Sociably Social

I admire persistence, at least in theory. Actually, I admire my own persistence which, from a distance looks to others like 'this guy's really dumb,' but it's an act (okay, not all of it and not all the time, but I like the idea of being a man of mystery and you'll have to guess the exact when).

I am active on a number of online social networks including Twitter, Facebook or whatever it's called now, Instagram, and LinkedIn (from back when I was employed; I almost said 'working,' but one of my former bosses might have asked, 'when was that?'). I never warmed to using  MySpace because I had the distinct impression old people are not warmly welcomed and as an old person, I know I'm not the welcoming type, so we're even.

There are scads of these sites though how any of them make money is beyond me (and possibly Elon Musk if the stories about his acquisition of Twitter are true). It is so "oldest child" of me, to fret how total strangers who may not even exist, will make a living as if they would ever return the favor.

Meanwhile, on the 800-pound gorilla in the room, Facebook, do you, too, have a process where their algorithm suggests people who might be your new friends? I have 70 years of living in this skin, and for the most part, my answer to their question is 'I don't think so.' 

There's a reason why I have no friends in the F&B, Flesh and Blood, World and it carries over to the virtual one. So for Facebook to keep suggesting the same someone, over and over, seemingly because she, too, went to Rutgers University (it's the STATE University of New Jersey, there are tons of people who went and still go there) is not especially insightful. It's just a variation of 'do you like apples?' without the payoff.

A while back, perhaps in frustration with my lack of engagement, Facebook, pitched the late James Gandolfini as a suggested friend. I suspect this was because he also went to Rutgers. Heck, I interviewed Journey and nobody got shot. so we had TWO things in common. Actually, three things if you count the onion rings.
-bill kenny