Tag Archive - Facebook

How I became ‘friends’ with TIME’s Joel Stein

September 27, 2011 in joel stein with 0 Comments

It’s not often that us lowly non-celebs get replies on Facebook or Twitter from big time Hollywood types.  Fans frequently annoy stars to interact with them online. Usually, celebrities carefully decide who to follow on Twitter (mostly other celebrities).

A few months ago, I befriended TIME magazine’s witty and very funny Joel Stein.  For years, I enjoyed reading his column and articles, which covers such topics as: a quest exploring circumcision for his son, ridiculous privileged preschools, lamenting the influx of Indians in his hometown (Edison, NJ), doing improv for mega church Pastor Rick Warren, and how he nearly killed VH1. Speaking of VH1, you might remember him from the series I love the 80′s.  For a guy who had his own cartoon, he is pretty down to earth.

You may be thinking, all that stuff doesn’t make Joel Stein a true celebrity.  If celebrity is measured by how long your Wikipedia page is, then Joel Stein isn’t a celebrity to you. Unlike other celebs, he doesn’t have his own reality show that highlights his drunken escapades with his family. Joel never went to Italy with Snooki, but as a writer for the LA Times and television humorist, he is entertaining.

So, how did I become ‘friends’ with Joel? I tried to be his ‘friend’ on Facebook but he exceeded the limit of friends already (With the creation of Facebook, the meaning of ‘friend’ means anyone with a computer and an IQ of 63). Since Joel is “desperate for attention“, I decide to give him some and become one of his 1 million followers on Twitter.  After reading his Twitter steam, I tweeted:

My goal in life is to get @thejoelstein to follow me so that all my followers grow tired of bragging and unfollow me.

Apparently, he thought I was interesting enough and he started following this random minister-blogger from New York.  I direct messaged Joel and thanked him for the follow.  I mentioned that I used one of his columns in a sermon and he said he loved to hear about it.  He gave me his email address, which I found out later that he tells people not to email him:

I don’t want to talk to you. But don’t make me feel like you expect a return email. Because this takes my assistant four to five hours every week. I know this because my assistant is me.”

I felt special. Really special. Like a groupie who just got a backstage pass at a Steely Dan concert.

We emailed a few times and explained how I used part of his 2005 column on happiness and marriage in a sermon. He replied that I was the third pastor to tell him that (Rick Warren was the second). I joked about cursing in front of my congregation (which I didn’t do) and he gave me some advice to never use “blue” material. We exchanged some Twitter messages about how his wife went to nearby Skidmore College, travel to a little town called Albany, and life in general. I knew Joel and I would become fast friends because he ended one email with, “Great to sort of meet you.”

A few weeks later, I asked him on Twitter if I could blog about the experience of befriending such a huge celebrity. His response?

I’d be honored if you blog about me.  Or at least ambivalent about it.

Ambivalence from Joel Stein? I’ll take it!

I feel horrible that I haven’t interacted with my new friend Joel for a few months now, but then again we are not that great of ‘friends’ because we don’t talk on the phone anymore and our kids don’t play together like they use to.  I could be upset about that, but those things never happened.

Joel if you are reading this, call me or stop by to catch up on all the things we never did together. You’ll have always have a place to stay in New York when you fly in for your wife’s college reunions at Skidmore. And, thanks for the advice on my sermons too. Since rabbis now pay comedians to write jokes for their sermons, maybe you could write a few for me?

3 Reasons Why You Don't 'Like' the New Facebook

September 21, 2011 in Facebook with 0 Comments

Mark it. Wednesday, September 21 2001, Facebook changed the look of the website. Again. What else is new!  Many on Twitter and Facebook are currently commenting about how much they lament the changes to Facebook. For a free service that you don’t have to use, I’m amazed that people are so angry about it.

We’ve already seen stories about how “everyone” dislikes the new Facebook, but is it really that bad? Come on folks, is it really the end of the world? With tweets like the three below, we get a sense of people’s reactions:

“Zuckerberg apparently hired the genius behind New Coke to run Facebook.” — @MarkArum

“Facebook continues to reinvent itself, by making itself less usable yet somehow exactly the same.” — @modeps

“Complaining about Facebook format changes is the ultimate 1st world problem.” — @Jenn1ferJun1per

Despite what people say, here are three reasons why you really don’t like the new Facebook

We are afraid of being uncool.  Changing Facebook is just another “first world problem” of keeping up with the Jones. We fear that if we don’t know how to use social media, we’ll be laughed at or even worse, tweeted about. For most people over 50, that’s not a big concern.  However, for the millions of 15-29 year-old users it is. It’s bad enough that we don’t have an iPad, but to not know how to use Facebook?  We are done for.  But, don’t worry, there are far greater things to worry about in this world.

