The Happy Birthday Greetings In The Age of Social Media

I was quite ecstatic at the number of greetings I received on my birthday at Facebook. The figure was far less on Twitter, which proves my suspicion that the Dunbar number argument is probably right when it comes to numbers. Of course, my birthday this year falls on Eid, or, the Eid falls on my birthday. Much as I ponder over the nature of online discourse and the fast paced technological growth, it is also true that I have never received so many birthday greetings all my life. There were airmail days earlier when I did get cards but not 90 or 100 cards. Then, we had the email days and the e-card days when most of us used the free Blue Mountain greetings but even then, I never got so many greetings in a single day. Even last year, when I had embraced social media (read: Twitter), it wasn't a deluge. This year, I think, it is the Facebook effect. I still remain unconvinced and worried about the possible dangers that lurk in the Facebook model. But the number of greetings that I have received today does make me feel good.