Cowgirl Sass & Savvy (revisited)

Even cowgirls get the Facebook blues

Julie Carter

Are you Facebooking yet? You might be missing out on a momentary "howdy" in the morning or a late-night laugh at a one-liner you would never have heard from someone you never see in person.

And my favorite part? The photos. Hundreds of photos posted in my friends' albums that give me a chance to share their lives without leaving my desk chair.

The wildly popular social network called Facebook, this week, hit milestone membership of 200 million. Some of us here in the small town and rural American West are part of that rage. And yes, even in New Mexico we are Facebooking, along with 30-some countries in as many languages.

I don't know what your excuse is, but my kids drug me into this. Oh, I tried the MySpace thing (same idea, different format) to track my own child's activities as he participated in the teenage rage of MySpace socializing. It's a mom's job.

And, every time one of those pages blinded me with psychedelic moving backgrounds, flashing blingy letters, rotating photos and music that blew me off my office chair, I lost another piece of my desire to visit.

A quieter, gentler opportunity arrived on the scene in the form of Facebook, with white pages and a standardized font.

The beginning for Facebook was February 2004, and it was limited to students of Harvard University, where founder Mark Zuckerberg was attending. It soon expanded in phases to include anyone, anywhere, older than 13, and is now the most popular social networking site in the world.

Apparently, the social networks aren't just for kids anymore. The Facebook people say the 35-and-over group is the fastest growing portion of the recent surge in membership, (a half -million since November 2008).

With this socializing by computer comes the need for discipline. It is so much more enjoyable to "visit," comment, look and read than it is to, oh say, cook, clean and do laundry. It also can be hazardous to your health.

In a world where we already sit in front of small screens, TV or computers, for too many hours, Facebook woos us to sit a little longer, move a little less. My warning for you is, the rewards are easily countered by the time-waster it can be.

And without a lot of detail, I will recommend you don't put something on the stove to cook while you are Facebooking. I gave a complete new meaning to "hard" boiled eggs.

"What's that smell?"

If there is no one to talk to, there are always the goofy quizzes that decide the gemstone you are most like, the country song that most describes you, the type of super hero you'ld be and what level of sarcasm you measure in at.

Or there are the virtual gifts you can send covering any kind of interest including Rodeo Bling and Cowgirl Retro. Or a Bible quote, a cross and something for the appropriate holiday. Easter eggs have been plastering up the pages since St. Patrick's was over.

Honest confession aside, I love saying good morning to people I may see only rarely, if at all.

My mother just took the Facebook plunge and is now in contact with her grandchildren, who like many of us, finally got too busy to email, just after we got too busy write or call. At least now she can see photos of them and know that they indeed, made it past age 16 and right on to their 30s.

Not all my friends are on Facebook yet, so I'm resigned to that old-fashioned email stuff. I do have some yellowing note cards I could use up, but I can never remember how much postage is now. I have a drawer full of one- and two-cent stamps to go with my sheets of Christmas stamps that I never used.

Gotta go. I just got a new friend request on Facebook and myFarm crops (don't ask) need harvesting.