Tuesday, February 24, 2009

I couldn't take the pressure.

I broke up with Facebook.

All those gift eggs! All those invitations to imaginary events! People flinging food and shite gifts from the AWP I didn't want to attend anyway! All those people from high school wanting to catch up! Plus, the uncomfortable intersection of people from my private and professional life: do I really want former students to have access to the pictures OTHER PEOPLE POST OF ME from who knows what embarrassing past moment of indiscretion?

You may call me a Luddite. Honey, in the period where I live, there wouldn't be Luddites for two centuries.

7 comments:

Doctor Cleveland said...

You mean I'm going to have to send you crappy gag gifts by regular mail?

Renaissance Girl said...

I'm wondering what the shipping will be on an annoying graduate student. Or on a condescending senior colleague. (Because I may have a couple of those for YOU!)

Dr Write said...

Middlebrow also divorced FB. Me? I like finding people from high school, so that tells you how messed up I am. Also, I don't allow students to be my friends. I will miss you, but I'll try to annoy in person instead.

Anonymous said...

You're strong--I admire your ability to break up. (I'm addicted to it, and I love the Shite Gifts for Academics.) But you're right...it has drawbacks, too! :)

Do you feel free and unfettered?

the rebel lettriste said...

Luddite!

My period just features people living like idiotic, illiterate, filthy, no-science pigs. According to my students, anyway.

moria said...

R.L., you've forgotten about the magic and the dragons. Hello. (The dragons all die out spontaneously in 1517, something about a church door, I don't know; the period shifts and the dragons die, is all I was told.)

RG, I am with you on the facebook: it's creepy and uncomfortable. Nothing to do with Ludditism, just a giant creep-factor. I can't tear myself away because a) I am an inveterate narcissist and like to show it off and b) (relatedly) there are too many people from past periods whom I want to re-find or to whom I want to show off (see also, "narcissism"). I am just young enough that most of them live their lives through their interwob manifestations. Sigh.

Doctor Cleveland said...

RG, graduate students turn out to be prohibitively expensive to mail, but some very senior colleagues qualify for book rate.