“Measure a friend by how far they will drive, without question, in the middle of the night to help you in a crisis.” Chandler
Just about everyone I know has a facebook account or profile, some more than one.
I also know a few people, and kids are excluded here, who refuse to take part in probably the greatest evolution of connectivity ever seen so far. People who jealously guard their privacy and have a very healthy cynicism of big corporatism and big brother. People who have something to hide. People who think that by them not having a facebook profile means they will be recognised by their peers as one who swims upstream, one who goes against the established order of things. The irony of these last few words is that unless you have a profile you won’t be recognised because no one will see your efforts in being different, no one will even think of you.
Just about everyone I know measures their standing and their pecking order by how many hundreds of ‘friends’ they have. I use the term ‘friends’ lightly. Up until quite recently I valued my past relationships with people that I shared a history with; but having facebooked for some years now has made me realize that, with the exception of the important people in my life who I share an ongoing relationship with – this is my disclaimer people! - for some perhaps this is not reciprocated or felt.
Like you, facebook has allowed me to connect with some people that I knew from decades ago, people that were in my life at that time but have not been ever since. Initially I was intrigued by what they have been up to. But not anymore. I’m actually not interested in most of their stories. Most of them are mundane anyway. And I’m definitely over their pathetic status updates every few minutes. I don’t care. Does it show?
Us ‘friends’, we’re probably not going to get together for a social drink or meal, we probably will never speak over the phone. I probably won’t meet you at the airport when you fly in, you probably won’t stay at my house. And I don’t expect any of these things from you either. But…if we do meet and we actually get along still, in the flesh, then fantastic and I look forward to a great relationship with you.
I started this today thinking more along the lines of the complexity of facebook (and of course for the self important twats who tweet, the complexity of twitter). Have you ever stopped and applied a bit of brain power to just how friggin complicated the facebook programming must be. I am B.C. so I have neither idea nor any inclination to understand how it’s done. What I do know is this, somebody I went to primary school with decades ago, can link up with me from the other side of the world and in a few minutes can see pictures of my kids, of me and of my last camping trip, can see a complete list of people that I know, can see what interests me, what my favourite movie is, what I read, what I do, where I went to school and what on-line games I play. I can find out the same about him / her, using their contact / friend list I can link up with their mates and mates of their mates. I can use my profile to tell the world via my status – either just to my friends or friends of my friends – what I had for breakfast, what I’m going to do today, what the weather is like, what the surf is like and what I’m going to have for dinner. I can declare my love to my wife, my family and when I’m drunk to my mates. I can check into places so that you know where I am and I can see where you are. I can like pages that represent my personality and my taste. I can see what you like.
But I can’t smell you, I can’t see you laugh, I can’t see your tears. I can’t catch a lift with you, we can’t chat over a beer, we can’t stand round the fire together. There is a certain distinctive irony in the term ‘social network’. Just my thoughts.
Until tomorrow.
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