I will never regret the day that I chose typing over geography in Column B of my options list in February 1986. Learning to touch type, and now being able to type at just over 80 words per minute, has been the biggest asset of my life, more so now that 'sofalising' has become a major part of my evenings.
Sofalising is the new way to pass the "quiet" couple of spare hours between finishing what has to be done during the day (work, chores, study) and bedtime. More and more I find myself with one eye on the television screen and the other on the laptop screen. Almost everything I watch has a hashtag (#glee #bbcqt #brits #bbuk) on Twitter to accompany it, which helps to group the tweets and Twitterers talking about the same thing. Those not on Twitter update their Facebook status to comment on something happening right that minute on the small screen. Each tweet or status update is followed by a flurry of comments - but not for too long for fear of missing the next funny or shocking moment.
Part of this new trend for sofalising means that less people are recording shows because they enjoy the Twitter chat that accompanies it but the flip side is that all the Twitter and Facebook chat contains *spoilers. Does the chat enhance the experience because you find out what other people think in real time?
There was a time that I used to spend 59 minutes (calls that lasted under one hour were free) each night on the phone to my sister or my friend discussing what was happening in the world but now it's much more immediate and interesting using my social network. Also, if I get bored with one conversation, I can move seamlessly onto the next, usually without anyone feeling offended - in fact, they probably don't even notice.
I wonder if all this sofalising is healthy because of the scope of our extended networks or if we are becoming introverted and less adept at real-live conversations? Do we converse more with our online peers than our real-life family and friends because it is easier to find people with the same interests? Answers on a tweet.
*you can filter hashtags out on some third party twitter applications.