Facebooking...and Griping

I've been on the geek sites (Livejournal, until I found out it was a whore-house of porn writers. Mugglespace, Youtube, Darkufo (for my LOST fix), and had mostly family members and close friends on Myspace.) for years.

But Facebook is something I entered slowly and cautiously. Mostly because I put my real name and identity are there.

Facebook does have a many practical uses. It does a good job of connecting people, helps us to share information quickly and efficiently. It does exactly what it's supposed to do.

I'm more concerned with what Facebook does not do...Primarily make social interactions as sincere and seamless as I want them to be.

I used to resent the fact that I had to accept 'friend'  requests from people who I really don't know well, in hopes of getting to know them well. (BECUZ THEY DIDN'T WANT TO GIVE YOU THE TIME OF DAY WHEN YOU WERE TALKIN' TO DEM IN REAL LIFE!!)

This "friending to make friends" by the way, doesn't work. If someone extended a "Friend-ship" to you, it doesn't mean they want to get to know you better. 'Facebook Friends' are actually just aquainances. Aquaintances who have access to most of the stuff I write for my family and real friends, they can look at all of the stuff I "Like", where I work, how much school I've had, and as a result they get to make judgement about me.

(:D

The worst thing about this is it (at least at first, and at least for me) it creates the illusion of an interpersonal relationship, because they might know everything about you but still not "know you". Very sad.

Here are a few more of my gripes on facebook-style social networking.

• Private Messages-In my opinion, some things are not private enough. Some things are, you know, private....meaning you don't talk about them with other people unless you are in each other's confidence. I have difficulty having confidence in someone I can't see. So, unless you're the deity I pray to, get to know me face to face before trying to 'get to know me' via PM.

(Plus, I don't want to hear IN A PRIVATE MESSAGE about your trip to the bishops office or the type and amount of sex you have had in the past.)

• Trolling-You'd think there would be some accountability on a site like Facebook, where people pretty much know who you are (AND WHERE YOU LIVE!!) And there is more accountability...maybe...kinda...not really....They're actually proud of being jerks...kind of like Shrek is proud of being a smelly oger (ok, so we know he's actually ashamed of it sometimes, but he is never successful in changing his ways)

(Trolling? Facebook has no Trolls, they have OGERS!)

*Actually I think some of the breeds of Oger flourish particularly well in this habitat, they just have to know how to avoid the big billy goats gruff.

• Tagging-The first time I was tagged at a Facebook event I was so confused about what "Tagging" was. How someone I hardly knew, picked me (and 27 others) out of a crowd. I pictured it in my head that there was some dude with a smartphone; "Oh, I see her, and her, and him!) CREEEPERS!

*A side adventure here is the time I created a Facebook event called "The Toilet" (or was it, The Bathroom"? I can't remember.) and tagged myself there. (Yes, it was very juvenile. XDD)

• Friends-I'll admit I've added friends who ONLY were "Friends" because they vaguely remember seeing me at a real life event and then I was "tagged" on Facebook. Really kind of pathetic, now I have "Friends" who I don't know that I'll ever see again. 

• Similar Interests/stalking-I'll admit I'm guilty of this. It's not exactly hard to do, as soon as you express an interest in a product or service little adds pop up showing you each and everyone on your friend's list who also "likes" that (It also suggests people who you can "suggest" the "like" to. 

Despite all of this, Facebook does make keeping in touch a lot easier. Very few people will know about this blog post until I post a link on Facebook next month.