Social Chameleon

Yvette’s Bridal Formal

Posted by Erin under Found in the tubes

OH JESUS IT BURNS!!! OH GOD!!! KILL IT WITH FIRE!!!!!1

Siren of the times

Posted by Erin under Life in general

Last Wednesday was my first day living in Uptown, so I was still getting used to the different sights and sounds and smells of my new neighborhood. So imagine my surprise when just before noon, the ebb and flow of traffic is suddenly drowned out by the unmistakable warble of air-raid sirens.

I stop what I’m doing and peek out the window by my desk. In Georgia, that blaring tone meant a tornado had touched down somewhere within a mile radius, and it would seriously behoove me to shuffle my ass down to the basement post haste. But it was a clear and sunny day, with only the barest hint of a breeze and not a cloud in the sky.

Great, I thought. The Reds are attacking.

The first place I went was weather.com to see if there was some freak weather event occurring outside of my field of vision. No weather alerts had been issued for the area, and the current satellite picture exactly described conditions outside my window. Phew! Next I did a Google search for “Minneapolis sirens,” and wouldn’t you know, they test the damn thing on the first Wednesday of every month. Mystery solved! Evidently all was calm and business as usual in the Twin Cities, and the Wednesday drills were just something I would slowly grow accustomed to.

Shortly after this revelation, the warbling tone stopped.

Now, what does it say about me that, when presented with a loud and piercing warning tone, my first instinct is to check the internet to confirm the presence of danger? I didn’t panic, I didn’t run to the streets, I didn’t even call anybody. Where would I be if it wasn’t for Google search? I’ll tell you, I’d still be cowering in the Southwest corner of the basement, ducked and covered under whatever furniture I could find down there.

It must be a generational thing. People my age literally use the internet for everything, and it would really be peachy keen if the government could make use of the system at the speed of events. I would much rather get a text message that says “Hennepin County says RUN!” or “This is only a test (beeeeeep)” than have to run to a computer, TV or radio to figure out what’s going on.

This headline is probably already out of date

Posted by Erin under Found in the tubes

The goons over at Something Awful are onto something here regarding the effects of the pace of technology on humor …

[I]f Seinfeld episodes like “The Soup Nazi” had aired ten years later, think of how much more grating the reaction would have been. Millions of images of Jason Alexander emblazoned with the caption “I LIEK SOUPS.” Millions more pictures of the Soup Nazi, posted in retaliation: “NO MOAR SOUPS.” Naruto music videos based on the joke. Soup references in every webcomic. Soup Nazi cosplay. Peak Oil reached. Ron Paul elected President. The world’s volcanoes erupt in unison. All because the Internet ruins everything.

How to Ruin a Joke

I can has con?

Posted by Erin under Brainco, Found in the tubes

Oh man, where the heck have I been? How am I just now finding out about ROFLcon? Where some of the greatest internet memes and leaders of the LOLosphere gathered to discuss the future of internet culture. Half my bookmark list was there: Homestar Runner, xkcd, Cyanide and Happiness, Drew Curtis, Stuff White People Like, Diesel Sweeties. The list goes on.

So why is this so great? It’s and acknowledgment that all these seemingly light humor pieces floating around the tubes are actually powerful tools which can rapidly forge bonds between people around the globe. Randall Munroe put it more succinctly than I ever could:

XKCD: There is a mindset that people share, but aren’t aware they share. XKCD helps them discover each other.

I collect lolcats. I even went as one for Halloween. Being plugged into these memes will one day help me in my career. The best way to talk to geeks (heck, any group) is to speak their language, get inside their heads and show that you’re one of them. Genuinely.  We know what missing the mark can look like. Whether through direct references or via the same channels of communications, this is the way advertisers can most quickly reach Gen-Y.

I will know that I have made it in this industry when I’m pulling down mad money to slap Impact cutlines over photos of cute animals. Just you wait.