rivervox

Last night was the final show of our Parent/Teacher play. It is so much work, (3 months of rehearsal) and so much fun that it consumes my winter. This year I played a male character and wore sideburns, silver Converse All-Stars and I got to sing a rock song. I'm exhausted and exhilarated and can't wait to do it again. Last night was our cast party and something strange happened.

A group of people were talking about facebook and I was asked if I used it. I said I prefer twitter and was deluged with questions about it: How does it work? Who should I follow? How do you find people? What do you say? I started explaining how I was able to find people with similar interests on twitter. For example, I like the music of Amanda Palmer and I'm in touch with fans around the world that I've never actually met. Amanda's name was a showstopper.  "I saw her TED talk" someone exclaimed. "Me too". "That was amazing" "I emailed it to everyone" "You have to watch it!". "The Art of Asking" became the hot topic in the room. I told them I was one of her backers, part of the fan community. The questions turned to the kickstarter and the fan base and how it all works. I did my own mini-TED about how important connections and relationships are for artists, musicians and writers. It was cool to speak to these people, (doctors, lawyers, engineers) about a topic which is so dear to my heart. I felt vulnerable exposing this part of my life, which I don't talk about much since I don't know anyone who is interested. They are interested now.

As I walked away from that conversation,  I realized that I had just experienced a turning point in Amanda's career and social media in general. TED is a huge amplifier for both individuals and ideas. I want to tell Amanda that at the cocktail parties of Boston, everybody's talking about her. They are curious, excited and open to the message. Welcome to the next level!