Almost two years ago, winter of 2009 I believe, my friend Brett invited me to play Scrabble with him on Facebook.
Actually he was able to do this because I had already secretly made an account in an effort to understand the world my then 16 year old son was living in. Monosyllable answers thrown over his shoulder as he trotted upstairs left me feeling completely in the dark as to what sixteen year old boys did in their spare time in the 21st century.
My effort to stalk him on Facebook was useless. I never did find his page even and had pretty much given up the whole idea when I received an email saying that Brett , a Flickr buddy, had a 'friend' request for me on Facebook.
Actually he was able to do this because I had already secretly made an account in an effort to understand the world my then 16 year old son was living in. Monosyllable answers thrown over his shoulder as he trotted upstairs left me feeling completely in the dark as to what sixteen year old boys did in their spare time in the 21st century.
My effort to stalk him on Facebook was useless. I never did find his page even and had pretty much given up the whole idea when I received an email saying that Brett , a Flickr buddy, had a 'friend' request for me on Facebook.
I actually couldn't even remember how to log on. Fortunately, in his infinite wisdom and foresight , Mark Zuckerberg,
made it possible for a not so savvy middle aged gal to hack into her own account.
and voila! I was able to be updated regularly on Brett's 'status' (important Facebook term)
AND play an eight day Scrabble game with him. and HE lives in Canada! How cool was THAT?!
Turns out that I bored quickly and divorced Facebook pretty early on. More about that
here.
Then, for reason's I don't even recall now, I logged back on to Facebook and again Voila! my account had been saved for me with all the posts and comments still intact.
Whew!
(sarcasm intended)
So there I was, browsing my family's status' and cringing at all the 'f' bombs my son was dropping.(Facebook etiquette indicates that unless your teenager is about to rob a gas station or do physical harm to him or herself, parents are NOT to interfere. And actually I dropped a fair amount of 'f' bombs myself at his age, just no Facebook for my parents to stalk me on. Which is a good thing, because I would probably just now be getting off restriction. but I 'm rambling here)
What the heck was I saying?...
Oh yes, I was enjoying Facebook in the normal facebooky way when I became aware of the advertisements than run down the right side of the FB page. Most of them having to do with things like lipo suction and magical diets (how the hell did Mark Zuckerberg know I was over weight? un-nerving to say the least)
A few regarding class reunions (bah) but one in particular that got my attention.
Yoville.
Hell, it even sounded cool.
Now I should note here that by this time my friend Jami already had me 'virtual' farming everyday in Farm Town. And really, I did enjoy that. Not as much as Jami who ultimately made a FarmTown farm for each of her three dogs in addition to herself, but I liked it. A mindless way to pass some time that I actually did find relaxing.
But Yoville damn..
so I logged on , made myself a character, moved into my virtual apartment and...
the rest is history.
History in the making I should say.
Now, as a seasoned Yovillian, in addition to my original apartment (they give you that one. No homeless people in Yoville), I own three houses and one dog. No cars or horses because they cost real $ and that seems over the top even for me.
My name is Mary Flynn and I'm a Yoville addict.
Oh good lord.
Most of my contacts that had started playing at one time or another, have since stopped. I'm still in there, visiting their apartment or house and gathering some coins. So I can buy more cool Yoville stuff of course.
w e l l .... it actually did start to get a bit dull for me. All the super cool houses cost real $, I had all the clothes that I liked. Now I was playing mostly from habit. Before and after work usually. And sometimes I even skipped my after work sessions.
But then Voila! again!
The Yoville moguls added more levels (I maxed out months ago) AND a contest! to win an Ipad. I want that!
SO here I am again, ardently playing Yoville every time my 'energy' refills. All I have to do is gain 20 levels before Jan. I can do this! I've gained 2 levels just since Thursday.(two days) Of course I'm competing with IBM executives that are playing at work to allow their minds to idle for a few minutes cuz everyone knows that's when the really great ideas drop themselves into your brain. Unfortunately , at the PO if you try to log on to Yoville it pops up with a "you've been blocked because this has no 'business' application"
That's why I need the Ipad! Then I can play Yoville at work too and truly be able to compete with the IBM execs.
It's good to have goals, don't you think?
made it possible for a not so savvy middle aged gal to hack into her own account.
and voila! I was able to be updated regularly on Brett's 'status' (important Facebook term)
AND play an eight day Scrabble game with him. and HE lives in Canada! How cool was THAT?!
Turns out that I bored quickly and divorced Facebook pretty early on. More about that
here.
Then, for reason's I don't even recall now, I logged back on to Facebook and again Voila! my account had been saved for me with all the posts and comments still intact.
Whew!
(sarcasm intended)
So there I was, browsing my family's status' and cringing at all the 'f' bombs my son was dropping.(Facebook etiquette indicates that unless your teenager is about to rob a gas station or do physical harm to him or herself, parents are NOT to interfere. And actually I dropped a fair amount of 'f' bombs myself at his age, just no Facebook for my parents to stalk me on. Which is a good thing, because I would probably just now be getting off restriction. but I 'm rambling here)
What the heck was I saying?...
Oh yes, I was enjoying Facebook in the normal facebooky way when I became aware of the advertisements than run down the right side of the FB page. Most of them having to do with things like lipo suction and magical diets (how the hell did Mark Zuckerberg know I was over weight? un-nerving to say the least)
A few regarding class reunions (bah) but one in particular that got my attention.
Yoville.
Hell, it even sounded cool.
Now I should note here that by this time my friend Jami already had me 'virtual' farming everyday in Farm Town. And really, I did enjoy that. Not as much as Jami who ultimately made a FarmTown farm for each of her three dogs in addition to herself, but I liked it. A mindless way to pass some time that I actually did find relaxing.
But Yoville damn..
so I logged on , made myself a character, moved into my virtual apartment and...
the rest is history.
History in the making I should say.
Now, as a seasoned Yovillian, in addition to my original apartment (they give you that one. No homeless people in Yoville), I own three houses and one dog. No cars or horses because they cost real $ and that seems over the top even for me.
My name is Mary Flynn and I'm a Yoville addict.
Oh good lord.
Most of my contacts that had started playing at one time or another, have since stopped. I'm still in there, visiting their apartment or house and gathering some coins. So I can buy more cool Yoville stuff of course.
w e l l .... it actually did start to get a bit dull for me. All the super cool houses cost real $, I had all the clothes that I liked. Now I was playing mostly from habit. Before and after work usually. And sometimes I even skipped my after work sessions.
But then Voila! again!
The Yoville moguls added more levels (I maxed out months ago) AND a contest! to win an Ipad. I want that!
SO here I am again, ardently playing Yoville every time my 'energy' refills. All I have to do is gain 20 levels before Jan. I can do this! I've gained 2 levels just since Thursday.(two days) Of course I'm competing with IBM executives that are playing at work to allow their minds to idle for a few minutes cuz everyone knows that's when the really great ideas drop themselves into your brain. Unfortunately , at the PO if you try to log on to Yoville it pops up with a "you've been blocked because this has no 'business' application"
That's why I need the Ipad! Then I can play Yoville at work too and truly be able to compete with the IBM execs.
It's good to have goals, don't you think?
