Dad: The Day Susan Went Viral

If you were anywhere near Facebook on Friday, you probably saw this photo of our daughter:

Turns out, so did a lot of other people. Our daughter was probably the third most talked-about thing on Facebook that day, right behind Obamacare and how MISERABLY hot it was. 

Actual photo of our front yard Friday. I don't have to mow this week!

So every week, my office selects a “Duke Fan of the Week” from user-submitted photos and throws the picture up on GoDuke.com. I submitted Susan’s picture (along with a hefty bribe) to the judge, with whom I also share an office. The next morning Susan was the latest fan of the week. It was that easy. Should the NCAA come knocking at my door next week, you can all look forward to WAY more blog posts as I’ll have a lot of time on my hands after I’m fired.

After Susan earned the distinctive Fan of the Week honor, Mary Jane and I shared the news on our FB walls, and all was well. Then one of my other co-workers posted the photo to the Duke Athletics Facebook Page, and Susan went viral. As of Sunday night, the photo had gotten almost 6,000 likes and over 100 comments. Most of the comments were about how cute Susan was, although there were a few idiot UNC fans who had to make sure their voices were heard (I should note that not all UNC fans are idiots…only the ones who insult babies on the Duke Facebook page). I don’t have the numbers in front of me, but I’m pretty sure it was the most awesome thing ever posted to the Duke Athletics Facebook page.

I’d like to think that for a lot of people that day, Susan’s picture was a welcome distraction from the War of Words being waged among the closet Constitutional scholars on Facebook debating the Rise/Fall of America that will be brought on by the verification of the health care act. While I’m sure some people had valid points on either side, the emotionally-charged arguments lost their effect when they got sandwiched between photos of cute dogs and Magic Mike.

So if you log on to Facebook and don't feel like scrolling through 17 different political debates, go to the Duke Athletics Facebook page and get Susan over 6,000 likes. If I reach 6,000 I get a sizable raise, or at least that's what I'm going to try and convince my boss of on Monday.