(This moblog entry kind of follows on from The might of Ikea versus the power of Twitter)

I quickly made a 'backdoor entry' (ie via the checkouts) into Ikea, bypassing the normal shopping labyrinth. I headed straight into the bulky goods self-serve section. Having been screwed twice previously by Ikea on the availability of the extra shelves, I knew exactly where to go.

Of course, contrary to what Ikea told me, there were about 40 shelves in stock - FINALLY! As exciting as that was, @aDB (Matthew Hall) had helped find a new way to make Twitter fun, and I was about to find it.

In tweet #1 Matthew let the world know what he was up to. Tweet #2 confirmed the location of the loot. The world's first #twittercache was set and #twittercaching was born!

I pulled the open top of the display card holder away from the shelf, being careful not to disturb Ikea's product information or break the holder. Neatly folded behind the Ikea card was a sheet of paper with some handwritten information (seen in this photo) and a hand-drawn Twitter bird. The #twittercache was mine! I quickly shared news of the find.

But #twittercaching is only fun if another #twittercache is then set. With time against me, and in absence of anything remotely cool to leave behind (except my wallet or mobile), I made a few 'enhancements' to Matthew's #twittercache and redeployed it at Ikea Rhodoes/Homebush Bay (Sydney).

I'd love to see this #twittercaching thing take off. It's cheap (if not 100% free) and it's a whole lot of fun. If you make the effort and find my #twittercache, it includes some instructions on how to claim a special prize which I am funding (to celebrate this milestone).

So, who's up for some #twittercaching fun? It's as simple as:

Step 1:
Hide a note and/or object for a fellow Twitterer to find. Just like GeoCaching, you generally leave your details on the cache note, with room for future #twittercachers to add their mark.

Step 2:
Tweet it's location (as blatantly or as cryptically as you like), and use the #twittercache or #twittercaching hashtag to tell the world.

Step 3:
Help spread the word about #twittercaching and set (or find and re-set) as many #twittercaches as you can!

Step 4:
Whenever you find a @twittercache, make sure you let the other twitters noted on the cache now about your success. It's a great way to meet new friends and find new folks to follow in Twitter.

You can click here to follow my ramblings in Twitter. It might just be the least exciting thing you do all day ;-)