Thanks, Sue. The transition from childhood to teen years is pretty lame, even though there is sand below the monkey bars. I could've done a few things better but I ran out of steam. And I draw better by hand but can't do that anymore. Oh well. All any of us can do is give it our best shot.

And if employers are now doing a Google sweep, could medical organizations be next? Scary.

I loved your video Annie!

Okay, I will share.

My favorite place for artists of all kinds (poetry, stories, photography, music, any art or writing) is Apollo Blessed, http://apolloblessed.ning.com/. It is a private website managed by one of my online friends. Everyone is welcome to join. I go by the name DesertDreamer over there(the membership application will ask if you know any members, and you do!). All opinions are respected there, in fact it is in the site rules and disrespectful people will lose their membership (after a few warnings). It is a great place to be if you want to get encouragement for whatever kind of art you want to pursue, even if you are just starting out, and is also a great community if you want to make online friends while you are working on your projects.

Another of my favorite places for writing only is Writers Cafe, http://www.writerscafe.org/. People there are usually respectful and encouraging, but since the site is open to anyone sometimes there are a few people who cause trouble. Generally everyone watches out for each other. I get a lot of great feedback on my poetry and nature writing there.

My third favorite place is Open Diary, http://www.opendiary.com/default.asp. It is a place where you can write a journal and make each entry private or open for others to read. I started writing there because I work on multiple computers and wanted an online place to write. I've found a lot of supportive people there, encouraging me to write more. I keep a mostly private journal there, but have a lot of public entries, too.

I've tried out various other sites, but these are my favorites that I keep going back to.

Anyone else have favorite social websites?

Annie,

It took me time, because I wrote and crossed out what I wrote many times.
your video and this entire thread touched something very deep that I can't describe in words.

It reminded me of a good friend of mine, who showed me one of his pictures many years ago. I felt very strongly about it, but couldn't understand why. I asked him to explain to me what he was trying to express. His answer was that a true art work does not need an explanation, and can't have one. I may not feel what he meant to convey, because I am a different person. But, I should feel very strongly about it, because somehow the emotions and thoughts that he invested in this picture should reach me.

He was not interested in knowing how it affected me, he was just interested in knowing that looking at his picture added something to my life that wasn't there before.

Susan, Thank you for sharing those sites with us. I don't know how much more I'll delve into the surreal Internet world but I'm glad to have some options. I know you are talented and it's good you are sharing that.

Hmmmm . . . you didn't say if that was a good or bad impression, Alice! I'm glad that you had a moment with it. I did the video for the reasons I described but it was more than that. I have been thinking of my own mortality and getting rid of "things" lately. So that's why I left the "things" behind when I panned back through time. It's the people we meet that are so important. That's where the love is, in my opinion.

There are artists' work I love and others I don't. But what I try to do with those I may not like is to find one aspect of their work I can appreciate. Some of the other videos that were entered I did not like but I can appreciate their intent or the work they put into them or the photos, etc.

There is a line that gets blurred in the "social medias" or in real life. There's a big difference between liking or disliking a song's melody or a painting's colors or a politician's views. As in debate, you don't have to tear apart the person to critically examine their "work." And that's a distinction that is often lost on young, impressionable people. And some older people too!

This "urge" to put down people is sad. When someone creates a work of art, whether it is liked by anyone or not, it is their creation. And because it came from them, it should be respected. Respect is not the same as like. No one is ever going to like everything they come in contact with - unless they've had a lobotomy. But every single person has the right to be who they are, no matter if we like it or not. In fact, they should be celebrated for who they are. Maybe kids might grow up to be happy if they were accepted and celebrated.

I was lucky that I had a supportive upbringing. But that doesn't mean I'm not, on occasion, vulnerable to "attacks." It just such a waste of time. The only people who seem to really get something from attacking others are those who are so insecure that they need to feel better by making others feel worse.

I appreciate all of the input on this topic. It's an odd, virtual world. It's great to reach out to you guys who have MG, that's for sure. I don't know what I would've done in 2000 without it, when I first discovered I had ptosis. And we are lucky that the Mods are so great here. Maybe that's what the Internet needs too . . . a few more "parents" for those "kids" who like to act up.

Annie

Well, this is disturbing. The CIA uses Facebook as an intelligence gathering tool. Really? Is that all they're using it for?

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/technology...ectid=10456534

http://articles.cnn.com/2008-09-05/t...ace?_s=PM:TECH

It's hard to know what to believe. I do know that I won't be going on Facebook.

Like security and freedom, privacy and access are mutually desirable and mutually incompatible. For example, here I am a fellow MGer or CMSer or whatever we finally come up with and trying to contact a member here. I am having trouble navigating the site and understanding all the privacy controls in place. I post on another site where I have friends and as we all know, there is only so much energy in a day. I have given up a couple of times here but there is information that I would like to know and people I would like to meet. I have privacy concerns myself and unless the return is worth the risk, I hesitate and I am too new to weigh the benefits and risks of posting on this site. I finially decided this was a good topic to respond to since it spoke to my concerns. Although my grown children use Facebook, and I have been invited by others, I am always hesitant to take "free" offers. I know there has to be a money to support the network and random advertising is not going to do it. Young people don't have the same concerns. Access is more important than privacy until they experience the drawbacks personally and it is very difficult to exist on the net without making compromises. I don't have any deep dark secrets, or passionate lovers trying to find me that I want to avoid, but if I am going to run around in the nude, I would like to do it on just one site. Wishing
all of you only the best. Night crawler