Will You Be My Friend?

Ever since I was about five years old, that seemed like a pretty pathetic thing to ask someone. You either naturally BECAME friends when you got to know one another, or you didn't. Of course, with Facebook, that's all changed.

People (i.e., my kids and other people not sophisticated enough to read a blog, for goodness sakes!) have been suggesting to me for awhile now that I join Facebook, but I haven't seen the need. But my Quilting Porch friend Eileen is on Facebook so she can keep in touch with relatives (apparently she LIKES hers better than I like mine), and when she went into the hospital for surgery, she mentioned that her daughter and a friend would post her condition on her wall. When I heard she'd done fine in surgery but that surgery was more extensive than was initially anticipated and that she'd be in the hospital longer than first expected, I decided to join Facebook so I could find out how she was doing. The only problem has been that I joined Facebook but I can't seem to find her. I DID send her a friend request, but subsequent searches don't locate her again and she's not popping up as a friend suggestion. I think she might be going home tomorrow anyway, so I guess it doesn't really matter much at this point.

But here I am, a member of Facebook now. And my email inbox is filling up with friend requests from friends and family alike, which I've been mostly ignoring because really? I don't think I'm going to be ON Facebook that much, so there won't be much for them to see. But who knows? That could change. Maybe I'll find a long-lost boyfriend and rekindle the flame. Don't tell Hubby if that happens, okay? But there you go--yet another reason to not "friend" family members!

I did friend the Wild Child though. I don't know what I was thinking! We live in the SAME HOUSE! Why do I need to talk to her on Facebook? Besides that? I had momentarily forgotten that sometimes it's better I NOT KNOW THINGS. If you're a mom, you can probably relate. So I didn't friend Soccer Son or his Lovely Wife to be Someday. At least not yet.

Want to see what I came across on the Wild Child's Facebook page?

I posted a message asking why she was camping in a prom dress and learned she'd had to dress up when she and her band performed for a "Black and White Ball" that was held 30 miles from civilization, in the middle of nowhere. AND when they arrived? Very few of the attendees were dressed formally. But she found this gown at a thrift store (the apple doesn't fall far from the tree, does it?!) so she didn't have to put too much money into it, and she looks rather stunning in it too, even if you CAN see the outline of her bellybutton ring. (See the guy drinking out of a red plastic cup? Pretty formal, huh?!)

And Soccer Son's Facebook page? He has this photo of me posted along with a comment that says something like, "my mom can beat your mom in a go cart race." I kind of like that!

You know what else bugs me about Facebook? I have all these friend requests from people I don't know! I'm pretty sure they're people I know online, but I don't know them by their real names, nor do I recognize them, so it's kind of odd. Kind of like strangers coming up to you when you're five years old and saying, "Will you be my friend?"

So do me a favor. If you're on Facebook and you track me down and want to be my friend--we'll, I'm sure I'd be happy to, but send me a separate email telling me how I know you so I don't think you're just some random stalker, okay? Oh, and one more favor? If you see any old flames hanging around my Facebook page, don't tell Hubby, right? Gee, you really ARE a friend!