Unfriended

So I've been unfriended by ANM. Yup, a few weeks later, I've been excised. No explanation why, all I can think of is she discovered my notorious political affiliation. She's added other grade school classmates. But not me. And I'm as shellshocked as I was when she added me.

How silly. How utterly silly that I care about someone I haven't been in touch with in TWENTY years. And I am not ashamed or embarrassed or anything. Why should I be?

I bought the new Real Simple which has an article about the phenomenum: "It allows people to leapfrog back to a former you, one you thought you had left behind."

Another passage: the author recounts how her friend accepted an invite from someone she had not seen since sixth grade "and found herself plunged into the social anxiety she had experienced at that age....'My memories are being invaded by other people's memories.'" "On facebook, the past is no longer distant and blurry, a source for vague wonder and speculation."

This is why I didn't want to join in the first place, I didn't want to open myself up to all of the scrutiny and insecurity and self-loathing sixth grade friendships bloomed. I don't need that in my life, not when I have 160 other friends to care about. But why do I care about the one?

Same reason why I cared about that one twenty-years ago. I didn't have one.