Facebook: does the good outweigh the bad?

Everyone has their beef with Facebook. Since the recent rising of much ado over Facebook and their newly revised terms of service, many of those beefs have been voiced. I, for one, happen to have a few more beefs with Facebook; I, for one, happen to think it helps people become more self-involved and impatient & inconsiderate with others, rather than bring people together. Not too long ago, we would visit someone's website to see what they were up to or how they have been. Maybe now and then we would fill out and forward one of those surveys everyone posts on Facebook, partially due to narcissism, but mostly due to the desire that others would fill them out so we could learn about them.

Now, on the other hand, we visit Facebook to see if anyone has commented on our page, a photo, or a posted item... or if anyone has tagged us in a photo or video. We spend hours filling our profiles with information about ourselves, but little time viewing the entire profiles of our friends or family, as illustrated by the number of people who whine about how much "junk" everyone else has on there. We check notes to see if anyone has filled out one of those surveys... but not really to see what they're up to, rather to show everyone what we're all about. Many of us spend more time scrolling through our "friends'" list of friends than we spend on their actual profile page, seeing whom we may add to our own list (or if you want to identify this with the philosophy of Immanuel Kant, treating people merely as a means to an end rather than an end in their selves).

Not only has Facebook (as well as similar social networking sites, such as Myspace and Friendster) helped us to become more self-involved and narcissistic, it has completely reshaped how we interact and how much personal information we share now compared to how much personal information we shared in the past. Ten years ago, for instance, you wouldn't dream of discussing the drunken bash you went to on the weekend with the dorky co-worker who sits 5 rows down from you at the office, let alone show them pictures (or your boss, grandmother, or the cute, but "proper", girl who sits behind you in class); nor would you openly discuss your religious, political, or otherwise personal views with every person you vaguely knew. Today, however, no information is sacred. Besides, if you don't post the photo, your best friend or the snot from your gym class will post it for you... and everyone is doing it anyway.

Not all of us, admittedly, are there for self-centred purposes. But, however, be warned:


(would you really want this to be you?)

it's probably something that will soon be used (and most likely already is) in hiring and college admittance practices... so reckless behaviour probably isn't advised. Even if you sober up and remove the picture/drunken text/overload of information the next morning, it stays in the system forever. That's probably not a great idea if it ever happens (and this isn't highly unlikely) that government gains control over (or during this recession, companies offer to purchase) information stored in social networking sites.

Although it has its flaws, Facebook still offers a great opportunity for friends and family to stay in contact and positive business connections to be made. I'm not saying people should avoid the site; I am saying people should use the site carefully. It may help to note that Facebook has many privacy features that are fairly easily accessed through the privacy settings link that shows up when you hover over Settings in the upper right-hand corner of most Facebook accounts. You may customise your account so that no matter how much information you give, only certain friends put on certain lists can see only the information you allow them to see (although I shall neglect to go into full detail). Even still, you may recall I mentioned Facebook's recent change in their terms of service: Facebook reserves the right to use your information for virtually any reason it sees fit and will keep your information in is system even if you clear and remove your account... regardless of your privacy settings.

What about you? What's your beef with Facebook? Or, is it all wonderful in your eyes? I'd love to hear your side!

So I'm in the Hot-Seat!

Hello, Blogosphere! It's been awhile since I've blogged, and even though I made a recent promise to continue blogging, I haven't really fulfilled the promise. So, Da Old Man from Crotchety Old Man Yells at Cars has given me an interview to help get this little corner of the web back into full swing.

1. Where did you get your name?

Shadow Crystal, unfortunately, does not have a very interesting or romantic origin. I was stuck for a name, not wanting to use my own name in case any future employer decided to run a Google search and came across some of my more controversial opinions.

'Shadow' was chosen as the result of comparing my desire for a semi-secret identity (after all, I still uploaded my real picture and I don't go to great lengths to hide my name [Katie]) to 'hiding in the shadows', whereas 'Crystal' was chosen partly because I was simply told it is my aura colour and partly because I thought of a crystal reflecting light and wanted my name to hint at the representation of reflecting a little bit of light amidst the shadows we live in.

