Facebook Makes a Birthday Better

Be honest here. How many of you check your Facebook wall for birthday wishes on your birthday? How many of you make it one of the first things you do upon waking on your birthday?

Come on. Admit it. It's important, right?

Today is my birthday, and I'll admit that one of the first things I did today was go to my Facebook wall and admire the number of birthday wishes I had received already.

It's like high school all over again. As if the number of Facebook birthday wishes somehow determines your popularity among your friends. And the number is important. It's all about quantity here, am I right? The more 'Happy Birthdays" you receive, the better birthday it will be.

Most of the birthday wishers I haven't seen in years, and to be honest, never really associated with them in high school either, but that doesn't matter. It's like an unwritten rule that if someone's birthday pops up in the Events column on your wall, you're obligated to wish them happy birthday. It's the right thing to do.

And how do you handle your birthday wishes? Do you take time to go through the list, 'liking' each one so that the person that sent the wish knows you saw it? Or, do you wait until the end of the day and lump a 'thank you' into one post, hoping everyone sees it and knows you received their greeting? Personally, I 'like' each one. Somehow, that seems more personal to me.

I hate when the person with the birthday gives a group thank you early in the day. It makes it seem like a late birthday wish if you wish them happy birthday afterward. Like it's an afterthought, ya know?

Birthday Wishee (8am): Thanks everyone for the birthday wishes! I feel so special!

Birthday Wisher (8:01am): Happy Birthday! (thinking: sorry I'm so late in wishing you happy birthday. Hope you had a great one!)


See? See how it makes a wisher almost need to apologize for being late in delivering the wish? And what about all the ones that will wish you happy birthday after you've already thanked everyone? Do you go back later in the day and thank everyone again? If not, won't those that wished you happy birthday after the fact feel like you've neglected to thank them. As if you've ignored their greeting? There's just too many what-ifs when you thank everyone too early.

So, I like each individual birthday greeting, then at the end of the day, I will send a group thank you to ensure everyone knows that I appreciate their greeting.