When Did Trending Become a Verb?

Trending now on Yahoo.....Kim Kardashian, student loans billow, Obama Clinton beef, FaceBook stock, Lauryn Hill's ex, Kelly Preston. And trending on CNN: airbrushed photos, "mommy porn" pulled from Florida bookshelves, and roller derby.

Trending on this blog: Nausea from all this trending.

Do I really need people to tell me what's hot right now....what's "trending"? And when did the word trend even start becoming a verb. Apparently, a long time ago. It's the latest trend.

According to Merriam-Webster's online dictionary, trending can certainly be used as an intransitive verb -- the definition being to show a tendency or deflection or to veer in a certain direction. In the past we've primarily heard it used to describe weather patterns or the economy.  "The prices are trending upward."  "The prevailing winds are trending east-northeast.

Now on the news, we're constantly told what's trending now. Like we are cattle that needs to be trending in a certain direction.  The next time I hear a newscaster tell me what's trending, I will scream.

Apparently, because of the Internet we, as a collective group of cattle, like this trending trend. We want to know what is hot and buzzing -- and we want it now. Instant gratification wins out! Apparently describing people, events and items as trending is not leaving us anytime soon. It's the new buzzword, and unfortunately we're stuck with it.

Google has even gone so far as to add a Google Trend search option. My check one minute ago shows that trending in the U.S. right now: Dancing With the Stars, NCIS: Los Angeles, the solar eclipse, Brevard County, flesh-eating bacteria and The Preakness.  There. You were hip for maybe a minute, if that. Google's option lets you see what's hot in a gazillion areas right now and on which Web sites. It does so by measuring the hottest searches on any particular site, including it's on search engine.

For example, the coolest, up-to-the minute recipes trending on allrecipes.com right now are: chicken salad, egg salad, asparagus, quiche, tilapia, pork chops, coleslaw and pasta.  How could you have possibly gone on with your day with knowing what foods are trending. I don't know about you, but I'm making pasta salad with pork, tilapia and asparagus tonight.

Trending right now in Europe? The Olympic torch run was a "farce" say newspapers/public, Greece is setting up elections despite bank panics, everything you wanted to know about sunscreen and Why I hate my face. Ten FaceBook tips are trending high on Twitter right now.  Oh wait, now that is so five minutes ago. Moving on......