2. You've been missing from the blogosphere lately. Anything exciting
going on?
I'm a full-time student whose goal is to make straight A's (not for the 'snob-appeal', but for the scholarship appeal so I don't graduate up to my arse in student loans). When you mix that with a tendency towards poor time-management, blogging kind of takes a backseat. Last semester I decided to write for our campus newspaper, which is why I never brought myself around to making some time for blogging (sadly, I was beginning to grow sick of writing). But this semester, I have decided against writing for our campus paper (partly because of time and partly because of a vicious, un-professional front-page article that was just published about one of our students, which is actually the topic of the next rant I'll be posting), so I really have no excuse to not allow some time for blogging.

But yes, you could say there has also been something exciting going on...

Brewing, if you will...

I have started making some natural skin-care products and have been spending time researching the health and legal mumbo-jumbo. My list of products, so far, includes lotions, massage oils, lip balms, shaving creams, sugar scrubs, salt scrubs, bath salts, bath melts, bath bombs, perfumes, solid colognes, deodorants, hair gels, and even incense (but I don't make soap). ;-)
Within the next few months, you can expect to see some posts about these products - if there is interest, I'll post some basic recipes. I plan on having products for sale within the next few months, although it would be through a separate site (and most likely, just local to start). This blog will never become a sort or advertisement.

3. How do you find all those great videos?
Well, the fun 'n' freaky flash videos are generally the result of a twisted mind, warped friends, and hazy nights in smoky rooms (hey, I did say I was a university student, didn't I?)... just don't ask us what search terms we came up with and why. ;-)

4. You seem to have a lot of posts about music. What is your
favorite?
That's a tough one! I don't have a particular favourite artist or band, so I'll just list off all the musicians I think of when 'favourite' comes to mind:

Fleetwood Mac, Stevie Nicks, Tori Amos, Ani DiFranco, Loreena McKennitt, Dar Williams, Kate Bush, The Beatles, Leonard Cohen, Tom Waits, Sarah Brightman, Isobel Campell (especially with Mark Lanegan), Tracy Chapman, Melissa Ehteridge, The Rankin Family, Bob Dylan, Barenaked Ladies, Norah Jones, Cat Stevens, Simon and Garfunkel, Nightwish, Type O Negative, James Blunt, Joan Osborne, Joni Mitchell, Indigo Girls, Radiohead, Emmylou Harris, Johnny Cash, Reba McIntyre, Pam Tillis (and outside of the artists listed, I despise country music)... and I'm sure there are more. ;-)

5. You also inject a lot of humour into your posts. So, what's the deal
with all the extra u's that Canadians use?
We're slowly making the transition to speaking American, as we've already bastardised the letter "s" and turned it into a "z" in words like 'realise', 'globalise', and any other '-ise' word. In fact, some papers here have begun eliminating our u's. But up until recently, we prefered to speak and write in English. ;-)

2009 Has Arrived

It's been more than awhile since I've posted and I think that's rather unacceptable. In my defence, my computer has been running slowly and my browser has been hardly running at all. Today I decided to blow a little steam and play around with "StumbleUpon". I was quite disappointed to discover my "Stumble" button was no longer working, although the rest of the toolbar worked fine (if you are unfamiliar with StumbleUpon, I recommend checking it out - it's channel surfing for the web!). That was the last straw - I caved and installed the latest version of Firefox and updated to the latest version of StumbleUpon... and was left to wonder why I had not done this sooner! Not only did my "Stumble" button work once more, I was once again able to access messages in my Hotmail inbox and function normally within Facebook... I don't use many other sites daily (what an exciting lifestyle I lead), so after spending a great deal of time fighting with those sites each day, I didn't much feel like blogging... or even logging into Blogger and opening the editor.

Today, however, things change. During the past few weeks I decided I want to, and should, continue to blog; after some of the discoveries I made today, I decided I have no excuse to not blog.

What discoveries have I made, you ask?

Epic discoveries... and by epic discoveries, I mean the mothers of all discoveries... the discoveries that make our browsing lives just a little easier (okay... a LOT easier)...

I discovered Firefox Add-Ons. If you use Firefox, these plugins can truly enrich your browsing experience. If you do not use Firefox, you should click here to see what you're missing and download yourself a new browser... one that, unlike Internet Explorer, doesn't leave you as open to viruses and irritatingly intrusive
ads... and, I swear, runs faster. Up until the last year, I was never much of a computer person... aside from looking stuff up on Google, checking my e-mail and playing with photoshop, I couldn't be bothered. Sure, I went through a few years in juniour high and high school where my life was spent in a chat room, but I never cared to 'optimize' my performance. Even after I discovered Firefox, I couldn't be bothered to glance at the add-ons. Now I'm kicking myself in the ass for spending so much time fighting with my computer when my browsing life could have been made much easier.

