An About-Face(book)

I am a hypocrite.  That is, I’m thinking of becoming one. 

It was I, after all, who recently wrote a mini-dissertation on the many pitfalls of having a Facebook page.   After long maintaining a proud stance as one of the few hold-outs to this phenomenon, and after many debates with friends who have tried in vain to convince me to sign up only to be met with stubborn resistance born out of the many reservations which I carry, I am nonetheless strongly considering exercising that well-known woman’s prerogative.  I’m changing my mind. 

I still mean every word of my previous blog on this subject.  I still have those same issues with the concept.  I don’t kid myself about just what it is that I may be considering getting into.  Forget logic, or reasoning, or practical concerns.  In this case, it was one simple observation by a dear friend that finally turned the tables, and it is the first and only thing that has resonated with me thus far. 

Over dinner last night, my friend K had once again been trying to convince me to get a Facebook page.  We were re-hashing the usual arguments.  I said to her that I have this blog which is a nice way to keep friends and family informed once I move away.   K then pointed out that a blog, while entertaining or informative, is a one-sided vehicle. It doesn’t enable me to keep abreast of what others are up to.  It doesn’t allow access to the minutiae of someone else’s day so that I can reach out when needed with a reassuring sentence or two.  Once I move away, there is the time difference to consider.  It won’t be as easy to just pick up the phone or meet for coffee whenever. 

I recognize that I’m a bit late in considering this, and that some of you may already be bored with FB or over it.  For my friends who are not, perhaps you will soon make room for one more. 

In the end, it wasn’t some foolproof assurance of privacy, or a hole shot in my every former argument against participating that has made me at least reconsider. 

It was simply my desire to be a better friend. 

~ Of course I sheepishly confessed my hypocrisy to A (another FB holdout).  He cheekily asked me what’s next… and how long it will be before I take up smoking, or drinking, or…?   No need to worry, A.  At least FB doesn’t come with a Surgeon General’s warning, and there is no risk of exposure to second-hand FB.   ;)