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Internet Stalking, My Favorite Hobby
It went from creepy to funny to totally okay. Internet stalking reminds me of being labeled “nerd” years back. What was once so not cool now has everybody claiming, and to be honest I kind of like it.
It doesn’t bug me the same way as when people proclaim themselves nerds. I found that to be obnoxious.
But this internet stalking thing, hey, I can get behind it. Before moving into the house I live now, I looked up all potential housemates on google and facebook. Open profiles are simultaneously free game and jackpots! Google even picked up a few pre-facebook era pages like friendster and I was able to read my way toward a first impression.
Obviously, evaluating a person based on their interweb presence is not completely accurate. But like a job interview, it can give a little insight as to the type of person you’re searching. Friends’ and acquaintances’ wall messages act as reference letters. Interests and hobbies, like cover letters. Status updates, like mission statements. Photos? Well, we all judge a person’s looks to some degree.
Naturally, a majority of us claiming “internet stalking” aren’t truly internet stalkers (…uh, right?). Like claiming “nerd,” we do it because it’s no longer a fringe activity. It’s funny, self-deprecating, and totally socially accepted. Out of those three, the third is what brings us around to admission.
Soberingly enough, there comes a day when we’re forced to take responsibility for our own actions. By law, that’s when we turn 18. By internet dictum, that’s the day we create our profiles. No longer valid are complaints about creepiness when someone clicks through your personal vacation photos. Why upload them if not to show the world?
Guaranteed your boss is on facebook. Your mom has seen your profile. Your nieces and nephews know you’re a lush. But on the plus side, you now have way more friends than you did before you registered.
