facebook

"Last Friday, I had three clients in my office with Facebook problems," said Paula Pile, a marriage and family therapist in Greensboro, North Carolina. "It's turned into a compulsion -- a compulsion to dissociate from your real world and go live in the Facebook world."

from Five Clues You're Addicted to Facebook: http://www.cnn.com/2009/HEALTH/04/23/ep.facebook.addict/index.html

Just in case you think I'm self-righteously pointing a finger at those who use facebook, you should know that I finally opened a facebook account today. Why not sooner when many of you have asked me to join so I could see your updates and photos? Here are the top 3 reasons:

1. Danger of a time-wasting addiction. This CNN article is a warning to myself.

2. Personal security. . . unfortunately, there are people that I'd rather not know my location, affiliations, networks, and friends. (By the way, you can't find me by searching for my name. I used an alias, so you have to find me through a mutual friend and then identify me by photo; I'm hoping you can only find me if you know who my closest friends are and what I look like.)

3. The blurred lines between intimate friends, close friends, and acquaintances. My tentative goal is to never exceed 20 "friends" (yes, the number is random). Let me know if you want to be one. I'm guessing only my closest friends read this blog . . . Thanks for being in the Hathaway Fan Club.

Welcoming responses. . . what do you think? Have I become totally paranoid?