The Mind of Mierow

I learned an important lesson yesterday – 140 characters can mean different things to different people, and sometimes you want to be REALLY clear in what you’re trying to say with them.  Yesterday was Mother’s Day, and as I’ve done since I got married, I wished my wife a Happy Mother’s Day. We don’t yet have any children, but that hasn’t stopped us from this day or Father’s Day wishes. I’m of the opinion that they two days don’t discriminate against people who don’t have kids. They are days to celebrate that sex, for all they do, and their contributions to you.

I’ve twittered (tweeted?) any number of things that may pop into my mind throughout the day. Yesterday was no exception to this pattern. So I twittered the following: “ caribou for the mrs after church. happy mother’s day to her. going to meet the parents & little bro for lunch in about an hour”.  I did not realize what commotion could arise from such a statement. At first glance it appears pretty normal, maybe even bland. Five words in the middle is where I needed explanation: “happy mother’s day to her”.

To a few people that follow what information I spew out on Twitter, those five words conjured a different meaning than what I had intended. To those few it was a hint, or insight that I may have bigger news in store. I was sad to report to them that I had no bigger news. I responded to the inquiries either through Twitter or IM and got everything straightened out. It is what it was, just a wish.

This has helped bring home the importance of clarifying my communication with others. As I put more of myself out there for the world to see I need to think about how I may say something. If I’ve only got 140 characters to give, I want to give each of them my attention and meaning.