Isn't this what alcohol is for? Friday/Saturday night, out with friends, or over a lovely dinner getting all personal and sharing this stuff.

Am I the only one who goes to bars with friends/coworkers/acquaintances/loved ones for this kind of intimacy? Why do we need to do it in a faceless way on the internet? Whatever happened to genuine human interaction?

I thought facebook was just to keep in touch/hook up. Why do all the good stuff on the internet?

...is having smart, interesting friends who are good writers. ;)

Bravus, that's not true. When people write things about themselves that are personal and meaningful, it's poignant and moving even if the writer happens to be unhip. The lists that are the worst are those that are clearly written to be ironic, snarky, or clever.

The 25 Things fad has reminded me to get over my preconceptions and be open to appreciating people. It reminds me of an experience I had in a personal growth type workshop when a very unassuming woman stood in front of the group and spoke about her father, who had been executed in Cambodia by Pol Pot's regime because he was a military officer. She and the rest of her family then escaped to the U.S. I was really moved by her story because she was someone I'd had no interest in interacting with and I knew that, in the real world, I'd never have given her the time of day. Yet she had this incredible life experience. I would never have known it if I hadn't listened to what she had to say and if she hadn't shared it.

So post away, fb friends! I've enjoyed reading all the lists I've seen and have learned a lot about many people I didn't know much about before.

Geeze. Asinine viral Things To Do (aka "spam" or "memes" or whatever) have been around since e-mail was invented, and existed as snail mail before that. What amazes me is that the mainstream media -- including salon.com -- seems to have pounced on one of the more interesting ones.

25 Random Things About Me (in variant titles) is -- or can be -- random and interesting, even about people I know fairly well. It's voluntary and fun for both writer and reader. If you want to say something personal, you do. If you want to flip everyone the bird, you do.

For the record, my 25 Random Things is at http://www.facebook.com/note.php?note_id=46646436029 , and I'm so vastly amused at the publicity that I did 25 MORE Random Things at http://www.facebook.com/note.php?note_id=50061486029 .

And then came here to comment on an article I think is a bigger waste of time than Facebook. Hmm... maybe I'm the one that needs a life...

...is having most of your friends do the meme and then not getting tagged by any of them.

...which may mean I'm not a good writer myself. ;)

I guess my point was the point in the article about dozens of items about liking bacon and so on. It's possible to do really interesting things in your list of 25, but it's also possible to be very dull indeed if it's just a list of likes and dislikes, work goals or whatever.

Maybe it's elitist, or smartly hip, or whatever, but some people think and take care in what they write, and have developed some skill in writing. Others don't and haven't, or just vomit out whatever comes into their heads, which is identically to a billion of their peers. I'd prefer to read the former.

Sturgeon's Law applies to this meme as to everything else in life.

We are all composed from seemingly inconsequential and random things. 25 Things grants permission to self-reflect and share what we see. The meme benefits from a kind of pseudo-anonymity; we publish not knowing, for sure, if anyone will read our missives. I think this makes such posts more intimate, in an odd kind of way.

What really moves me is that my friends want to share this part of themselves with me -- and they want the same gift in return. We all walk away knowing each other a little better and I can't begin to imagine how that could be a bad thing.

The "25 Random Things" is the perfect exercise for us relative oldsters who've descended upon Facebook recently. I've found dozens of well-remembered old friends whom I'd lost touch with, and many of them have posted lists that include anecdotes I'd forgotten, along with heartfelt truths I'd never known. It's brought me closer again to people I liked way back when, and even given me a better understanding of people I now know, some of whom wrote things I couldn't imagine hearing them say. FWIW, I've linked to my attempt.

While Nero fiddles ........

I don't find "25 Random Things" annoying in the least bit. In fact, I happen to love it. I thoroughly enjoy hearing the details of people's lives, even people I don't know very well or even at all. I like discovering that I have more in common with people than I thought possible and I like the diversity of people's responses. I feel like a voyeur when I read the posts. And I love how nobody who chooses to participate can actually tell you nothing about themselves. There is truth in what you don't say too.

Have you used facebook? Some of my friends live within a couple of miles of my place. Some live thousands of miles away. Some of my friends I talk to regularly. Some, I lost track of and haven't heard from in years and years -- but I still care about them. For people who move around a lot, which is a lot of people, facebook is a great way to connect and reconnect. It is about writing to people you know, or knew. Why you think that isn't "genuine human interaction" I have no idea.

Nothing better exemplifies the fact that we are a culture of touchy-feely wimps like Lolcats and 25 Things. We cry when puppies die and we beleive everyone's opinion should be equally valid, and feel guilty for feeling that that's not always the case. This is civilization: cynical and crusty on the outside, but secretly gentle.

But, srsly pepulz! I don't care how over-exposed the medium gets, I wuv lolcats! and lolruses, lolpresidents...