Thing #22: My Ode to Facebook

Now this is a Thing I know ALOT about...too much, in fact.

Oh, Facebook.
You connect me with over 400 "friends."
Former students, long-lost friends from elementary & high school,
I collect "friends" like a greedy kid in a candy store.
Are they true friends?
Mostly, no.
Then why am I addicted to you?
You provide an outlet for my joys and frustrations;
You give me "status."
You steal precious hours from my life.
You are a siren that calls my name while I'm trying to take care of my responsibilities...
My housework,
My grad classes,
My family.
"Oh, just check me quickly, Amianne. See what's going on in my world.
It won't take long."
One quick second turns into an hour.
I love you, Facebook.
I curse you, Facebook.

Yes, Facebook and I have a love/hate relationship. I've had to go on many self-imposed Facebook fasts, and it's been HARD. I've realized that Facebook is my personal drug of choice. Honestly, as I've learned about some of these "Things" I've thought, "Now this is going to cut into my Facebook time." Sad but true.

When I taught high school, I refused to accept students as friends until they had GRADUATED. But now that I no longer teach in high school, I've accepted all of my former students as "friends" when I get a friend request from them. It's my way to stay in touch with them because some were very upset that I was leaving Poteet. I don't know if this is a good or bad thing, but I just keep this in mind when I'm posting my status updates. (I have to self-censor sometimes.) When I taught Creative Writing, one of my students made a "Mrs. Bailey Fan Page." I was flattered, and I was able to post to it without crossing that student/teacher line. But now I'm "friends" with most of these kids, and I think that's okay.

I think social networking definitely has a place in school, but I think teachers must use it professionally and cautiously. Common sense, people!

And here's the link to my beloved Facebook profile.