Between a Blog and Tweet

The words are clear. You write because you want to write. And you write again, and again, and again. Oh, this is sweet! An instant audience, out there in the dark.

Discussing the difference between writing for Twitter and blogging, I realized that the Twitter experience is all about instant gratification. Twitter makes you think fast, and in spurts, so it’s a good way to give your creative side a workout. Not to mention that it opens so many doors to so many souls across our known planet. Somehow, after being in Twitter for a couple of weeks, this planet does seem smaller. On the other hand, good blogging is more intense and passionate. It’s like a full body workout.

In our technologically enhanced world, we are slowly eradicating the meaning of loneliness and solitude. The speed and impact of the barrage of information with which we are hit, is strong enough to induce a rush of the most intense size. No way is the human mind trained to deal with so much, so fast. One can get used to this.

The real dangers, to us all, lie in expecting reality to duplicate the technologically induced experience I describe. There is some underlying naiveté in opening these doors, but the experience reminds me of days when the Web was new.

Somehow, we are all becoming more human by embracing the directions our communication technologies are taking us. Those are words I never, ever thought I’d be putting together. It is, however, a possibility that we must explore. Maybe that is where the next step in our evolution will be found.

(Note: reference to Star Trek eliminated in the closing line, for fear of being guilty of tired clichés).

‘Pralines and Cream’ or ‘Butter Pecan’?

I was discussing ice cream earlier today with a good friend, and it dawned on me:  my favorite ice cream has always been ‘pralines and cream’.

My favorite variation of the recipe is ‘pralines and cream’ from Baskin Robbins – and are there any others?

Of course. But not for me.

A quick run through Google demonstrates that Hagen Dasz has one, and so does Nestle. I tried the Baskin Robbins version as a kid, and I never bothered with anything else in that store. “31 flavors”, they boast. Ha. Not one is as enticing as ‘pralines and cream’ remains to me.

Now, don’t get me wrong, this isn’t a commercial endorsement! Did you know that Kim Kardashian, who boasts over 2 million Twitter followers, *allegedly* sells space in her Twitter posts for $10K a pop? Nothing wrong with that, of course. If it’s true, I admire her for it. That’s a small business idea I wouldn’t mind putting into practice.

But back to ice cream, which is after all, what brought me here.

I’ve always seen that ‘butter pecan’ thing as a ‘pralines and cream’ wannabe. As if they were in a competition with each other. You know, the pecans are just trying to be classy and uppity like pralines- something they’re not -  and the butter keeps trying to be as luscious as the cream but failing miserably in the process.

You could even say that ‘pralines and cream’ is the city cousin, and ‘butter pecan’ is the country bumpkin cousin. The kind of cousins who look at each other over the shoulder. “I’m so much better than he is” – they say, to themselves, with an air of superiority. And all that.

My choice is, of course, clear. My relationship with ‘pralines and cream’ will remain strong. And sorry, ‘butter pecan’. I guess we’ll always have the ice cream aisle of the supermarket.