The Social Network(s)

 Smug actor from that overrated movie

I enjoy my social networks. They give me something to do when I'm bored, they provide me with a way to stalk guys I'm crushing on (go ahead and judge me, but I know you do it too), and they give me something to do when I'm bored.

Here are my feelings about the social networks I'm involved with:

Facebook: Love/hate. Facebook almost gives me too much information, leaving me feeling more disconnected from people in a strange way. It's nice to see what my friends are up to - especially friends who live far away. But seeing what they're up to and not being a part of it makes me feel more distant from them sometimes. Do any of you experience this? Other than that, I like Facebook and the things it has to offer. If asked to deactivate my Facebook account, I would find it very difficult. I'm not proud of that...

Myspace: LOVE! I'm kidding. I set up an account for this years ago and haven't been back since.

Twitter: Love, for real. Twitter is hilarious (depending on who you follow, of course). I follow some pretty funny people so I always get a laugh when I log on. My only problem with Twitter is that not enough of my actual friends are on it (hint,  hint). If you're looking for me on Twitter, you can find me here (link).

Google+: And this brings me to the reason for writing this post. I signed up for Google+ maybe a month or so ago and I've spent about ten minutes total on it since. I just can't really get into it. I know some of you (cough*Brady*cough) love it, but I don't really understand why, and I also don't really understand how it works. Do you guys think it will be as big as Facebook? Bigger? Do you like it? Someone please talk me into caring about Google+.

I'm also curious: which is your favorite social network, and why? Which is your least favorite?

Hair Story

One of the most evil things about facebook is how people looooove adding awful pictures from bad hair years. I get it - it's fun to catch up with friends and laugh about how funny we looked back in the day. The only problem is that all my facebook friends can also see those pictures and um, I'm single. You get what I'm saying? I don't need cute boys I'm crushing on seeing that my hair used to look like this. Exactly like this:

Big, frizzy, too blonde (dyed), with short bangs. I am NOT proud of this. But I'm starting to find it amusing. Slightly. Kinda.... Well, I'm getting there.

Yesterday I faced what I hate the most: a cute guy saw my senior picture! I don't know how to explain my hair back then. Does saying "it was the 90's" excuse me at all? Please? And I am not being humble or self deprecating when I say it was bad. It was for real bad.

Do you guys want to see it? Because it's Monday, and we all need a little laugh

 at the beginning of the week, here it is.

awesome.

Here's another picture of me a year or two later. Thank goodness 1-2 years after this I grew out my bangs and stopped dying my hair. I still highlight it, but my crazy haired days are mostly a thing of the past. (Except in the mornings.)

why i have a fake tatoo at a fake
luau, I have no idea.

Nowadays my hair pretty much take two forms: curly or straight (or something in between, but only by accident). Here are both looks:

(left: no make up last summer, right: Instagram from a few months ago)

Am I going to look back on these pictures years from now and be embarrassed? Probably. What was your worst hair style ever?

Pass/Fail

My friend Sarah says she's going to unfriend me if I don't unfriend 100 friends on Facebook. She claims "there's no way I'm actually friends with all those people." I wanted to tell her she was wrong, and that I'm close, personal friends with every one of my Facebook friends. But I had to admit that occasionally a name pops up in my news feed that I don't recognize, and I have to go to their page to figure out how I know them.

These people usually fit into one of these groups:

1. Friends of my siblings.
2. People I met once or twice.
3. People who read this blog but who I haven't met in real life.
4. People I knew for a summer 7-12 years ago.
5. Friends of friends.
6. Female friends who changed their last name when they got married.

I definitely don't plan on unfriending 100 people, but maybe - maybe - I should unfriend a few? At least a few of the people who fit into those categories listed above (not including #6). But even with that list, it's hard to know exactly who to unfriend, so I came up with a little list to help in the process:

• People who's names I don't recognize.
• People who were friends with my sisters while in high school, but who I don't know personally.
• People who's lives are better than mine (so long, every friend on the list!)
• Boys who didn't like me back. 
• People I met once and haven't talked to since. 
• Ex-crushes who are now married. 
• Friends I'm kinda ticked off at (you know who you are).
• Friends who aren't working hard enough to please me.
• People who's attitudes I don't like. 
• Friends who aren't cooking/baking enough food for me or buying me enough presents.

Did I leave anything out?

Truth be told, I'm pretty sure I won't unfriend anyone. I mean, what's the harm? The more, the merrier, right? How many Facebook friends is too many, in your opinion? I've seen people with more than 1,000 which seems pretty extreme to me, but is there anything wrong with it? I guess it depends on what you're using Facebook for.

