What’s The Point of Tumblr If Facebook Has Become My Lifestream?

Let’s skip the formalities. I know I haven’t made a post in eons. But it’s been a rough month and half. So, cut me some slack.

But if the past month has taught me anything, it’s been that it’d be nice to chronicle my life. I’ve had about three journals in my lifetime. Each of them lasting a few months before coming to an abrupt end. I’m sure many of you have had journals/diaries suffer the same fate.

I thought to myself that I seem to be doing a terrible job of keeping up with this blog, but even if I wasn’t, the point of it isn’t to tell my life’s story. Then I thought of starting a tumblelog. It’s quick, it’s easy, and I can post from just about anywhere thanks to its presence technology capabilities. But every time I told myself I’m going to sit down and create my tumblelog, I never do it. I don’t know if it’s lack of motivation, daily exhaustion, or otherwise.

I was never really into lifestreaming to begin with. It all seemed so voyeuristic. Hell, I think Lifecasting with Ovi by Nokia is a bit much. It’s tracking my position every ten minutes? Do I really want people to know exactly where I am at all times? It just sounds a little too…exposed. But then I thought about it. I’ve already exposed myself. I’ve already embraced lifestreaming to the nth degree. And that’s by being an avid Facebook user.

My Facebook account has been riding shotgun in my life for years now, having kicked Flickr, this blog, and the prospect of a tumblelog, to the side. I’m already uploading all my photos and videos to it, and tagging my friends. I express how I feel through status updates. I share cool links on my wall. I find out about parties through the events application. I reconnect with old friends, and make new ones. And ultimately, I’m living my life, all the while, it’s being quietly chronicled for safekeeping. It’s my life’s digital scrapbook.

So, what’s the point of having a tumblelog at this point, if my Facebook does it all (and offers an iPhone app to boot)? I don’t have the full answer, but I think it has something to do with the fact that a tumblelog, even if publicly available, is more personal. Like your own secret garden to silently place your thoughts, and share the more intimate aspects of your life that you may otherwise be uncomfortable broadcasting out to the wonderful world of Facebook. Because let’s be real, Facebook has become the new broadcast channel (could that be a blog post?).

I work on the internet. I play on the internet. I’ve found romance on the internet. It’s basically become my home, for better or worse. And I’m starting a tumblelog because psychologically it offers me a small crevice of (voyeuristic) privacy in a life that I, like so many others, have willingly handed over to the masses.