Over time I'll highlight some of these fantastic add-ons (as many are actually services available outside of Firefox). But, not today... today you're probably still wondering about the discovery I made that makes it harder for me to avoid blogging. You've probably guessed that it's one of the add-ons I've just been gushing about... and you're right. The add-on is called "ScribeFire". ScribeFire is an add-on for Firefox that allows you to update your blog, from your browser, no matter what site you're on at the moment. In fact, you can even surf the web while you're blogging (and if you're anything like me, you'll find that that a very useful feature as it can be a bit of a pain to bring up multiple windows so you can try to find information you need for a post you're typing at that moment). There is, apparently, an option to use ads to gain revenue (I would assume it is much like Google Adsense)... I am not trying the feature, but if you have a lot of traffic, it might be worth checking out. What I appreciate is that I am able to use the service without inserting their ads. I also appreciate the ease of use. Although I've finally developed a stronger interest in new technology than ever before, I have not developed an aptitude for such. When it comes to computer, I live by the K.I.S.S. philosophy.

So, I leave you with wishes for all the best in 2009 and a promise that I will continue to (try to) provide you with entertainment. :-)

Racism, sexism, and ageism, oh my!

Sarah Palin.

I am beginning to get considerably sick of that name (I'm sure you all are, too!) I must admit, I haven't been following politics very closely as of late (I'd rather not wake up every day feeling pissed off with the world). I won't try to remain objective; I think Sarah Palin is an idiot. But, this is not a political blog and I am not a person who has a really extensive knowledge of politics, so I'm not going to discuss my views on actual politics. So, what I've noticed with all this talk about Palin, is that we are really, really, really primitive.

As I said, I haven't really been following politics (in the sense of policy... and really, I can't vote in the U.S. election anyway, so there isn't a whole lot of point). I have, however, taken notice of the attitudes towards this election. We claim to be evolved... an intelligent species even. Yet when we're presented with a chance to control (to some degree) the very issues we pretend are important to us (e.g., taxes, childcare, healthcare), we sweep it all under a shroud and everything becomes a big jumbled mess of racism, sexism, and ageism. What does this have to do with Sarah Palin (other than the fact that she's been a huge target of sexism during this campaign)? Nothing much, really... but the constant media exposure she's had has been what made me think about this a bit more.

Is there hope for us? Will we always find something to be prejudiced towards? There has been massive outrage over any racist commentary or imagery against Barack Obama... so there's one step in the right direction... but what about sexism and ageism? Aside from flat-out sexist remarks (e.g., "bitch"), we don't seem too bothered by the fact that Hilary Clinton's and Sarah Palin's abilities have been judged largely by their gender. Personally, I think it's ridiculous to question the fact that Sarah Palin has children at home... I mean, really, can't her husband watch the kids? And ageism? Well, that theory may as well not even exist... virtually no one seems upset by the comments made against John McCain... speculation on if he'll be able to stay awake during meetings or if he's wearing adult diapers... 'cause apparently anyone over the age of 50 can't stay awake for more than a couple of hours at a time... and Depends are a major political issue.

Has anyone else noticed this? Has anyone seen where people are beginning to combat the constant barrage of ageism and sexism (I left out racism, not because I don't think it's an issue, but because it's [thankfully] an issue we actually seem to be taking seriously now)?

What do you think???

(Mis)Fortune Cookies

Keeping with this year's Olympic theme, I decided to order some Chinese food for dinner on Friday night. Okay, I'll be honest... I have not watched a single Olympic event, or even read/watched any news to do with this year's Olympics (and not because I'm protesting... I seriously just don't give a sweet darn... are they over yet??). I simply was not feeling well and did not feel like cooking.

Bring a vegetarian, I went to the only Chinese restaurant in town that offers something more than plain fried rice (okay, so there is another restaurant, but I didn't feel like forking over $20 for a bit of fried rice with mixed vegetables and poorly cooked plain chunks of tofu). Of course, dinner still cost an arm and a leg... so to top it all off, I added a fortune cookie to the bill. Not feeling well, I was able to rationalise such an extravagancy; I needed a pick-me-up.