What do you think?

Wednesday Thoughts

I read once that Mark Zuckerberg figured out a formula where he can tell with a 33% accuracy who Facebook users are going to be in a relationship with based on who's profile they're looking at, how recently their last relationship was, and who they chat with. What do you think he'd find if he spied on you?

Here's another Facebook question: how do you determine who you're going to unfriend? I've talked about this before on here, but it's come up in several conversations lately. I usually only unfriend guys I was in some way involved with and no longer want any contact with, or people who's names I don't recognise when they show up in my news feed. A friend of mine said that if she sees that it's someones birthday but she doesn't feel the need to spend 15 seconds clicking on their page to write "happy birthday," she should just unfriend them. I can see where she's coming from. Thoughts?

I haven't seen the Facebook movie, in case you were wondering. For some reason I'm just thinking about Facbeook today. Probably because all I hear about anymore is the Faceook movie.

Ok, here's one more Facebook story. A few weeks ago I ran into someone I was friends with in elementary school. We also went to middle and high school together but were in different groups at that point. A year or two ago, we became FB friends. When we ran into each other at the store a few weeks ago, we hadn't seen each other in many years, but she immediately gave me a hug and we talked about stuff we knew about each other based on FB. What if we hadn't been FB friends? We're both nice people, but honestly, I think we probably would have pretended we didn't see each other simply because we wouldn't have known what to say to each other. FB creates a weird reality.

My friend Christi sends me links sometimes to these fake news feeds Slate does and they are hilarious - you should check it out (link).

So, in the commercial for the FB movie, fake Mark Zuckerberg calls it "The Facebook" - I think I'm going to start calling it that. Make it sound like I know what I'm talking about.

Ugh. I'm really mad at The Facebook for taking over my blog right now. Honestly, I should commit to not talking about The Facebook on my blog for the rest of the year. And I'm thinking about sort of phasing it out of my life a little. It seems like it takes over, don't you think? Have any of you gone cold-turkey?

Happy Wednesday.

Some simple Facebook requests

A short list of requests from me to my Facebook friends:

1. Please don't tag me in ugly pictures. I know you look cute in that picture, but I don't. Crop yourself out or just don't post it. I'm trying to get married here and that hideous picture is not helping things.

2. Don't write a cryptic status update that makes me worry about you but doesn't give me any details about what's actually happening. For example:

• "Robin Smith just can't take it anymore!! And is about to lose it!! And it's been nice knowing you!"
• "Carry Allen is really going to miss him."
• "Tom Miller's life has just changed forever. And not in a good way."

I don't know what those mean! Should I bring over a casserole? What if I barely know you but you were in one of my classes in college so I accepted your friend request? Should I comment on your status?

3. If you're a cute guy and I have a crush on you, update your Facebook page more often please. I'm trying to Facebook stalk you and I need updates.

4. If you're a close friend, please don't let me hear major news about you in your status update before you tell me in person. If you're engaged, pregnant, or dying, please call me before you update your status. All I want to hear about in your status update is how your day is going, what you're eating, and when you're going on vacation so I can rob you.

5. If you are super political and think everyone who disagrees with you is an idiot, please don't write about it on FB all the time. Is that really any way to talk to your "friends"? (Or maybe FB friends are different than normal friends?)

6. Don't say you're in a complicated relationship unless you're joking. That's so dang embarrassing for the rest of us to read. Plus, it makes us super curious which is just not fair. If you're going to post that, the least you could do is elaborate.

7. If you're my friends and you did something really fun that you didn't invite me to, don't post pictures of it that will show up in my news feed. (Haha!)

8. If you were injured and it's really bloody and disgusting, please don't post a picture of it. I beg of you.

Ok, I think that's all I have for now. What are some of your requests?

Tweet!

I don't understand Twitter. Why does everyone need to know everything about each other? Why do we need to know what everyone is eating and what they're watching on tv and when they have to go to the bathroom in real time? Maybe I've read 1984 too many times, but the whole thing makes me nervous.

I decided I'd keep a mental Twitter account yesterday to see if I did anything interesting that would make a good Tweet. I didn't.

