Thoughts on Social Networking

To be honest, I joined FACEBOOK mostly to keep up with my kids--spread over three states—from Alaska to Wisconsin to Washington. On my page, I mention I’m in Real Estate, and I sell crafts…but mostly, my aim is to keep an ear to what my kids post and talk about online, as well as keep up with other friends and family members. I don’t have a stylish, customized site, or music that starts up as you load my page, or any of the hundreds of gadgets and links one may have in order to be truly hip in the technological world of online networking. And, like many of my era, I struggle to MySpace and Twitter and Blog and Ecademy and Email and Skype…and I don’t do them all.

But, I love the little “gifts” of social networking; Photos and links to interesting things others want to share. This weekend I got a little message from a former boss/partner of mine whom I shared 13 years in the black tie dj entertaining business. It’s wedding promotion season in Wisconsin and the bridal fairs and shows have begun. Like our days of old, Joe has his system set up and is raking in the prospects. He wrote me to share that a photographer contact of ours stopped in to say hello, and had inquired after me – sending his hello via Joe through Facebook.

It was a warm spot all day and I mentioned it on the phone to my son the next evening. You know, sort of in the context of “Guess who remembered me!” because it’s almost 9 years since I’ve seen the gentleman. How nice to be remembered…and all that.

Not much further into the conversation my son mentioned that every so often, it occurs to him how very [SMALL, SHELTERED, NAÏVE] – he didn’t come up with the word he wanted to describe his rural upbringing in Smalltown, Midwest USA. So he illustrated his point. (I paraphrase) “Do you realize how little that photographer had on his mind, that he still thought of YOU after all of these years? Do you understand that just not that much goes on in Rural America….?”

Well, my happy little bubble burst as I thought of that. Perhaps the photographer wasn’t necessarily remembering ME so much as not that much has altered in the pattern of his life and he marks my absence because of it. Maybe that’s why the tendency to gossip is so rampant in Smalltown, USA? Not that much new, not that much different happens to disrupt a lifestyle that centers around folks and family.

Conversation pivots around folks and family. A professional in his business remembers co-workers in the industry a decade after the fact… People talk mainly…of other people. My son noted that the office turnaround in one of his Seattle places of employ has completely rotated in the past five years. No veteran staff. No history. No memories. Nobody remembers…

Days later, I find I’m still mulling the conversation over. I am also currently happy being almost anonymous in Tucson. But, I believe there’s a lot to be said for history, and relationships, and community. I LIKED being remembered by that Wisconsin photographer.


Social networking is the current way to “gossip” among folks and family in the age of computers. I use it almost daily to stay in tenuous touch with those I love and care about. And, hopefully, make a few new friends along the way. I’ll always be a small town girl and it just hit me that it’s so. My life has meaning because of folks and family.

The Commercialism of America

So I work up this morning to the blare of my Hannah Montana radio singing, what else, “10 Things I hate about you” and confirmed the time on my Hannah Montana wrist watch. Yep…had to go to work. Reluctantly, I climbed out of my Hannah Montana silk coverlet, smoothed my Hannah Montana pillow set, and set to get up.

Moving aside my Hannah Montana shower curtain, I had a nice shower with my Hannah Montana shower wash and used my special Hannah Montana hand mitten for a good wake up call. Drying off with my Hannah Montana beach towel, I added a little Hannah Montana lotion from my special Hannah Montana hand dispenser to make everything silky smooth. I brushed my hair with my Hannah Montana hairbrush and then I put on my Hannah Montana t-shirt, bermudas, baseball hat and co-ordinating pink scarf, waved to my Hannah Montana wall poster and grabbed a Hannah Montana cheese stick on the way out the door. (I’ll save the Hannah Montana Breakfast crunch for another day – watching carbs)

Starting the car, I hummed along with Best of Both Worlds on my Hannah Montana CD and read the back to school billboards along the route featuring my favorite Hannah Montana clothing wear. SALE TIME!

At lunch, I pulled out my Hannah Montana frozen dinner, and set it on my Hannah Montana plate, got me a Hannah Montana yogurt stick, and poured some drink into my Hannah Montana plastic cup. Keeping neat, I was sure to use my Hannah Montana napkin set too. Then it was back to work and I pulled out my Hannah Montana pencil, pen set, out of my Hannah Montana purse and set to writing notes on my Hannah Montana notepaper.

I got a lovely surprise in the afternoon – my hunnie sent me some pink carnations with Hannah Montana Balloons. What a mind reader! I blew him a kiss, because I keep his face close by on my Hannah Montana bentwood table in my favorite Hannah Montana picture frame. After a quick stretch in my Hannah Montana director’s chair, it was back to finish my day!

Glancing at my Hannah Montana wall calendar, I noted what was up for tomorrow, took one last look around my office adored with my Hannah Montana wall paper border, fluffed my Hannah Montana pillows arrayed in a special corner, and shut off my Hannah Montana lamp for the day.

…They said Elvis Pressley had difficulty adapting to fame and all that it entailed back in the day…leading to his lifestyle choices and eventual demise. (Yeah, I know, I'm dating myself) What is it about America that thrives on the Star, the Enquirer, People, the Media, YouTube, MySpace, and more?. Where does it end?…When does it start all over?... Where does it go from here? Can this be fixed?

It used to be you paid extra for cable and avoided commercials. Now we pay extra for stations like NFL or movie channels…and even those are saturated in commercialism. In watching the Jets against Giants this weekend, by the end of the first half (30 minutes game time) we’d been watching tv 90 minutes….COMMERCIALS. Now, we even get to watch advertisements BEFORE movies in the theatre.

So all this commercialism fuels the stars/athletes/talking head salaries they say. So, What happens NEXT? Are there limits?
To quote an 80’s icon, please, STOP THE INSANITY!!!
Well, let me know...I'll be watching the Hanna Montana Show...