Who Knew My Dad Was Next?

I was the oldest person at the Grimey’s Record Store performance, by far, I thought as William Fitzsimmons and Jenny Owens Young set up in the tiny space.  I leaned against a bin of used LP’s, not knowing what to expect from the thin Fitzsimmons in his trucker hat, but if the crowd was any indication, I was in for something different at the very least.   I was not disappointed, nor were the thirty or so other people who looked on, crunched up amidst import CD’s and curling concert posters.  Fitzsimmons was understated, melodic and heartbroken if his lyrics were representative of the last 24 months of his life, as they often are.

The median age in the small space seemed to be around 20 years old.  Connected, hooked up, never out of reach.  I know this because as Fitzsimmons whispered the melodic all-so-universal phrase, ‘You’re long gone, but you still hurt me,’ a familiar annoying buzz sizzled over the P.A..  The rhythm of it mimicked a cell phones ring, although apart from the buzz, none was heard.  Almost on cue, the entire shop started patting pockets, digging in oversized purses; discreetly acknowledging the unspoken question, ‘Is that me??’
Turns out it was Williams own phone causing the first round of buzzing, a fact he acknowledged to the nervous crowd as he passed off his phone to Jenny. There were more buzzes to come though, many in fact.

Music brought us all to Grimeys.  We all came with leashes of sorts, a small device that keeps us never too far, and provides immediate escape if everything is less than good in our present environment.  By the time I made my way to the door, there were already pictures and tweets about the event, posted and replied to.  I know because I was one of them, and though I am not considered a ‘native’ to the web, as the majority of the room was, I am a solid base in a growing number, the older adults who are active in social networking.

Here’s a fresh fact: the percentage of people who visit a social networking site at least once a day has doubled in the 35-54 year old range, from 21% last year, to 43% the same time this year.  And in the native range, (35 and under,) the jump has been a healthy 52% to 71%. [According to TNS and The Conference Board, study labeled “The Consumer Internet Barometer”]  In fact, overall, US internet users who visit social networking sites has jumped from 26% to 42%-up 16 points from the previous year, the majority of that traffic coming from women as opposed to men.

All this reflects the ongoing emerging life, both informational and social, that takes place ‘web-outward.’  And it continues to grow up the age tree, culminating for me when my young 80 year old dad asked me if he could tweet even though he is still on dial up.  Yeow.  But even his demographic had a jump, the biggest one in fact.  The 55+ almost tripled their usage.

But I am remiss mostly in my trips to Twitter, FB or MySpace.  I use it as a reward for a good days work, and since I tend to have the never-ending list, well, I don’t think they’ve made a study to show that segments growth.  How many times do you guys check a social networking site in a day?