Old Photos
I'm really glad digital photography was still in its infancy when I was in high school and college. Thank goodness too because there would probably be more photos of me with bad haircuts than currently exist. It helps I wasn't very popular with the photo-taking crowd back then either, though that's been changing since I've been playing social butterfly a lot lately. Still, a few do pop up every now and then.
After reading Facebook will be moving over all its users over to Timeline in the next week or two, I've decided to go ahead and take the plunge a few days before the actual date. Mainly because I've got plenty of free time at the moment. I won't be alone, though. There will be millions of other people inspired to play fill-in-the-blanks over the next few months as Timeline is imposed on all Facebook users.
I've gone years-long stretches without taking photos, so it's no surprise I don't have very many photos in my collection. However, the ones I do have serve as reminders of certain points in my life as much as anyone else: friendships, vacations, places, parties, and even old crushes. Still, most of my childhood photos are at my mother's house, a problem I'm going to have to spend some time rectifying next time I visit her.
It's been a few years since I went through any of these photos and I'm glad I'm taking the time to do it now. Photos remind me how much of our identity is made up of our memories. Time has a way of distorting those memories. While a wish for accuracy of the moment fades with time, in the end all you're left is a feeling of nostalgia.
It's easy to mock the idea of the Timeline as yet another shameless attempt by Facebook to have us give up more aspects of our life for marketers and advertisers. Still, there is a social aspect of it that is undeniable. After all, we are a social species and Facebook taps into that like nothing else before it. Facebook allows us to easily share experiences with friends and family, both for better and for worse.
Many of us would like to think our loved ones care about our lives, much like me writing this blog, and Timeline is an extension of that thinking. If anything, it's a fun journey looking back at a me that only exists in photos and journals. It gives me a sense of who I was as I look forward to the rest of my days.
After reading Facebook will be moving over all its users over to Timeline in the next week or two, I've decided to go ahead and take the plunge a few days before the actual date. Mainly because I've got plenty of free time at the moment. I won't be alone, though. There will be millions of other people inspired to play fill-in-the-blanks over the next few months as Timeline is imposed on all Facebook users.
I've gone years-long stretches without taking photos, so it's no surprise I don't have very many photos in my collection. However, the ones I do have serve as reminders of certain points in my life as much as anyone else: friendships, vacations, places, parties, and even old crushes. Still, most of my childhood photos are at my mother's house, a problem I'm going to have to spend some time rectifying next time I visit her.
It's been a few years since I went through any of these photos and I'm glad I'm taking the time to do it now. Photos remind me how much of our identity is made up of our memories. Time has a way of distorting those memories. While a wish for accuracy of the moment fades with time, in the end all you're left is a feeling of nostalgia.
It's easy to mock the idea of the Timeline as yet another shameless attempt by Facebook to have us give up more aspects of our life for marketers and advertisers. Still, there is a social aspect of it that is undeniable. After all, we are a social species and Facebook taps into that like nothing else before it. Facebook allows us to easily share experiences with friends and family, both for better and for worse.
Many of us would like to think our loved ones care about our lives, much like me writing this blog, and Timeline is an extension of that thinking. If anything, it's a fun journey looking back at a me that only exists in photos and journals. It gives me a sense of who I was as I look forward to the rest of my days.
Labels: Facebook, photography
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