The challenge used to be in making the effort to remember birthdays. Earlier, you had to make a note of it in a diary or embed it in memory. And you only reserved this privilege for the important few. Now, people know it’s your birthday because Facebook tells them. You can write a wish without having to look at the date. Coz, hey, Facebook will prompt you next year as well. With minimal effort, you can hammer out a few words and then get on with checking someone’s vacation photos, or comment on someone’s status.
Here's Absolute Lee on Facebook birthday wishes (and the changing nature of birthday-wishing in general). I once wrote a rant on the subject too. This year I went to Settings a few days before my b-day and changed the date, to avoid a repeat of last year's creepy outpouring of good wishes, mostly from people I don't know. (Since I use Facebook mostly to link to my writings/spread info about the books and not for personal stuff, I accept friend requests from pretty much anyone.) As I've grown older and greyer I've become a little more tolerant of birthday wishes in general, but I draw the line at being wished in a manner that reminds me of the spam ads in my Gmail inbox.
People usually become jaded and somewhat tried of birthday wishes as they grow older. Benjamin Button effect?
ReplyDeleteRead this if you you haven't
ReplyDeletehttp://www.slate.com/id/2300637/pagenum/all/
a slate columnist changed his bday date on facebook thrice in a single month was "wished" on some occasions by the same people...
People usually become jaded and somewhat tried of birthday wishes as they grow older.
ReplyDeleteMarvin: seems the other way round for me. I was extremely jaded and ungracious about birthday wishes when I was young - more tolerant now.
Dhairya: thanks for that piece - makes complete sense to me, but it's worrying to see the many comments made in defence of serial birthday-wishers (especially since the article wasn't nasty or anything). Also, it's bizarre that people can't understand that a writer/columnist might use his Facebook account for purely professional reasons, and might therefore have many "friends" who he doesn't actually know.
Agree with the piece completely. I’d love to try one of those experiments and see the number of wishes and the vitriol I get!!
ReplyDeleteJai: Thanks a ton for reminding! My birthday is round the corner too, and I will slyly use the technique to avoid replying to several people who I barely know!
ReplyDeleteAnd unlike you, who uses FB for professional reasons, I've used it for what it was meant to be-a "place" where you could meet your old classmates and wonder, "Oh, she's become so fat!".
Celebrating Birthdays itself is so boring! I mean, come on! Everyone gets older eventually, what's so special about that?
Jai - people don't care. like in LSD, a character says, "logon ko news nahin, prime time entertainment chahiye" waise hee, FB pe bhi entertainment hee to milta hai logon ko.
ReplyDelete"This year I went to Settings a few days before my b-day and changed the date" - I do the same!
ReplyDeleteI removed my birthday off Facebook last year, and most of the people who wished me were friends from school, who knew my birthday outside of facebook!
ReplyDeleteThanks Jai :)
ReplyDelete