Twitter-ific

I figured everyone and their mother knew what Twitter is at this point. First of all: Ashton Kutcher. And second of all, you can hardly watch a commercial without hearing “find us on Twitter and Facebook!” (Thanks all the same but, no, I do not need to “follow” my plumber or become a fan of my favorite cereal on Facebook.)

Facebook, at least, everyone seems to be on board with. They make jokes about it on sitcoms. Even senior citizens are on it. (Though not my 98-y.o. grandfather... yet. He’s all over e-mail, though. He particularly loves to forward political jokes to everyone he's ever met.)

Me? I could take or leave Facebook. I don’t know why. I like looking at pictures of my high school friends’ kids as much as the next gal, but that’s about it. Maybe it’s the pushy way they try to suggest people I should friend? Maybe it’s the fact that “friend” is used as a verb?

But Twitter, on the other hand. I love. And I have encountered all sorts of people lately who are all, “I don’t GET Twitter. What’s the point? I don’t have time for that.”

I say, if you have time to post a 28-page album of your cats on Facebook, you have time for Twitter. Besides, the whole point is that it DOESN’T take up lots of time. Since you can only post (or “tweet”) 140 characters at a time, you can scroll through a whole page of witty one-liners, inspirational quotes, interesting links, and cute kid pics in the time it would take you to read ONE of your high school friend’s longwinded Facebook updates about her latest vacation in the Poconos.

And the other thing is, Twitter is just more fun. You can follow whoever you want -- even celebrities! (“Follow” being the equivalent of “friending” someone on Facebook.) There’s no pressure to get back in touch with your 7th-grade boyfriend or friend your father-in-law. (AWK-ward!) You can follow anyone you find interesting.

The other Twitter criticism (Twitticism?) I don’t get is when people say, “I don’t care what someone had for lunch.” Well, I DO! I really do want to know about someone’s black bean hummus and flaxseed tortilla chips. With recipes, if possible. (Thanks, @weelicious !) It gives me ideas for my own meals. Or at least lets me live vicariously through those who aren’t eating the leftover crusts from their kids’ PB&J.

And did I mention it’s fun? Just take a gander at some of these gems from my Twitter stream (that’s Twitter jargon for the list of tweets from people I follow):

* Kind words can be short and easy to speak, but their echoes are truly endless. (Mother Teresa)

* Camp Insanity: 6 Very Unusual Kid Camps http://su.pr/2vhP3R

* I wonder if bartenders can drink on the job.

* No air conditioning on the @megabus. Kill. Me. Now.

* Skip Hop Studio diaper bag 28% off. http://amzn.to/9gLBhX

* Awesome weekend with grandson's 2nd birthday party!

* “If I waited for perfection, I would never write a word.” --Margaret Atwood

If you have a better way to pass the time while waiting for the baby to wake up from his nap any minute, or while your toddler watches Dora, or while you’re waiting...and waiting...and waiting for your husband to come home from work and put the kids to bed, by all means. Me? I’ll be tweeting my peeps. TTYL!

TWEETS O’ THE WEEK: Here are some of the famous people I follow on Twitter. Writers: @susanorlean, @ayeletw (Ayelet Waldman), @MargaretAtwood. Celebs: @torianddean (Tori Spelling), @RevRunWisdom (Rev Run from Run DMC), @kathygriffin, @ActuallyNPH (Neil Patrick Harris), @kevinweisman (Marshall on “Alias”!)