. i have my share of followers but most of the time i took comfort in the knowledge that i have a space that i could just be free to echo my innermost thoughts without fear of anything...away from the maddening crowd, if you will. a social media recluse, if there is such a term.

so now, i have come to some conclusions and realizations about people's behavior in the different social media platforms based on my personal experience and observations. of course, i don't believe this is a general observation because my personal and social interactions cannot be likened to any other. but here goes...

BLOGGER
i revel in my anonymity. i rarely get comments so it's just like an online journal or repository of my innermost thoughts. wondering, though, if i just haven't found the time or effort to really maximize its potential. this is where i unleash my Carrie Bradshaw.

TWITTER
the challenge to encapsulate everything that you wanted to say in 140 characters or less appealed to me. brevity in thought but still coming out witty is a great thing. i also delight in the exchange of random tweets with strangers, celebrity or otherwise. it's the closest thing to my heart right now.

TUMBLR
i wanted a photo-blog where i can just highlight some good or interesting finds with nary a photo of me. and i love seeing all the artwork from other blogs! a treasure trove of artistic finds.

MULTIPLY
and it's all about me! my photos are plastered everywhere. well, it wasn't named vanity of vanities if it weren't so. it's a photo album and for the longest time became my blogger, too. it's a big part of my social media life.

FACEBOOK
everybody's here. literally. friends, family, sellers, businesses, etc. it's an entirely different world. everyone is peddling - thoughts, experiences, businesses - for that ubiquitous like or comment or share. it's very interactive but it's also very superficial to some extent.  but maybe because i'm such a newbie and i don't really know yet how to handle it properly, i get so overwhelmed by a lot of notifications. one thing's sure, though, it's a great vehicle to expand your social network locally. i got good responses for the preschool through Facebook. beats advertising. what i've noticed is that people toggle through all the updates fast. if you want to catch another's attention, you have to post pictures. it's like texting or sending short messages; forwarding or sharing pictures and other reposts from others. people here are very visual. i don't think this is a good avenue for original ideas.

oh well, after all is said and done, you just choose where you want to hang out in the online world depending on where your mood will take you and what your intentions are or what motivates you. and if all else fails, i still have my journal at home where i could happily write.