It is 11 o’clock on a Tuesday night. A half written English essay sits atop a stack of papers, an array of math problems sit waiting for answers and my history book lies on the floor  with my unfinished notes. My laptop hums with electricity as my Internet browser opens up. After a few clicks, I am on the right page. My Tumblr dashboard illuminates the screen.

I scroll through posts from the day, taking in a smattering of artsy photographs, updates from my favorite TV shows and, of course, those stupidly hilarious Internet memes. All show up on Tumblr’s sleek, pleasingly unembellished dashboard.

Periodically I will ‘like’ a cool photograph. If it really catches my eye, I might just ‘reblog’ a Doctor Who GIF.
This simplistic concept sets Tumblr apart from other social networking sites. Tumblr offers sheer entertainment, removing the social pressures of sites like Facebook and Twitter.

By stripping away the technical confusion of blogging sites, Tumblr gives amateur bloggers a lighting fast, easy way to maintain and follow blogs. With Tumblr, I can upload anything from a quirky Einstein quote to a Vampire Weekend audio clip without worrying about third party websites or a 140-character limit. Easiness makes up Tumblr’s essence.

I continue scanning through  my dashboard, laughing at  Harry Potter GIFs and reblogging unique drawings. Blogs with names like ‘dailyotter’ and ‘ilovecharts’ cover my dashboard, each one a tiny community making up the giant community of Tumblr. Tumblr has something for everyone. If it exists, someone has probably created a Tumblr page for it.

Tumblr takes a different spin on social networking. While Facebook focuses on who I know, Tumblr focuses on what I love. By following blogs like ‘prettybooks’ and ‘theofficescreencaps’, I can connect with others who share similar interests with me. Yet despite this key social aspect, Tumblr still provides an undying sense of anonymity.

The beauty of Tumblr lies in that I can keep my identity private. I can fangirl and obsess over everything I love without having to worry about being judged. I tumble purely out of self-satisfaction for my own enjoyment. Tumblr acts as a creative outlet. It provides users with a 21st century means of expression. As said on its About page, Tumblr, at the most basic level, represents “millions of people sharing the things they do, find, love, think, or create.”