Yeah, I know, Plurk has questions-for-Karma spammers. Yes, I also know that Plurk has the occasional person who uses their plurks solely to show us how important (they think) they are. Those people are annoying, but you can find people like that everywhere, on-line or even in that weird real-life place. On Plurk, you can even get rid of them! But that’s not most of the people, anyway. Most of the people on Plurk are absolutely effing marvelous!

I already knew that, of course, but it was brought home to me with absolute clarity last night and again this morning. I looked down at the Mac calendar icon in my taskbar a little after midnight, and it said “24.” It dawned upon me that it was my birthday, so I started this thread for the hell of it, expecting a couple of “happy birthdays” and a quick thread death.

Instead, just look at that birthday thread (if you didn’t already), not because it’s my birthday, but because of the responses. I was quite taken aback, seriously emotionally affected, and absolutely astonished. I had not seen that kind of response to my birthday since I turned 40, in 1987, on Compuserve, where I was by then an elder statesman of sorts there. Here (thank goodness) I am just another yeoman Plurker. And look at the response!

Next time you’re not doing anything, announce on Twitter (the announcement channel) that it is your birthday. I have seen people do that, people with hundreds of followers, and not get a single response. That, all by itself, is enough to insure that I think of myself as a Plurker and not a Tweeter. I certainly would never say a word about my birthday there. It would give me a complex.

But I am extremely happy that I announced it on Plurk. It makes me feel incredibly lucky to be a member of this site, and to be privileged to associate with the truly class people of Plurk. Looking at the last couple of sentences, it is clear that I am running out of superlatives. I guess all I needed to do was say, “Thanks!”

Thanks!

I’m KDFrawg on Plurk. If it’s your birthday, let us all know!