Then it became all about getting "friends." More cousins. Poodle people. Teaching friends. Acquaintances. I looked for former students to see what they were doing, where they went to school. I became a "stalker," looking at others' friends lists to see who I could add to mine. I kept track of my nephew & niece's baby bump and nursery decoration, visits from grandchildren, meanderings of the minds of others.
This was followed by the taking quizzes. Silly questions, inane answers-- but I still wanted to know. If friend X was Desdemona in a Shakespeare quiz, who was I? If Y's real age was 42, would I be older or younger?
Was that enought strange behavior? No. There's the "gift" giving, sending virtual gifts to "friends." I sent and received flowers, poodle pictures, and plants. This also became pillow fights and balloon fights, drinking and sending cyberdrinks.
Somehow I resisted Mafia Wars and building a farm/village/ whatever. That's because I became involved with the games. Rolling dice in Farkle, trying to make more words than Bonnie in Word Challenge, looking to match the high scores of dog friends in Bejeweled Blitz, or type faster than Betty in Typing Maniac.
I made myself a pledge that I would limit my visits to Facebook to twice a day. Pledge broken before the day was out.
Is Facebook an awful thing? Keeps me sitting on my butt more than I should, but I've seen some good things come out of it. I've inched into the lives of some people I care about (and some I don't). A great thrill was hearing from someone I worked with in my college days- he's a missionary in Russia now! Two people I respect discovered they have some interests in common and have become friends. I learn a little about a little. I feel connected...to something...
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