Old Friends and New…or my policy on MySpace

So, I've been experimenting with this "social networking" thing called MySpace, and the jury is still out as to whether this is something that I'll stick with long term. Honestly, I find the whole concept a little bit creepy. I've gotten messages from people I don't know, and some paranoid part of me half expects them to show up on my doorstep…or worse. Plus, it is a prime candidate for big brother - whether it be the government or the corporate conglomerate (hello, Rupert Murdoch!) that owns it and crafts targeted marketing based on your profile...eewww, Yuck. The whole concept creeps me out.

I started the MySpace thing in hopes of keeping connected to a few really good friends who travel a lot, and for the most part, I am pleased with that aspect of it. I don't mind having an online representation of who I am and what I do, but in reality, it is only the faintest shadow of who I really am - a poor facsimile. I am not normally an attention hound and have managed to work through most of my major dysfunction, so I don't feel the burning need of an online forum in which to express my angst or look for validation amongst my "friends". Yet, I am intrigued that people might want to find me - people that I went to school with, people from the multitudes of jobs I've held at different points in my life, people I used to know and have lost touch with - so I feel obligated to keep my profile up for a little while...

So here is the deal: I am going to maintain my blog via my Blogger account ( Adventures of a MetalHead Librarian), and if you want to see updates or what is happening in my world, you can visit there. I'll check out my MySpace account every so often to see what is new with my pals. I will not respond to people I don't know on MySpace, because, frankly, I don't really care if you want to be my "friend" or not. If I find you and ask you to be my "friend", you have the same right of refusal. I'm not interested in collecting "friends" via MySpace just to have a multitude of virtual strangers that I can claim are "friends". It's just silly, really. There is already enough silliness in the world, I certainly don't need to contribute more.

I much prefer to make friends face to face. A real interaction. A moment of connection with another human soul. I have the good fortune of meeting many people every day in the course of my work - and while most of them remain the nameless masses who ask reference questions, there are also a few with whom I have made a meaningful connection. Mr. John Landers (not his real name) is an engaging, 75-year old Brit who is quite open minded and curious about the world - refreshing, since so many of the older patrons I help are very "set" in their ways and don't seem to do much seeking about the world at large. They like their Lillian Jackson Braun mysteries - and that is about it. Convinced they can't learn anything new - God forbid they use the catalog computer to look up a book, while Mr. Landers has decided to learn to type, play the flute, learn handwriting analysis, and is a big fan of "What the Bleep". He explores color therapy, alternative medicine, and learned how to play poker. All from our little library - all from his own motivation not to stagnate. We should all be so lucky...