We only like change on our terms. Read any good book on leadership and you will find out that being a leader is all about change. When our boss wants to change the way we do things at work we want to pour hot coffee down his pants. We don’t like change, but when we are the ones changing things it’s alright. Any successful process of change requires a lot of communication and a lot of support.  Unfortunately, Facebook didn’t do either of these well. As a culture, we struggle with what it means to live life without routine.  Routine is good, but being unable to adapt is our downfall.

We always think we know better. There is a reason why Facebook has like 600 million users. The people running it have the genius.  That doesn’t mean they are always right, but they have been right enough to build a successful company.  We love to complain because we think we know best.  Like Monday Morning Quarterbacks, we sit in our chairs and complain about a free service. Part of life is admitting that you are not always right. There are always two ways of responding to a problem: either you are part of the problem or part of the solution.

So, if you don’t like the changes, let Facebook know and come up with some good ideas.  Let’s be proactive and not reactive people.  Let’s be a culture that navigates change well.

How Not to be an Internet Jerk

September 13, 2011 in jerks with 0 Comments

I’m sure you have found yourself on the other end of an internet conversation with a fanatical Christian… debating abortion, government intervention, homosexuality, and other hot topics. Or, you have tried to convince your friends of their woeful ways over Facebook.  Either way, the results are not pretty.

Anyone can fall into the trap of being a  jerk on the internet: forcibly offending others, name calling, passive aggressiveness, espousing incorrect statistics from questionable secondary sources, using ALL CAPS, posting embarrassing high school pictures, and just bad behavior.  It seems Christians can, at times, be the worst offenders.  At some point in our online experience everyone has been a jerk in one way or another.

Recently, Jon Acuff, a Wall Street Journal best-selling author, wrote an article for RELEVANT magazine (apparently deemed a “hipster-Christian” publication) about his experiences with jerkiness:

When RELEVANT asked me to write this article, I originally wanted to title it, “How to Be a Jerk on the Internet.” I felt like that article would be easier for me to write because I’ve got much more experience at being a jerk than I have at not being one—ask people who went to college with me. They’ll tell you. I was a jerk online before online even existed. (That last sentence was like Inception; I was a jerk within a jerk within a jerk.)

Acuff goes on to name five ways people (Christians) can be a jerk on Twitter and pretending .  Perhaps my fav is the “Jesus juke”:

Debbie Downer

Debbie Downer

A Jesus Juke is an idea I came up with to describe the moment when you’re having a normal conversation and someone jukes in some Jesus out of nowhere. For example, I once tweeted that I was at the Conan O’Brien live tour and it was sold out. Someone responded, “If we held a concert for Jesus and gave away free tickets, no one would come.” Sad trumpet, whaaa, waaaa. A Jesus Juke is the Christian version of the Debbie Downer moment.

I’m not sure if the “Jesus juke” qualifies as jerk behavior.  That’s called being lame.

Anyway, jerks and Christians jerks take note.

Full article

Jesus, not Bieber, most 'Liked' recently

September 6, 2011 in Facebook with 0 Comments

"Like" me, my son.

Apparent, Jesus is getting into the Facebook scene… and, he’s well liked. After using Facebook to push his diet products,  Aaron Tabor, a doctor created a Facebook page called, Jesus Daily.  He started the page in April 2009 as a hobby.  Now, over 8 million people have ‘liked’ Jesus’ page.  The New York Times reports:

For the last three months, more people have “Liked,” commented and shared content on the Jesus Daily than on any other Facebook page, including Justin Bieber’s page, according to a weekly analysis by AllFacebook.com, an industry blog. “I wanted to provide people with encouragement,” said Dr. Tabor, who keeps his diet business on a separate Facebook page. “And I thought I would give it a news spin by calling it daily.”

And…

More than 43 million people on Facebook are fans of at least one page categorized as religious.

Read about Tabor and his religious upbringing.

A Bunch of (un)virtuous Monks

August 9, 2011 in front, new, sub1, Unvirtuous Abbey with 0 Comments

Church and religion doesn’t have to be stuffy and boring.  Several monks prove that.  Enter the Unvirtuous Abbey.  A bunch of monks give us everything regrettable about Christianity, culture, people, and Facebook but make us laugh at it… in a good way.  The Unvirtuous Abbey ministers to people from their Facebook and Twitter page with funny and some serious tweets and updates. Some proclaim them virtuous and others unvirtuous. I took some time to sit down with these humorous monks to see what makes them tick. You be the judge:

You monks have some very funny and very serious prayers on Twitter and Facebook. Where do you receive inspiration?

What’s become evident is how many people have been hurt by religion/church. We wondered, “What if there were unapologetic monks who actually stood up to religious bullies? And what if we threw in a bit of ‘snark’ just to make it fun and interesting?”

Humour has incredible power. Religion has the capacity to be hurtful, and many people have used it was a weapon.  It’s fun mashing up cultural references with Jesus. Of course Jesus didn’t have a magic sword, but it’s interesting to put him in that scenario:

Jesus held aloft his magic sword and said, “By the power of Grayskull!” And they spake unto one another, saying, “He has the power.”

