This came off way bitchier than I intended. I wrote with a quizzitive, slightly exhausted tone, please read like that...
I have facebooking for a few weeks and it is exhausting. I am not spending 8 hours a day on it, it's just exhausting from the mere volume of Facebook concept. There are soooo many people and things to do, quizzes to take, hugs to sends, fans to be, whew! I realize that I do not have to participate in everything, and I am not. When I do get an invitation to something I will look at it until I can be a little more discretionary (but really, I haven't been invited or tagged too much so far). The most overwhelming tasks is fielding the live invitations. I know this is selfish and the opposite point of Facebook, but I really don't want to meet you up for drinks. If I haven't seen you since grade school, let's just keep it as a passive relationship. Or let's talk a little and catch up and figure out if we want to take the friendship to the next level, sort of like on-line dating. I am not really looking for new friends, I just want to catch up anonymously, without putting any real effort into it, much like TV. I see it on the screen and enjoy it, but would I really be friends with Monica and Chandler? no. (Yes, you may roll your eyes, I know I am being ridiculous/asked for this/over-reacting)
The point of Facebook to me is to see pictures of my friend's kids and see where they went on vacation. It's nice to keep up on important news of others. This is great, I won't regret Facebook for that. I have learned a lot of important news since joining (an old friend just had her first baby; an acquaintance's son was in the hospital). I just get the feeling I am back in high school. It's all about collecting friends. Someone just requested to be my friend and we mutually avoided each other in high school. It was never one thing, we just decided early on that we didn't like each other for one reason or another. Now she wants to be my friend. Is it because we have grown up and she wants to take a personal interest in my life? Or does she want to be my friend to up her number or mock me silently? I am fine with the mocking, look hard girlie. I realize you aren't going to keep up with ever single person you are friends with, but I was browsing an old friend's friends and she was friends with people that she did not associate with at all back in the day. Again, maturity or friend whore? Please understand that I am not criticizing. Well, I am criticizing the 'let's meet up' requests. Please tell me the happy hour/dinner invitation will die down.
The culture of Facebook is fascinating. I am not up on the Facebook culture & courtesies and this makes me nervous. I am having a hard enough time finding my wall. I keep emailing people to ask them how to do something. It's a little embarrassing. I didn't realize I was so old. I feel like I should start watching Matlock because I am no longer a viable citizen contributing to society if I can't even navigate a simple social networking site.
OK, just to clear things up: I like Facebook. It is overwhelming both emotionally and, sadly, technically, but I am catching up.
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4 comments to I have created a monster:
1. I agree that there are people are friend "whore"'s. I am of the persuasion of not accepting requests from people I wasn't friendly with, almost anyone I work with, anyone I'd be annoyed with reading their updates.
2. You should know they don't get a "Anna ignored you" comment or anything from you, so feel free to ignore anonymously.
3. I have gone through to cull my list, when I may have accepted people too quickly when I first joined - I don't feel bad for kicking someone off my friend list. Again, if I'm annoyed by your updates, that means we're not friends and I don't care. You're gone.
I didn't have as much of the live event invitation problem, mostly because when I started I went in with my married name and the people friending me were my current friends. I recently added my maiden name and I've gotten a few more friend requests.
Some of my 2 cents.
1. Your wall is under your profile.
2. You do not have to accept all the stupid invitations, or quizes, or join my group to save the blue spotted butterflies. I ignore all those requests. They add you to groups that don't need to know stuff about you.
3. As for the live invitations; people think you are bored and have all the time in the world when you are single. I think the happy hour invitations are about being unmarried AND living so close to where you grew up. No one invites me to their happy hours in Springfield. Thank goodness. Of course FB connected you.
4. So use FB only as much as you wish. It is fun to see pics and to stalk certain people.
Tara
I specifically state in my 'about me' section not to send me applications or stupid invites because I hate them and I won't accept them.
Friend Whore....I hate how many people I have accepted as friends over the years. I think I have been friend requested by every single person with my last name in this universe. Quite annoying.
I agree with Tara. Use it as much as you wish....don't get sucked in to all of the B.S.
I hate the event inviations too. If you are my friend you most likely have my number in which case I fully expect you to phone me and invite me to your happy hour. I will not accept some bullshit FB request.
Abbey
The FB can be quite annoying.
Dido. Dido. Amen.
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