Friday, January 11, 2008

Why I don't tag on memes

Someone may have noted that I didn't tag on the meme. Several reasons. Mostly, because it feels the same as forwarding email. Or participating in chain letters. I received a chain letter or two in grade school and was immediately and thoroughly inculcated by my mother about why not to participate in them. It was drilled into my psyche, and I now *cannot* do anything that feels like that. Forward emails. Tag people on memes. Participate basically at all in anything that spreads "virally."

Okay. So there's also the fact that I'm pretty new to the blogosphere and don't know that many people on it. But here are my internal rules. I will never forward *anything* whether I like it or not that has something like "forward this to at least five people" at the bottom of it. I don't care if it promises me that I'll feel the love or make someone's day or that I'll end up as demon-possessed if I don't. I do not forward for the sake of forward. If I ever forward something to you it's because it's something that *I* want to share with *you.* That made me think of you. That I think you'll get a kick out of. Likewise, if I ever tag someone on a meme, it'll be because I really want to know your answer to that particular meme. I'll choose you personally. But I promise that I'll never tag someone as filler because I need six names and could only come up with two. Because anyone I would have tagged was already caught earlier in the process and one of those people was the one who tagged me.

But here's the inconsistent bit. I really don't mind being tagged. I rather enjoy it. It gives me some things to think about. I don't mind getting forwards. Well, at least if they're not completely sacharrine. I do mind getting chain mail.

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