As a college administrator, I have been well aware of the many social networking sites. I was once on the site, but was too cautious to keep it--it does require constant monitoring so photos of yourself skinny dipping at Half Moon Beach in Eau Claire with Denise...wait, that didn't happen, or if it did, it was too dark for photos. I should know. Besides, I am aware that Facebook did start as a "college-age" only social networking site. I felt old--more about that in a minute.
But if that slap on the head about age didn't scare me off, another drew me even more towards the site. I don't know how it happened, but this summer, I will have my 30th high school class reunion. Yep, the mighty mighty Old Abes, class of 1979, are celebrating the tri-decinial (is that a word?) of our being "let out" into the real, post-high school world. Again, how did that happen? Most days, I don't feel a day over, say, 48! I guess denial, however diligently practiced, cannot change the passage of time.
So back to Facebook. It is the new Christmas card, the method in which you keep in (marginal) touch with people who you know that in theory that you should keep in touch with...and of course hope that they aren't English teachers who would deconstruct this sentence. Increasingly, us "old" people are flocking or using our walkers to join Facebook. More than 38% of users are over 35. More than 50% are over 25. Granted, the class of '79 probably pushes those demographics a bit, but we prove that you can teach an Old Abe new tricks.
I have to admit that joining this new media world has caused me twinges, and I am not the only one who faces etiquette questions that come up when sharing your space on Facebook. One friend is friends with his teenage son. Yes, another way to communicate, but there is a lot of personal information on a Facebook page. I bet there is more than one teen who has been busted by an "elder" parent by an untoward note posted on their wall, or a photo posted that shows an underage beer or two. I asked to be friends with my friend's son, but I did so awkwardly.
I feel the same way about "friending" my students. Is it kind of creepy friending a 20-year old student? Do they think that it is creepy for the old professor to be "lurking" on their pages? Is a shared history or photo class enough to be such public friends? I am not sure. And I am not sure that I should or have to worry that much about it. Most of my students were just glad to flee the class, and any warm feelings for me probably disappeared when they found out they earned a B- and not their desired grade. A few have risen to the challenge but only a few.
All that said, I have found Facebook a great way to connect to the people that I grew up with, the people who actually saw me in a leisure suit, people who I danced with (yep, I danced, and disco did rock) and drank with at Shenanigans, and people with whom I suffered and shared the angst and awkwardness of those painful teenage years. Some people, or "friends" mean more than others--my eighth grade girl friend is on there, the first professed love of my life. My best friend and partner in crime through junior high and part of high school is there--who would have thought we would have driven, without licenses, to see some in-town girls--perhaps alcohol might have been involved? And there are a few friends who are even closer friends now, even after all these years. And there are many others who are my friends who have shaped my life during that important time, and some who continue to shape and influence my life in these times.
So I will stay on it for now, and share more of life than I am sometimes want to or am able to do with a diverse group of people who shared a common experience called high school. Ask to be my friend--I am sure I will say yes, and welcome a chance to say hello to an old friend.
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