I’m not here to sugarcoat things.  If you were hoping for light, bright and cheery, add this post to the list of disappointments.

I’ve come to the realization:

I hate Twitter.  Actually, social media…I’m beginning to hate it all. 

It all came to a head this past week when I had an unfortunate situation with The Second Mother.  Here’s the thing:  I have a real life.  So, did I tweet about it?  Yes, I did.  But it wasn’t overkill.  Well, obviously, it was a problem for a few because a number of Twitter followers jumped ship.  Well, I was happy but I was like, “F-off.”  I took it personally, and I probably should not have, but if you knew what I/we (my family) was going through in a 48-hour period, you’d be pissy too and taking every f-ing thing personally.  When I write a blog entry or tweet, I’m going to give you me and not some fantasy.  I have never been a person to be fake and phony.  And I’d be d*mned if I’m going to do that for people to like me and to gain more blog followers or Twitter followers.  So, I took a break this weekend.  I was too pissed, and frankly, I know what’s important to me when it is all said and done — and it’s not on social media.

I simply do no like what I’ve become.  I knew it wasn’t going to be easy and waited years to launch a blog, but I’m close to having enough.  I’ve griped a few times on this space.  Ironic, isn’t it?  I feel less optimistic about this whole “expression outlet” almost a year into it.  I have just over two months until I celebrate my blogging and Twitter birthday.  I’m a broken record saying pretty much what I’ve said before. Instead of re-writing it all, read here and here and here for my journey thus far.

I don’t know about you, but I have a busy life.  But, busy or not, I have been committed because if you want something to work, you stick to it and try to give it your all.  That’s what I’ve been trying to do for almost 10 months.

I’ve kept my tweeting focused on the things I noted in my Twitter profile.  I tweet about my family, issues relating to my life as an in-house marketer, my food adventures, and things I come in contact with in New York City.  Occasionally, in line with the other things I love, like music and fashion, I tweet about those things too.  So, I feel, I’m not going off track.  However, I’m sick of tweeting.  Yes, I’m sick of tweeting.

Many of my followers and those who I follow are great — interesting, funny, enlightening, smart.  But, I feel I’m dangerously tied to my mobile devices and my computer.  There could be an argument that I tweet too much, but how much is “too much”?  I have no idea.  I just tweet when something crosses my path that’s interesting to me and I figure, why not share?  But all I seem to attract are spam bots and basically every consultant, “expert” and whoever else that latches on to a word that is mentioned in a tweet.  I mention “dog” and now I’m being followed by a random dog-related tweeter.  Then they realize, I guess, I’m not going to be tweeting about dogs 24/7, and then they unfollow.  Another example, I mention “music” or a specific genre, and guaranteed, the followers pop up, and once they see I won’t be tweeting about the subject matter 24/7, they unfollow.  One of my favorite things I tweet about is food.  But once again, I guess, the reality is I’m not eating out every night, then the follow-unfollow dance begins.

What the h*ll?  Are you f-ing serious?

With the follows and unfollows, it’s had to communicate because you begin to feel, who am I communicating with?  I can’t tell from one day to the next.  I’ve purposely blocked so many, it is exhausting.  I see that they follow and then I’m like, “Why are you following me?”  I can tell from their profile they’re not the least bit interested in what I have to say, so why the h*ll are they on my timeline?  I don’t need voyeurs and I certainly don’t need Twitter Groupies.  You’re either in it to be a part of a conversation or you’re simply eavesdropping.  I hate eavesdroppers.  I hate a lot of other things too on Twitter…

Photo: The Joy of Tech

And then of course, the blogging.  Recently, I saw a few things that made me nostalgic as a Generation X-er and began posting about the humorous things that came out during the time period of the 70s and 80s.  Again, they’re in line with what I detail in my blog and twitter profiles, including fashion.  Basically, the posts were meant to be lighthearted and for all those born especially during the first half of that period (mid-60s - mid-70s), to take a walk down memory lane.  It also gives me an opportunity to laugh at myself, and hopefully, you’ll laugh at yourself too.

Well, the Gen X posts are a tiny shift not meant to kill the blog.  I can’t say it’s been positive, but I can’t say it’s been negative either.  Basically, I can’t tell anything.

So, where am I?  I honestly don’t know.

The countdown to the November 30, 2012 begins.  I’m not sure if when the day appears I’ll be blowing out a candle in celebration, not only for the blog, but for Twitter (my Twitter birthday is December 2nd, by the way).

Hence, a warning, especially from someone who barely has blog followers and scraping by with 100 or so Twitter followers — and I think it’s best coming from someone like me and not from someone with 5,000 Facebook followers, 12,000 Twitter followers, 3,000 blog followers, 1,200 Instagram followers, etc., etc., etc.

• First and foremost:  Social Media is fickle.  Do not expect undying loyalty.  Things will irritate and infuriate you.  After all, you’re only human.
• Seeking instant gratification?  Put that out of your mind right now.  You’ll be bitterly disappointed because it won’t happen.
• Competition to have others learn who you are and what you are about is fierce.  You’ll try to blog regularly, be exhausted, and see little traffic unless you’re blogging perhaps about porn and posting pictures to showcase your “talents”.
• It’s probably best to tweet about one thing and one thing only.  Not having a singular focus won’t win you any popularity contests — er, followers — if that’s what you’re looking for.
• And, don’t try to figure out how many times to tweet.  Forget it, there’s no magic number.  Although, I’m sure someone out there will make it brutally clear that you’re doing it all wrong and stomp on that spirit, crushing that self-esteem even more.
• Finally, pace yourself with what social media outlets to join.  It’s too much to keep up with on a daily basis — unless you have copious amounts of free time.  Remember, there’s only 24 hours in a day — no matter what you think.

So, enjoy.  Hope you can stomach the downs.