Well, not strictly speaking, but it’s the last one on my personal profile that dates from 2008. I just “marked it for deletion,” meaning that if I don’t log back into it in the next fourteen days, Facebook will delete it (not deactivate it) from their servers.
Will they really do that? Who the hell knows anymore? But I hope so.
I am (mostly) leaving Facebook because of privacy concerns, which I described in this post. Below is what I had to say on the way out. This is my last Wall post, with no changes other than the name redaction and the added hyperlinks:
Inside an hour to go. This will be my last update on this profile. (Wow, sounds like I’m leaving radio range or about to run out of oxygen or something, doesn’t it?)
(Name redacted) has now put all kinds of pressure on me to say something cool on the way out. I wasn’t expecting that, though he’d be a likely source from which it would emanate.
I’ll just say again, this is not easy. Don’t ever make fun of anyone who does this and then shows back up three days later. It’s amazing what Facebook does for us, but it’s also terrifying to realize how deeply its tendrils invade; how dependent we become on it. I’ve had a this-is-my-last-day-to-smoke feeling off and on all day. I’m confident I’ve thought this through and I’m going to stay with my new paradigm, but I think no less of anyone who does this and then decides naaaahhh…
I’m kind of stealing second while keeping my foot on first, creating my other profile and getting to keep the BoWilliams.com Facebook page and stay in my groups and all that. The difference is, that profile will not have any friends. He’ll never take any photographs. He never went to school. He never worked. He’ll never have any significant demographic value to the Facebook dossier orgasmatron. He’s a means to an end.
Seriously, though, folks. I’m not going to be tough to find. I’ll be at BoWilliams.com. I’ll be here, at the BoWilliams.com Facebook page. I’ll be at Twitter at @ElrodClyde. I’ll be at RocketCityMom.com, with a new post every couple of weeks and a comment here and there.
It is cool, touching, and humbling to have so many of you share with me what our interaction here has meant to you. Folks, I’ve enjoyed it too—deeply. Facebook is one of those things that is as much or as little as you make it, and you and I have had meaningful exchanges here. That means you’ve given of yourself. I’m so thankful for that. I’m hoping we can keep a lot of the vibe going on the BoWilliams.com Facebook page.
OK, that’s a lot of bloviation, and I’m going to start tearing up if I go much more, and then I’ll have some horribly over-heartfelt call for us to discuss our feelings and what the true meaning of empathy is and a whole bunch of other crap, and before you know it we’ll be running around in the woods in loincloths eating tree bark, and nobody wants that. So I’ll stop there.
This is it. I’m going through a few more messages, and then this profile will wink out of existence.
Come see me on the other side. Thank you and God bless.
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*sits in corner, pouting*
Chin up, sweet. Explore this wonderland with me. 🙂
If I knew then what I know now, I would have had one profile for family and trusted friends and another profile for playing games and for friends who click on every FB ad and gotcha link (“see who’s been secretly spying on you!”).