Here's the evidence:

7:40 Heading to work.
8:00 Made it to work. Still half asleep.
11:45: Another Lean Cuisine for lunch. With salsa, it's edible.
4:00 Doctor's appointment. Ugh.
5:00 Appointment went well. All systems go.
6:00 French toast for dinner. Brinner is the best.
8:00 Fell asleep after dinner. Just woke up. Not my best idea.
9:00 Going to pharmacy.
9:30 Saw a kid begging his dad for candy at the store. Dad said no. Being an adult stinks sometimes, but at least I can have candy whenever I want.
9:40 Ate a Cadbury Egg in honor of the kid who couldn't have candy. It was divine.
9:50 The Cadbury Egg gave me a stomachache. I should have listened to that kid's dad.
10:30 Goodnight.

Wow. With a day like that, I think I'm doing the world a favor by not opening a Twitter account.

Is the point of Twitter to make us even more connected than we already are through Facebook and blogs? And if so, does it work? What do we get from it?

Wednesday Thoughts

As a single person, I am morally obligated to be against Valentine's Day. If I admit that I like Valentine's Day, I'm betraying my kind. But secretly, I kind of like it. I like walking into Target and seeing red and pink everywhere. I like thinking about things I love too. True, I don't have that one special person to love but I'm not bitter (please read that sentence in the most sarcastic "I actually am bitter" voice you can think of).

Saying the word "bitter" triggered the irritable part of my brain so I need to voice (pen?) a quick complaint, if you don't mind. I have been really stressed out about doppelganger week on Facebook. I have no doppelganger. And I don't dare ask people, "what famous person do you think I look like?" because what if they say Danny DeVito or something like that? Some things are better to not know (see previous post for more on that). The one famous person I have ever been told I look like is Angelica from the Rugrats. I don't see the resemblance, but I suppose it could be worse.

Will you indulge me in some very girlish stuff for a second here? It won't take long. Guys, you can tune out if you want, although I'd like to hear your opinions too. I'll make this quick. I want to change my hair color but I'm not sure what to do. I've been highlight/low lighting it forever and want a change. I asked my hairstylist what color my natural color is (because I have no idea) and she said it's medium blond with a tiny bit of red. But in the winter it looks darker than that. Boring.

So I went to one of those "see what you'd like like with a different hair color" websites and this is what I found. I was supposed to take a picture of myself head-on with my hair pulled back but really didn't feel like doing that. So all of these pictures show this dang rogue curl coming down my shoulder. Try to ignore that. Here are the results:

Any opinions? Oh, and if you were wondering, that's my nephew on my lap. Poor little guy probably wishes he had nothing to do with this post. I can relate.

Happy Wednesday.

P.S. Happy birthday, Mom!

On edge

I know I've already blogged about "the un-friending" on facebook. I've confessed that I have un-friended people who I've had little to no contact with in years, or who seriously annoy me (ok, I didn't say that part, but I've done it for that reason too). But I've never un-friended any of you, so no need to fret. I'm not in any way threatening you or warning you to be on your best behavior. Unlike a facebook friend of mine who I will call Blake.

Lately Blake has decided to start warning us, his FB friends, that it's un-friending time. About a week ago, he announced it in his status update. He got a bunch of comments saying things like, "I'm so glad I made the cut!" And begging, "Please don't delete me!"

Then yesterday I logged on and saw he had updated his status to say that he had decided to only have 150 FB friends and if we were reading his status, it meant we made the cut. I found myself feeling really relieved that I'd made it. Why!? This is a guy who I don't know very well, who is about ten years younger than me and with whom I've had increasingly less and less contact since meeting last summer. He's a good guy and I like him but I haven't been very aware of him until I found out I might not be working hard enough to deserve to stay on his friend list.

His status update left me with a handful of questions:

1) Why did I make the cut?

2) Why do I feel so relieved?

3) What do I have to do to make sure I don't get cut in the future?"

and lastly,

4) Why do I care?

Ok, I know those questions sound really dramatic (except the last one) but they weren't as dramatic as they sound. I only wept for joy for 20, maybe 30 minutes once I found out I'd made it.

But I was pretty intrigued... This guy has on on our toes. That particular status update got a ton of comments from friends thanking Blake for not un-friending them. I can't help but wonder if he's doing some kind of sociological experiment or playing psychological mind games on us. He's trying to let us know that his Facebook friendship is not something we should take for granted.

I've already sent him a dozen roses and a box of chocolates by way of thanking him for keeping me on his list.

His plan is working.

Communication Breakdown

When I was young and I wanted talk to a friend I had two options: call them or go to their house. If they lived far away, I had to call them long distance (sparingly) or write them a letter and wait days or weeks to hear back.

