Just a Bunch of Chicken Hawks

Keeping up with the present leaves precious little time for the past. Staying in touch with former coworkers, classmates, friends and neighbors is one of those intentions that too often falls by the wayside. Out of sight, out of mind. The intention to write, call or e-mail remains as days turn into weeks and weeks turn into years.

Enter Facebook (and other social networking sites). I've written about how great it is to connect with so many friends from so many different periods in my life and how difficult it can be to keep up with the day-to-day activities of 200+ friends. Why do I do it? Because the social scientist in me is fascinated!

It's interesting to see what people want to share and what they believe others want to know. On a personal level the status updates, comments, photos, and shared links can be quite revealing. Some of the quiz results I've seen should not be shared with anyone. I really don't care which sexual position or body part best describes you. I don't think anyone else wants to know either but that would just be a guess.

You can also learn a lot about social trends. I'm astounded by the number of men my age (over 50) with very small children or children on the way. Most, but not all, are first time parents. I haven't seen anything about this in the literature and wonder if this trend in my "sample" extends to the general population. Probably.

I'm saddened by the number of divorced women my age. I only hear one side of the story, but it seems most have been replaced by women half their age. I'd throw more stones here but my own partner is 20+ years younger than me. I know every case is unique but taken together, the male gender comes off looking like a bunch of chicken hawks.

Sigh

The Crotchety Old Man