Follow Friday

There is a little premise in the "Twitterverse" where on Fridays one lists those followers for the week who have stood out to you, or were of note for the week or something. If you new to Twitter, or Facebook or social networking in general this can seem somewhat odd. Some of my friends and family don't really "get" Twitter and Facebook and voice concern over why someone would care that another is "drinking coffee and waiting for the day to be over" (a not untypical posting). If that all that one does on a social networking site they are missing an incredible opportunity.
And, while I certainly see my fill of somewhat nonsensical postings on Twitter or odd little quizzes on Facebook I have become amazed at the breadth and reach of my new friends and their impact on my own world.

I joined Facebook ostensibly to see and share running related pics with my running community and Twitter as a networking tool during a foray into perhaps landing a job in the running and fitness world. A huge amount of my "followers" and those I follow on Twitter are in the running, fitness or multi-sport world in someway, yet we exchange info on those topics only part of the time. My Facebook friends now far exceed those only related to running and I have connected to friends from the past including prior jobs, high school and family. Even my college daughter has decided that its not such a bad thing to let dad see what a good time she is having enjoying the college experience.

All of these new found, or reconnected friends have enriched my life of late and contributed to an increased understanding and connection to the world around me that just isn't possible via traditional communication. I have been able to experience the joys and trepidation of many friends sending their youngest off to school for the first time, marriages, deaths of loved ones and even a friend from the UK as she experienced a vacation through Wyoming and Montana. I have a local friend wrestling with divorce and a far flung friend wrestling with supporting a sister going through the same thing. Through their sharing of their experience I hope I was able to lend a supportive ear to both. I was virtually able to attend my 30th high school reunion and connect with those who I was close to then, and people who I became close to via the months leading up to it and almost feel I was right there.

A great number of these amazing people I have never met or even spoken to over the phone and quite likely we never will. But almost every day I hear some great story, learn something new, make a new friend from as far away as the UK and Singapore, and as close as Toronto, Annapolis and right here in Chico. They have supported me in really tough times, and rejoiced for me in good ones. I can only hope I have been as good a friend as they have been to me. I have read amazing blogs, learned new recipes and had my faith in the human spirit renewed during the tough economic and political times over the last few months. And yes, there has been the running.

I can't possibly list the myriad of people in the constraints of 140 characters in Twitter or a pithy Facebook status update. So this is my "Follow Friday"...
thanks to each of you for enriching and contributing so positively to my experience, I hope you can say the same about "a13pt1runner"
Tight Laces
Ed