As you know, the ways to stay in touch with friends and family have changed dramatically in a short time. E-mail, texting, free long distance, video chat, non-video online chat, blogs, facebook, myspace, etc... These methods are wonderful when used to stay in touch with friends and family who live far away, but when it comes to loved ones who live nearby, I think they might be overused. Are we connecting emotionally less? I don't know. I haven't done any research on this, it's just something I've been thinking about.

From time to time I stay with a friend's teenage kids while she and her husband are out of town. When the teenage girl gets home from school, the first thing she does is get on her laptop and starts chatting online with her friends. I did something similar when I was her age, except that I called my friends on the phone after school. When she wants to communicate with a guy she's crushing on, she does so via Facebook or some kind of online chat. I didn't have that option at her age - I had to either call the guy I liked or talk to him at school. I know I sound old school when I say this, but I wonder if there's something dangerous or numbing about the one step removal from voice to voice communication. I could be wrong, it's just something I'm curious about. Does it make it easier to say things you would not say (or should not say) in person? Do you feel as close to your friends when you're not hearing their voices or seeing their faces? Does the same bonding occur? Does it make you more lonely?

Don't get me wrong, I don't hate technology. I think all these things can be used for good and quite frankly, I use all of them. And maybe I'm being a hypocrite. After all, I grew up without this technology and heaven knows I'm no master communicator because of it! But still, I can't help but wonder. The changes in communication technology all happened so fast that we haven't really had a chance to think about them. Some things have become normal that maybe shouldn't be.

Here are a few more questions/thoughts I've had on the subject:

1.) Is it ok to ask someone on a first date via e-mail? This has happened to me several times, and while it doesn't offend me, it also doesn't give me the butterflies being asked on the phone or in person does.

2.) Should you make a major announcement in a Facebook status update before you've told your family and close friends? This includes pregnancies, engagements, or life decisions.

3.) Do you find yourself always using an e-card to replace a paper card for your closest friends/relatives (for anniversaries, holidays, birthdays...)? I do this a lot, and I'm not saying it's a bad thing necessarily, I'm just wondering if it's over done.

4.) This last one is more of a statement than a question: long texting conversations do not count as real conversations. This is especially confusing when it comes to dating. So often after a friend of mine has gone on a good date, I'll ask her later, "So, have you heard from him since the date?" And she'll say, "well, he texted me..." with a confused sound in her voice. When it comes to dating, texting is confusing. Who's with me on this? I'm not saying it should be banned, but I think it should be used sparingly, at least at the beginning of a relationship.

I know this post is a bit random and out of character for me but I have been thinking about this stuff lately and I thought I'd post about it. I'd love any insights you have. I really hope this post doesn't sound judgemental - I just think that sometimes we use technology when it would be more appropriate to actually talk to each other. (Ironic that I'm communicating these thoughts to you via my blog, no?)

The Un-friending

I think it's widely accepted that facebook is both awesome and evil (it's about 30/70). One of the ways in which it is evil is the un-friending.

I'll admit that I have unfriended people myself. In fact, I recently un-friended about 35 people who were on my friend list. Before you tell me how harsh that is, I have to clarify that these were people I barely knew, but who's friend request I accepted because they looked vaguely familiar and we had some mutual friends. That describes the majority of them anyway. When their updates showed up in my news feed, I'd think, "who is that?" So I didn't feel very guilty un-friending most of them.

I was talking about this with a friend of mine this past week and she told me that she had recently been un-friended by someone and that it didn't feel very good. It was someone she knew growing up and even though she hadn't been in contact with this person for years, she was still kind of hurt when she realized this person had un-friended her.

I could relate. One old friend of mine friend requested me last year, then three months later with no explanation, un-friended me! That was more amusing to me than anything, but it did make me wonder if I'd done anything wrong.

Often though, I think we have no idea that someone un-friended us. I have, in the past, noticed my number of friends decrease and wonder who un-friended me. But I figure if you don't notice that you're no longer friends with them, you probably weren't that close with them anyway. Either that or they were trying to stick it to you and you didn't notice, which really just sticks it to them.

Another friend told me that her family uses facebook as ammo when they're mad at each other. She said that her siblings and cousins are constantly un-friending each other, then later friend requesting each other when they make up.

From talking to some friends about this, these are the top reasons for un-friending people. (This poll was not scientific.) You'll have to let me know if I miss anything important reasons.



Have you been un-friended? (I'm going to post a poll at the side to make it easy for you to respond.) I'm also curious about what makes you un-friend people, or if you have done it in the past.

