Of memes and more

For my regular readers, you'd have noticed that in the comments thread of Wikihop! Boing Boing Boing I promised an entry on memes, and here it is *trumpets blare, TADAH*

So, what is a meme? Checking on Wikipedia or Dictionary.com won't get you very far, as they provide answers that are too official. For bloggers - especially ones who write about their personal life - a meme is a series of questions, usually looking for scandalous (*smirk*) or juicy answers, in order to draw attention or to let the readers know the writer better.

--NOTE: I'm not altogether sure on this point, actually, as an extremely large group of people consider those "personality tests" memes - the type that gives you a result to post on your blog. In my community, however, memes are solely quizzes with no "results"; rather, you are expected to post your answers and all the questions - typically enough to fill the entire post already!--

And thus I went around various sites, looking for interesting memes (comment below if you find some more!), and my favourite ones are logged below:

1) the Wikipedia meme! I came across this from the comments on the Wikihop! Boing Boing Boing post.

Go to Wikipedia and type in your birthday (month and day).

Blog 3 events, 2 births, 1 holiday and tag 5 friends.

Most memes tell your readers things about you: this one tells you things about you, cool huh! (once again I repeat, "memes" here does not include personality quizzes). What's more, you get to subtly remind your friends about your birthday(:

2) Nostalgic songs meme

1. Go to PopCulture.
2. On the left column, pick the year you turned 18 years old.
3. Get nostalgic over the songs.
4. Write about the songs.
5. Pass this to 5 other friends.

I must say, this meme can really bring back memories - whether warm, melancholic or hilarious - of days long gone. Helps your readers learn about your teenage years too!: just don't skimp on part 4.

3) The Random Shuffle meme

INSTRUCTIONS:
1. Put your music player on shuffle.
2. Press forward for each question.
3. Use the song title as the answer to the question even if it doesn’t make sense. NO CHEATING!

How do you feel today?

What’s your outlook on life?
What does your family think of you?
What do your friends think of you?
The Internet is for Porn - Avenue Q
What do strangers think of you?
Will you get married?
Are you good at school?
Will you be successful?
What song should they play on your birthday?
What song should they play at your graduation?
What Do You Do With A B.A. In English/It Sucks To Be Me - Avenue Q
The Soundtrack of your life?
You and your best friends are?
Happy times:
Sad times:
Every day:
For tomorrow:
For you:
What does next year have in store for me?
What do I say when life gets too hard?
What song will I dance to at my wedding?
What do you want as your career?
Your favorite saying?
How will I die?
What is some good advice for me?
How can I make myself happy?
What song will they play at my funeral?
What does everyone else think my current theme song is?
What do I think my current theme song is?

Most importantly, offer your interpretation of what it means! That's when the funnies start.

Ok I just realized that this post has gone wayyy too long, so rather then ramble on, I invite you to post in the comments a link to a meme that you've done!

What You Need:

- A blog

- A friend (to pass the meme on)

- Self-deprecating humor

Resources:

- YOUR MEMES! PLEASE COMMENT BELOW(: