Being of “that age”, the imminent arrival, and prospective announcement rates by new expectant mothers (and fathers) seems to happen more and more frequently. So you would understand my amusement at a recent conversation amongst a group of friends where the topic of a recently-discovered pregnancy quickly turned from the usual “ooh’s, aah’s and when’s and how’s…. ” (well.. not exactly the “how’s”.. but you know what I mean), to one which started to brainstorm a few ideas as to HOW the announcement would be made.
It was only after sitting at my desk one day, that I noticed an ever impending phenomenon that is raising its head above the social media horizons… that I had to jump in and take note.
We all know how social media has, “changed our lives”, “made the world smaller”, “reduced our privacy”…. “changed our lives”… but now we take one step in another direction where, instead of being the medium to make an announcement, social media has become so intrinsically involved in our lives that we need to make a decision and almost create a plan, as to how we use that medium, in order to broadcast probably one of the biggest announcements of our lives.
We have adapted to this social media tool in such a way that our lives are becoming dress rehearsals for our Facebook Profiles. Our innermost thoughts (and dinner menus) become our Twitter Voice.
I look at a few individual recent announcements: 
Make no mistake, I encourage innovation, I celebrate excitement and I revel in the unusual. I am a social media fanatic. I know how it works and I recognise its power. But I do wonder: When that day comes, and someone flicks the switch and all Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest, Google+, LinkedIn, Reddit, StumbleUpon, YouTube, Vibe, Keek, Instagram servers, and our lunch breaks go back to being 5 minutes on the park bench outside, or a conversation with that person in accounting who just never seems to talk…. when we suddenly discover that the blood that pumps through our veins is haemoglobin and not our Relationship Status – will we be able to cope?
Probably.
It would just hurt for a while.
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