In other news, I wish I could remember life before Facebook...

Wednesday Thoughts

Lately, I've noticed something I hadn't noticed before on Facebook. On the side of my home page I'm seeing what my friends are becoming "fans" of and it's not what I expected. Now, I understand becoming a Facebook "fan" of your favorite band or TV show because as a fan, the fan group might send you updates about the bands performances or the TV shows premiere. Or maybe you want to become a fan of an organization you support. I totally get that.

But I don't understand what I've been seeing lately, which is people becoming "fans" of the most mundane things, such as (these are real):

being barefoot
the sun
soap
shampoo
nail polish
eating

As I've seen more and more friends becoming fans of these things, I've started to feel pressure. If I don't become a "fan" - officially I mean - of soap, shampoo, regular showers, or the sun, does it mean I don't like them? Or support them!? Because I do. I really do. It's just more of a private, personal, unspoken, assumed support. It's not the kind of support I've ever really declared publicly. I'm afraid if I start becoming a Facebook fan of everything I like, I might be starting down a slippery slope. Eventually, after exhausting all my Facebook options, I'll feel obligated to join (or start) fan groups such as:

the circulatory system
cuticles
breathing oxygen
blinking
pores
the regular intake of life sustaining calories

I'm sure some of you are getting a little annoyed right now. Why? Because I saw you on the sun's fan page. But don't be mad. I think I'm on board now. Together, you and I can set up fan pages for everything from cuticle cream to cumulus clouds! "Let no love (or commitment to hygiene) go undeclared!" will be our motto.

Well, I'd better end this post. When I think about all the things I've shown mild to serious interest in or appreciation for throughout my lifetime, I realize I have a lot of work to do. Time to start making a long list. Happy Wednesday.

Wednesday Thoughts

How much of a social faux pas is it to admit that I'm terrified of the Tran-Siberian Orchestra? I keep seeing commercials for them and their show looks pretty out of control. Colored lights, explosions, smoke machines, electric quitars...but with Christmas music. I'm sure they're quite talented but I don't get it. About 50 seconds into the youtube video I got scared out of my mind and had to stop watching.

What's with all these new websites that let you upload your picture into the scenario of your dreams? And where have they been all my life?

On the radio yesterday they were talking about both the Snuggie and the Shamwow! Small world! They said that the Snuggie is on back order for six weeks. I'm pretty bummed about that. Which one of you bought the last one? I hope there are still some Slankets available.

I was at the dentist the other day getting my teeth cleaned and when it was over and I was complimenting the hygienist on a job well done, she told me that a patient recently told her she'd rather have a baby then get her teeth cleaned. Which would you prefer? I've never had a baby, but I'm pretty sure it's a lot more work, and a lot more painful than getting your teeth cleaned.

I won a radio contest this morning! And in other good news, when I signed in on Facebook this morning, I saw that a couple I hardly know got back together! I've followed their saga (against my will) through constant updates in my Facebook newsfeed and have determined that they are meant to be together. It was like seeing Ross and Rachel get back together. Today is shaping up to be a good day.

Brave new world

Well guys, it happened. You know what I'm talking about: new facebook. We were finally forced into it against our will. We knew it was going to happen - we saw the warning signs (literally, there was a warning posted). Some of us kicked and screamed, some were in denial. I even joined a group to protest it: 1, 000, 000, AGAINST THE NEW FACEBOOK LAYOUT! And even though 2, 191, 531 joined, we were powerless against the force that is Mark Zuckerberg.

So, along with you, I have been busting my butt, pulling all nighters, and calling friends in desperation in an attempt to figure out new facebook. I panicked when I couldn't find Scramble (don't worry, I found it). And worse, today was my friend at work's birthday, and even though I sent her a piece of flair that says "happy birthday, " I don't think she got it! Last I heard, she couldn't find her flair board on new facebook. I may never know because I'm not 100% sure how to find the flair board on her profile either.

Ok, I'll admit that I am exaggerating my reaction to the new facebook. But it has been pretty amusing this week to see the status updates in my news feed as one by one people are forced onto new facebook. There's been a lot of:

"Shawn Spencer REALLY REALLY HATES NEW FACEBOOK!!!!" and...
"Jack Shephard misses old facebook!" and even...

"Angela Martin is hating the new facebook and wants to go back to old facebook!!'

I changed the names, but I didn't change the drama. What do you guys think? Have you been able to find your important facebook info yet? Has the change turned your worlds upside down? ;)

Facebook: Blessing or Curse?