Now of course, I can't hold my hand on my ass. We live in a world of personal television and internet access, so I have come to appreciate (and rely on) instant gratification. In other words, I tore into that fortune cookie before I even glanced at my dinner. Imagine my disappointment when I discovered the fortune cookie contained no fortune. Seriously, who would fork over $0.75 for a stale, crappy cookie if it didn't have that tiny slip of paper inside? Actually, why would anyone fork over $0.75 for someone's $0.02 worth? I certainly began to wonder what it might mean to discover a fortuneless fortune cookie when you're coming down with a cold. Should I be worried? (for anyone who is concerned, I'm feeling MUCH better now!)

Although the cookie was a let-down, the meal was most excellent (even though, or possibly because, I couldn't taste it).

Have you ever had a bad fortune cookie experience?

Have you laughed at any of this? If so, drop by www.humor-blogs.com to vote for your favourite posts and visit some hilarious blogs.

'Me' Before 'We': A Fine Line Between Self-Help and Narcissism

A wise friend once said to me, "it does not help us to think about how others have it worse off when we're going through our own trauma. We can only go by our own experience, so what may be petty to others can be rightfully major to us"... and, I agree... to an extent...

First thing's first: this is not a warm and fuzzy post about how truly wonderful you are. I'm not going to tell you how to love yourselves... 'cause really, I don't think that's the problem. So, if you aren't prepared to hear that you're not the be all and end all, you might wish to surf elsewhere.

So, what is "the problem"?

The problem is that we do not know how to love one another. In fact, I'm willing to bet there are some of you who grunted and/or rolled your eyes when you read the previous sentence. I don't blame you, if you did. After all, all of the leading experts in the field of bullshit popular psychology will be quick to let you in on the secret to happiness (all you have to do is buy their book)! According to many of these 'experts', the secret to true happiness is self-worship.

Okay, so maybe that last statement was a little extreme... maybe... but I doubt it.

Think of it... we're told, more and more, how we need to take care of ourselves... which is great (and very important)... but now that we're used to that idea, we're beginning to accept the idea that we shouldn't put our energies into others. Instead, we're being taught we should allow others to fend for themelves; we're being taught to walk through life without the weight of the world on our shoulders. Problem is, we're being taught to walk (or rather, sit) through life without any weight on our shoulders. We have become emotionally delicate in regards to ourselves, yet emotionally hardened in regards to others... and I really fail to see how that's made any of us happier, or healthier.

I am a huge advocate of taking care of your own needs. I believe you need to take care of yourself before you can take care of others. But, we seem to forget the importance of taking care of others... and we almost act as though it's ridiculous to put the needs of others, no matter how pressing, before our own. We have become so self-centred we actually believe anything that causes any sort of discomfort or feeling of unpleasantness should be completely avoided. I'm really not surprised though... as long as the pop. psychologists keep telling us we come first, we will continue to ignore those around us. So, when we need someone to turn to, we can go and pay the "doctor" who told us to shut out the outside world. And really, problems are not discussed over a cup of tea, with friends, nearly as much now as they are with doctors... we've grown to think it unacceptable to help each other out (or ask for help) without some sort of fee.

So, how do we start loving one another? Well, we bite the bullet and realise we are not the centre of the universe. We meet our basic needs, then we help others meet theirs. We listen to that friend with the crisis... especially after they just listened to ours! We listen... period (turn off the mind chatter when other people are speaking to you). We really mean it when we say "how are you?". And, we take the time to think of those we love even when they're not in front of our faces... among many other things. Honestly, I'd hope this would be obvious to anyone reading.

Some of you (who took the time to 'listen') will remember my opening quote... about the friend who told me we can only see the world through our own eyes. She's right... and like I said... I agree... to an extent... the fact that people have problems worse than yours does NOT make your problems any less severe... and I'm certain that is what my friend meant.
However, for anyone who may take from the quote: "disregard the experiences of others", I believe it is our responsibility, since we have the ability, to force ourselves to see the world through the eyes of others. Yes, our problems may be severe, but it does not give us the 'right' to diminish the problems of others. If we want sympathy, we'd best give it.