The truth is, he does.

Your prayers mention WiFi, beer, fanny packs, Harry Potter, tattoos, and Joel Osteen. Is this what makes the monks “unvirtuous”?
Continue Reading…

My Social Media in Puerto Rico

June 21, 2011 in abc, American Baptist Churches, biennial, celebrate2011 with 2 Comments

Check out the blog this week as I will be live blogging at the American Baptist Churches Biennial in San Juan, Puerto Rico. For you Baptist folks, or observers, I’ll give all the live coverage of events, business meetings, votes, and festivities.

In addition, I’m giving an interactive lecture on social media entitled, “Sink or Swim: Treading the Sea of Social Media” on Saturday at the Pavilion Experiences during the Biennial. Three 50 minute repeating sessions 9 – 9:50, 10 – 10:50, 11 – 11:50 (morning) on June 25th at the Puerto Rico Convention Center. The immediate application will be how to better connect and integrate social media for you, your church, non-profit, or even business.

Make sure you stay tuned into On The Bema and follow me on twitter: @alanrud  Here is a little sneak peak of a social media tip we’ll talk about:

http://flash.locamoda.com/wiffiti.com/cloud/cataclysm.swf?id=66244&title=1

5 Lessons Learned from Weinergate

June 7, 2011 in anthony weiner with 4 Comments

I think we knew all the long that Rep. Anthony Weiner sent “that” (eww) picture through Twitter.  His ambiguously worded answers to direct questions regarding his involvement in sending lewd messages and pictures made us all suspicious. His behavior was bizarre, but we have seen Weiner lash out before. And, yes, the Weiner jokes have supplied talk show hosts with endless material for comedy.

This has been embarrassing for Weiner, his wife, and their families. It’s also embarrassing for us! Gosh! A congressman can’t control his urges and flirts with woman online with pictures of his body? Both Democratic and Republican parties have had naughty politicians, so we cannot say it’s about liberals or conservatives. It’s really about confronting our flaws.

Through this whole scandal we have learned some things about ourselves and our society:

Continue Reading…

The Facebook & Marriage Problem

May 17, 2011 in marriage with 1 Comment

Is it permissible for a spouse to post pictures on Facebook that display flirting with shirtless men? What’s the big deal? It’s harmless, right?

That was a listener’s question on a local radio station which features email questions on relationships, marriage, or even popular culture. I tried to call in to this radio show and throw in my two cents: Ah, are you kidding? (lines were busy, thought I thought I’d post my response)

As a pastor, I often meet with couples in premarital counseling and martial counseling. Engaged couples often balk at the idea that their partner would never cheat on them. Married couples often seek counseling when things are at the worst point in their marriage. Sometimes, it’s too late. Other times, marriages can be repaired.

If you want to know why almost half of all marriages end in divorce in this country, look no further than the example of this listener’s Facebook question.

One of the radio hosts remarked, “What’s the big deal!?! It’s harmless.” Continue Reading…

Dude Lives Off Beer During Lent

April 6, 2011 in Lent with 0 Comments

For most of us, giving something up for Lent is tough.  Chocolate, sweets, or even Facebook are popular choices for the Lenten discipline. Some give up alcohol but one man is adding alcohol to Lent. Not only that, but he is only drinking beer for Lent!

CNN’s Belief Blog recently reported that J. Wilson, a 38 year-old author of the blog brewvana, gave up food and is only drinking beer (and water)   The practice was also observed by Bavarian monks  hundreds of years ago.

Wilson is  newspaper editor and beer enthusiast. His motto of his blog is, “An ideal condition of harmony, beer and joy.”  He proclaims himself a non-denominational Christian who avoids denominational labels. His decision to drink only beer was a seriously one and required a lot of preparation: Continue Reading…

Giving up Facebook… for Lent?

March 25, 2011 in Facebook with 2 Comments

Kristi Gustafson, social media strategist/staff writer for the Albany Times Union, recently asked me about a growing trend: giving up Facebook, Twitter, and other social media for Lent.  I was glad to hear that Kristi was very familiar with the practice of Lenten fasting in the 21st century.  Check out her article and my comments:

Chocolate, swearing, eating out. These are things Christians have given up for Lent for decades.

Now there’s something new to sacrifice.

Facebook.

The average Facebook user spends 4 hours and 35 minutes a month posting updates on their relationships, checking friends’ vacation photos and playing games like Farmville on the social networking site, according to a January report from Experian Hitwise, a New York City-based global research firm.

That’s more time than most of us spend doing anything other than sleeping, exercising or being at work.

In an age in which Facebook sees more monthly traffic than Google, some Lenten observers are leaving their “friends” behind as part of their commitment to the 40-day fasting.

“Giving up the same things year after year gets boring and you have to freshen it up,” says the Rev. Alan Rudnick with the First Baptist Church in Ballston Spa. “With the popularity of social media, people will say, ‘I like Facebook or Twitter just as much as I like chocolate.’ “

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