The joys of facebook! So many of my conversations come back to facebook these days. Facebook is both good and evil. It's good in the sense that it makes staying in touch and sharing pictures a lot easier. It's bad in that you often find out too much...Or not enough. I blame the newsfeed. Do I really have to know that one of my friends removed "Bon Jovi" from his list of favorite music? That just confuses me. (Why would someone do that?) Or what about when a casual acquaintance on my friend list changes their status to:

"Samantha isn't sure."
or

"Tom might go for it."

Isn't sure about what? Might go for what? Should I write on their walls and ask them? Or should I let it go? I guess if it's something major, I'll find out in the newsfeed eventually.

One of the weird things about facebook is that you find out about stuff much faster than you normally would. And more often you find stuff out that you might never have known. Like the ups and downs of your friend's relationships. Or you find out that you weren't invited to something that some of your friends were invited to. Like I said, both good and evil.

The following are some conversations I have heard or been a part of. I have changed the names and events to protect the identities. You might be able to relate to some of these.

Alice: Did you hear about Sam and Annie?

Jasper: No, what about them?

Alice: They're dating.

Jasper: Really? Who told you that?
Alice: I read it on the facebook newsfeed.

Four months later...

Jasper: Hey, too bad about Sam and Annie, huh?

Alice: What do you mean?

Jasper: I saw on facebook that they changed their relationship status to "it's complicated" and Annie's facebook status is, "Annie is really sad."

Alice: Poor girl.

Jasper: Yeah. Maybe I'll send her some flair to cheer her up.

Alice: I'm sure she'd like that.

Another conversation I have heard, and possibly been a part of:

Sabrina: Were you invited to Max's party?

Valerie: What party?

Sabrina: I saw on the newsfeed today that "15 of my friends are attending Max's End of Summer Blowout Bash."

Valerie: What!? I can't believe Max didn't invite me!

Sabrina: I know!! I think I'm going to unfriend him.

Valerie: Good call. Me too. That'll teach him.

A couple weeks later...

Max: Are Valerie and Sabrina mad at me?

Conan: I don't know. Why?
Max: I thought I was friends with them on facebook, but today I saw them on the "people you may know" list. I wonder if they unfriended me.

Conan: Did you do something to them?

Max: Not that I know of. I wonder why they didn't come to my party?

One more:

Kelly: I met this cute guy at the party the other night and I friend requested him!

Beyonce: Oh yeah? Did he accept?

Kelly: Yeah, he did. I was thinking about writing a message on his wall, but I'm not sure.

Beyonce: Why not?

Kelly: I don't want it to show up in our mutual friend's newsfeed.

Beyonce: Yeah, that newsfeed is too much. Maybe you should just invite him to play Scramble or Scrabulous. You guys can bond that way.

Kelly: Great idea!

There you have it. I hope some of you can relate to these conversations. I know some of you can, because a few of you readers were a part of these very convos! There's only one name I didn't change, but I'll let you guess which it was. (If you guessed Beyonce, you're right!)

Guilty Pleasures

If you ask me what my favorite T.V. shows are, I'll tell you the truth: Lost and the Office. But what I won't tell you is that I also love the Golden Girls and I won't turn the channel if I find that Full House is on. Yeah, it's true. I didn't say I was proud of it! There's just something so deliciously mind numbing about these shows.

It's the same with me and movies. I don't have a favorite movie, but I could probably come up with something if forced. What I wouldn't tell you though is how much I like Sister Act, Troop Beverly Hills, and For Richer or Poorer (love that last one!). Don't worry, I won't ask you to watch any of those with me. They're my guilty pleasure movies.

Recently I've started a new guilty pleasure and those of you familiar with Facebook will know what I'm talking about. It's called "pieces of flair." Facebook has a lot of applications you can add, and I try to avoid most of them. But as of yesterday, I'm hooked on pieces of flair. I'm hoping by the end of the week it'll be out of my system. I'm sure some of you are hoping that too (although some of you are loving it just as much as I am! Yeah, I'm talking to you: Katherine, Sarah, and Justin! Sorry I dragged you into this...) What it is is a cork board that appears on your Facebook page, and you add (and send) pins to it that express things about you, like these ones that were sent to me:

I'm sure that many of you are looking at this thinking, "Elizabeth, you are much too old for this." And to you I say, "I agree!" But, what can I say. That's why it's called a guilty pleasure I guess. To my friends on Facebook: If I send you a piece of flair, just add the application and enjoy the ride. Don't fight it.