Facebook Pages.

Facebook as some or most of us know is a social networking site that connects people. Apart from connecting people and getting them back in touch, it is filled with a lot of pages; for celebrities, TV Series, Magazines, Quotes and Businesses. Some of us have "liked" either one or many pages from the above mentioned categories.
I must confess that I have never actually checked out some of the pages that I "liked." I am one of those people who are content with reading the status updates of the page especially if it's a celebrity's page or a TV Series page. All this changed when my best friend sent me a link to a fan page created by fans for fans of one of my favorite reality show in Africa.
First of all; I am a true addict of Facebook. If I am not on my laptop, I am always on my blackberry writing to my friends or updating my status and commenting on some of my friends' updates. I was trying to kick the addiction until my friend sent me the link to that fan page. Being on it has generally worsened my addiction and I have learnt a few things from it;
I "liked" the page initially because I knew it'd come in handy during days when I am not able to watch the show but still want to know what's happening. I never knew how fun it could be being on an interactive page until I visited it and read through fans wall posts. I now find myself posting and commenting on other people's posts even when I am watching the show.
We have all "liked" pages on Facebook but I have never been on an unofficial page that has been able to reach out to most African countries and fans from abroad. It is amazing that there are all sorts of people from different countries and it continues to grow with each passing day. I guess its growth has to do with the fact that it's more interactive than the official page of the show and the people on it are a little friendlier.
I now know how unreasonably passionate people can be about something or someone. As it is a page for a reality show, most fans have unwavering support towards their country representatives even undeserving ones. They usually attack anyone who says something negative about their representative even when it's the hard cold truth!
One thing I know about Nigeria is that they run the music industry in Africa alongside South Africa. They've managed to put their music onto the international scene and we have all danced to some of their popping tunes. The other thing I've learned about them from that page is that when it comes to this reality show, they have solidarity amongst themselves. They will defend and vote their own because to them, winning is their birth right and so it shall be, even though they have won the past two consecutive years.
It is a good platform to learn about other countries and languages. I find Nigerian Pidgin English so fascinating. Most of their words sound to cool and they beg to be used by curious people like myself even when I don't know the actual meaning. I now know how to greet in pidgin "how una dey", how to ask 'what's going on?' "wetin dey?" and that "W.A.H.A.L.A D.E.Y" means 'there's a problem.'
I have learned to value people's opinions so as to avoid being provoked into senseless arguments because a person will stand by it and trying to sway him/her is a fruitless and aggravating process. An opinion is someone's right however wrong it might be.
I never joined the fan page with the intention of making friends. I always think the fewer friends, the better. What is surprising is that I have made a few friends from and on that page. Some sent friend requests which I accepted and find fantastic because it never hurts learning something new about people every day.
The utterly best thing about this page is that it's something where all fans of the show get a chance to share thoughts, ideas and also rant about the show itself and other unrelated subjects. It is absolutely fun and I love it.
Every time I post or comment on that page, my mind always gives a silent thank you to my best friend because she knows how much of an addict I am to the show and the fan page. Being on it has made me contemplate the thought of creating my own Facebook page though I don't have a clue as to what I should have as content nor what it should be about.
Whatever page you belong to, try and be a little interactive, I am sure you'll end up liking it more than just pressing the 'LIKE' button.