So, what do you think? Do we really put selfishness above selflessness? Do you think we should? If so, why?

Child labour and spam? Go check it out!

I was surfing the blogosphere, checking out some of my favourite blogs, and came across an article I just had to share...

Jenn Thorson, creator of the blog "Of Cabbages and Kings" has discovered the secret behind spammers - why they never tire.

So, I'm sending you all over to her blog today, since you just have to read her post...

The Toddler Labor Spam Conspiracy (By Jenn Thorson from "Of Cabbages and Kings")

20 Questions You Should Probably Avoid on Social-Networking Sites

If you are reading this post, you most likely have an internet connection; if you have an internet connection, you most likely have an e-mail address. If you have an e-mail address, I will go ahead and assume you have friends (or maybe just family and co-workers) who send messages (personal or business) to your e-mail address. I know many people are still further behind the times than I, but I think it's safe to assume that anyone reading this post, or at least the majority of anyone reading this post, has been the recipient of a fairly lengthly survey, via e-mail, Facebook, Myspace, or whatnot, requesting the most intimate details of your life in exchange for a possible glimpse inside another friend's, or some casual acquaintance's, life.

Judging from my inbox, or, within the last year or so, my Facebook home page, a lot of people think displaying their life for, often, hundreds of people to view is completely harmless. Intimate surveys were never as much of a problem with e-mail, since these surveys usually stuck within small groups of close friends. But, since these surveys have started flooding social networking sites, the intimate information shared in these surveys is often available to hundreds of people (hardly an exaggeration), many of whom we hardly know.

Identity theft is very real and very common... why are there so many victims? I think part of the problem lies within these 'fun' surveys floating around in cyberspace... although many of the questions seem harmless, it wouldn't take very long to obtain a complete profile on someone. I'm not saying these surveys need to be avoided like the plague, but I am saying we should exercise caution when answering these surveys.

For now, here's a list of twenty questions we might not think of as a security threat - I won't bother posting the obvious, such as "what is your mother's maiden name?", or "what is your social insuance number?" - I'm sure my readers are smart enough to realise the danger in such questions. Also, some of these questions have less to do with identity theft and more to do with personal safety... I've compiled this list in hopes to pass on a few lesser-known helpful pieces of information.

20 Questions You Might Not Want to Answer (at least, not seriously)

1. What are the last four digits of your cell-phone number? This one should be pretty obvious... the city you live in is pretty much common knowledge, so it wouldn't be too hard for someone with not-so-innocent ideas to trace down the first three digits of your cell-phone number.

2. What was/is the name of your favourite pet? C'mon... don't tell me you haven't been asked this as a security question at least once.

3. What is your middle/full name? This one should be obvious too... seriously... do you often introduce yourself as "Jonathan Jacob Andrew Doe"?

4. Where did you attend elementary school? "In a large, brick building", or "at home, with my mother/father" should be a sufficient answer.

5. What is your favourite number? Okay, so this one seems pretty innocent... and generally is, but keep in mind, we're more likely to use our favourite number when filling out security questions, or creating PIN numbers or passwords. This seems like a really tiny, insignificant piece of information, but if it's pieced together with a number of other tiny, insignificant questions, it could be the missing puzzle piece. Personally, I just feel like someone's favourite number should be a fairly personal thing...

6. What is your height/eye colour/weight/shoe size? So these are questions that can be guessed pretty easily if someone knows you offline, or has a good picture of you. But, why flat out give them that information?

7. Who is your cell-phone/cable/internet provider? Most of us jump at any chance we get to whine and moan about crappy customer service from our service providers, but many of us do not stop to think how much easier it is for someone to cause problems with our services if they're told exactly what services we're using.

8. What bank do you use? What bank you use is hardly anyone's business... thankfully, this question is hardly asked on surveys (but I put it here because I have seen it on more than one occasion).

9. How many siblings do you have/what are their names/how old are they? You cannot (as easily) assume someone's identity if you know nothing about their family, can you?

10. Are you allergic to anything? If so, what? Right... that way, if you get to be a threat, you could easily be taken out (okay, so that's a bit paranoid, but is there really a good reason for everyone to know your allergens)?

11. Who is your best friend? Actually, avoid any question that asks for any friend's name (such as: "who was the last person to text you?", or whatnot)... some people don't appreciate their name being plastered all over the internet (plus, it's easier to gather information on someone if you can narrow down their network of friends).

