Facebook, Friends & Flow Charts

January 25, 2012February 8, 2012 / Ally Bean / 10 Comments

Here’s what I’ve been thinking about this week. Brought to you by the letter “F.”

• Facebook. I was talking with a casual acquaintance the other day. Over the years we’ve gotten to know each other– sort of. She is nothing if not outspoken.

Often we talk about FB. It fascinates her that I just left it. Like that. No worries, no looking back. It’s kind of a theme with her.

And honestly, I’m fascinated about why she doesn’t leave FB. She hates it– complains about it every time we are together. In fact one of her biggest complaints is that her friends have the audacity to post status updates using words. That they think she’ll read about what they’re doing. This seems to bother her to no end. She mentions it often.

So, I asked her straight up why she messes around with something that so clearly upsets her.

And she told me that the only reason she stays on FB is so that she can see the photos that her friends post. She wants to see these photos so that she can judge how these friends look. Her word: judge.

Being the polite soul that I am, I just nodded my head up & down, mumbled a vague sort of “uh-huh,” and quickly changed the topic of conversation to something that didn’t give me a glimpse into the psyche of someone so shallow– and probably– more typical than I care to admit.

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• Friends. I stumbled upon this article: Bitter About Your Life? Blame Facebook. The subtitle says: “New research suggests heavy Facebook users are more likely to believe other people have happier lives.”

According to this article, researchers posit that this perception is due to the fact that people see all sorts of happy photos that FB friends post. Then these people assume that other people are having a better time than they are. Enter bitter feelings.

Wonder if that is what’s going on with my acquaintance… seeing how she is a nut for photos.

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• Flow charts. While I was enjoying all that Pinterest has to offer, I came upon this wonderful How to Delete Half Your Facebook “Friends” flow chart. It is by a blogger named Samantha who keeps a blog called ashore.

I love this chart. Now I just need to get my acquaintance to understand it and use it. Might make her happier about her experiences on FB. Maybe.

The Lighter Side Of Marital Miscommunication

January 23, 2012January 9, 2017 / Ally Bean / 12 Comments

We were watching a football game on TV. And by we were watching I mean Zen-Den was watching the football game and commercials, while I was looking through a stack of home decor catalogues… and aware that a game was on TV.

In one of the catalogues I saw an outdoor small table with two chairs that at first struck me as something that we might want. The table and chair were made of metal but looked like twigs had been put together in such a way as to create a table and chairs. Very chic. I thought that they might work on our deck over against one wall for me to use at noontime when I’m eating lunch by myself.

So I started to show Z-D the photo of the small table with two chairs, but in mid-show I decided that I didn’t like the table and two chairs after all.

Z-D wasn’t really paying much attention to what I was doing. No surprise there. Instead he was staring at a commercial for Cialis— and as with all commercials for Cialis the serious male announcer voice was telling us very important information.

TV commercial: “Blah, blah, blah… When the moment is right, will you be ready?”

Me, referring to the photo in the catalogue: “That’d make nervous if I had to look at it very much.”

Z-D, thinking that I’m watching the TV commercial: “Why?”

Me, staring at the photo: “Because pieces of it stick out funny.”

Z-D, still thinking that I’m talking about the topic of the TV commercial: “Why would you care about that? That’s not your problem.”

Me, getting ready to turn the page in the catalogue: “Because I’d have to sit on it and that’d be uncomfortable.”

Z-D, finally paying attention to me: “WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT?”

Me, handing him the catalogue with the photo: “This chair that looks like it’s made of twigs. Why? What’d you think I was talking about?”

Z-D, dissolving into laughter: “The commercial on TV for ED. I thought you were watching it.”

Me, indignant then realizing what I’d just said: “No, of course I wasn’t watching that… HEY WAIT A MINUTE. You thought I was talking about THAT?”

Z-D, staring at me in amazement: “Yep. And you were darned funny, too.”

How To Charm Me

January 5, 2012May 6, 2021 / Ally Bean / 12 Comments

My late aunt kept a scrapbook throughout her teen years. In it she put mementos from her social life. After she died a few years ago, I inherited the scrapbook. Below is an invitation to a girlfriend’s party that I found in the scrapbook. I love how it reflects the style of the times. Hello, Art Deco!

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As if the beauty of this old invitation isn’t enough to charm me, if you look closely you’ll see that the girl giving the party has signed her name quite clearly. And who is this girl, you wonder? Well, I know the answer to that.

She is Marilyn Meseke, who later became Miss America 1938. And as such, thanks to news reel footage shown in movie theaters around the country, Marilyn was the first Miss America ever seen on-screen receiving her crown.

Pretty cool, huh?

Speaking Of Archetypes

December 14, 2011January 28, 2021 / Ally Bean / 5 Comments

“If you can’t say something good about someone, come sit next to me.”

~ Alice Roosevelt Longworth

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‘Tis the season of… meeting and socializing with lots of different, unique people.

So we’re sitting at home discussing where we’ve been and Zen-Den, who is not at all fluent in archetypes because he did not major in English in college, asks me: What’s up with X?

I explain to him that she considers herself to be a Possibilitarian. That it’s an archetype.

And he counters with: that’s the most ridiculous term I’ve ever heard– you mean, someone who doesn’t actually do anything, just talks about what is possible?

I tell him that’s the gist of it– someone who focuses on aspirations. Who thinks and talks about what might be.

A dreamer with a fancy vocabulary.

He nods in amazement.

Then Z-D, who doesn’t usually drink very much, asks me: Do you suppose if I drank more alcoholic beverages more often I could call myself a Chillaxatarian?

I tell him that I’d refer to him as such. And that he could definitely get X to refer to him as such. And that by doing this he’d have his own, very special, archetype.

A goofball with a bottle of beer.

He nods his approval and then wanders off to the frig to get something more to drink.

And so, with that, a new archetype was born. One that encompasses all that is relaxed and beer related. One that you know is bound to be popular.

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