Cheech and Chong saw the future and it was Twitter

Or Facebook. Or, LinkedIn any one of those online places where people tend to keep the whole world informed about their every move and thought.

I check Facebook every now and then. I even have a page. I use it mostly to communicate with nieces and nephews and interns, who tend to check Facebook more frequently than they check e-mail. And, while I understand that social networking is a significant fact of contemporary life (until somebody thinks up the next thing), I just can't understand why so many people go to the trouble of accessing their account to keep the rest of us up to date on the inanities of their lives. Of their every move and thought. Not just the interesting or relevant stuff, but freaking everything.

Somebody went for a walk. Somebody else is thinking about chicken. Yet another person is glad it's spring! Another "is like yea! Craigslist!" One intern we know logs on to let the rest of us know when she is "soooooo bored!"

I mean, I love my wife Karen and my son Larry and think they are interesting people. But not every single thought even they have or thing they do is interesting. Jeeze, my guess is that maybe 2% of what I do and think is interesting to anybody. If that. It's not even all that interesting to me. (And yet, you say, he writes a blog.)

Forgive me, really. It's not that I don't think people are fascinating. It's just that not every single thing people do or every thought that flies through their head is worth sharing. Edit people, edit.

Sometimes, Twitter, Facebook and all the rest remind me of this one part of the classic (get ready, I'm about to date myself) "Sister Mary Elephant" routine by Cheech & Chong, which I have thoughtfully reprinted here for you:


TEACHER:
Now class, Sister Rosetta has informed me that your assignment for the last two months has been to write an essay entitled "How I Spent My Summer Vacation". Who would like to read theirs before the class? . . . Young man?

STUDENT:
Okay. The first day on my vacation, what I did on my summer vacation, the first day on my vacation, I woke up. Then, I went downtown to look for job. Then I hung out in front of the drugstore. The second day on my summer vacation, I woke up, then I went downtown to look for a job. Then I hung out in front of the drugstore. The third day on my summer vacation, I woke up...

TEACHER:
Now that`s fine, young man!

STUDENT :
...Then I went downtown to look for a job...

TEACHER:
Now that`s fine, young man!

STUDENT :
...Then I got a job, keeping people from hanging out in front of the drugstore. The fourth day on my...

TEACHER:
Young man? Young man? Young man!? SHUT UP!!!!!