12. Be careful when answering any sort of question beginning with "who/what was your first..." many security question often ask you to provide information about certain "firsts".

13. What is your sexual orientation/religion/political belief system? Think about it... do you really want every single person on your friend list to have access to that information? If so, by all means, express yourself... but keep in mind how much easier you're making it to piece together your entire being.

14. How much money do you make annually? If this one isn't obvious, there's really no hope for you.

15. What are your nicknames? This question makes it easier for people to find more information about you, if you happen to use multiple nicknames online.

16. What's your biggest secret? Again, you would have to be an idiot to answer this question... and no, I don't admire people who "let it all in the open".

17. What is your ethnicity? Avoid any questions asking for your cultural background information... or, if you're like me, just respond with "mutt"... once again, this sort of question seems minor, but it's pretty jam-packed.

18. Have you ever taken drugs/what drugs have you taken? This isn't so much an identity theft issue... more of a personal safety issue... do you really want your parents, or maybe even the police, seeing your answer to that question?

19. How many piercings/tattoos do you have? This works to identify criminals, so why couldn't it help criminals identify you?

20. Where did you meet your spouse/significant other? Common security question

Bonus
21. What time were you born? This may be a little more superstitious than anything else, but it can be pretty easy to obtain a pretty detailed astrological profile of someone if you have the exact time they were born.

I hope this list provided some helpful hints and I wish you all safe surfing. Oh, and by the way, if anyone on here ever makes you crack a smile, drop by www.humor-blogs.com to vote for my blog.

Some things simply aren't meant to be...

Some things are simply not meant to be:

cats cannot have puppies, humans cannot have kittens, and my family cannot keep a gazebo on our deck.

Roughly two months ago (actually, probably closer to one month ago), we got the same great idea we get every year:
"Let's get a gazebo"...
And, roughly two months ago (actually, probably closer to one month ago), we had the same discussion we have every year:
"Should we get one with a mesh shelter?", "Nah, mosquitoes or bees may get trapped inside... or worse yet, mosquitoes and bees may get trapped inside... or hornets!"...
Anyway, we came to the same conclusion we reach every year... we purchased a cheap moderately priced, steel market gazebo (similar to the one shown below, but not quite as nice) - no mesh net.
Since this is an annual tradition in our house, we assembled the gazebo without a problem. Of course, we live in a place that is either shrouded with heavy fog, or beat to hell by heavy winds. So, a couple days later we packed up our little gazebo and returned it to the store, picking up another little gazebo... the exact same model (yeah, I never claimed to come from a smart family)! In fact, I don't think I need go into detail about what happened to the second gazebo (you could probably guess and you would probably be correct).
By chance, dad and I were browsing through a liquidation centre we have in town and we stumbled across an "easy-up", or "scissor-up", market gazebo (which is actually the exact same as the picture shown below) - all we had to do was take it out of the box and stretch it out. The gazebo was seemingly sturdy, so we were easily sold (and satisfied)!
So, last week we assembled our brand spankin' new easy-up gazebo, sat back, kicked up our feet and enjoyed the shelter. Friday, however, was filled with off-and-on heavy showers downpours... so yesterday, dad and I just finished bending our ultra-sturdy gazebo as close to its original shape as possible, crammed it into the box, and returned it to the liquidation centre (well, dad returned it... I wrote this).

I shared a popular quote when I started this post: "some things are simply not meant to be". But, since I have a funny feeling I'll be able to write about gazebo number four by the end of next week, I think a more appropriate quote would be "some people never learn"!

If you so much as cracked a smile while reading this, please mosey on over to www.humor-blogs.com and cast a vote for this blog. I promise I'll be your very best friend!

Genetically Modified Poetry...

Modified, processed, rehydrated, and fried,
Quick to go, great late at night!
Palm, olive, coconut, and vegetable based,
Grease up your food, then plug up your face!
Antibiotics, pus, fat, and growth hormones,
Straight from the teet and into your home.
Salmonella; e-coli; cholesterol; trans,
Why isn't all of this shit we eat banned?
Don't light up tobacco, don't lie under the sun,
When you can just choke to death on a sesame bun!

Oh yeah, and if you like my blog, please vote for me at www.humor-blogs.com