Why No Follow Back Love?

On this #FollowFriday, I have some ‘splaining to do about this –

I don’t follow people back on Twitter.

As of this writing, I have 246 followers on Twitter. I only follow 24. Mostly comedians, TV news feeds, and a handful of friends.

I’ve been called on this many times by other friends who I don’t follow or people who msg me specifically to ask for a follow back. I politely decline them all.

It’s not that I don’t love all of your or want to be involved in your virtual lives. The reason for my Twitter coldness traces back to my long-standing technophobia. (Or spendophobia, really.)

Despite the fact I went to a tech-focused university, I’ve always been a spendthrift when it comes to new technology. I never ride the wave – I wait for it to pass. When the world went crazy over palm pilots, I stuck with my imitation Franklin-Covey planner. When people were buying Gameboys and PSPs, I bought Sudoku books. It took me forever to finally give in and get a DVR. I was still using my VCR to record shows just three years ago.

And I don’t own a Smartphone. I’m still using the free phone I got when I switched to T-Mobile more than three years ago. Yes, I know I qualify for an upgrade and could probably get some sort of free Smartphone, but I’m not ready for the additional data cost yet and I don’t want to be locked into a 2-year contract. Plus I’m not ready to be one of those people whose faces are permanently planted in their phones.

So on my free phone, which doesn’t use apps, all Tweets come through as text messages. When I started on Twitter, I followed over 100 people. My phone buzzed non-stop all day. So I pared it down and started to be more selective in who I follow. I pare it down further all the time. Now my phone only buzzes every 10 minutes all day.

I’ll get a Smartphone someday and I’ll follow each and every one of you. But until then, this is how I manage my phone life. Please don’t hate me.