What does it mean to "like" something?
There are probably as many things written about the value of the like button on facebook as there are "likes" of various things. The previous sentence is hyperbole but I want to acknowledge that I am walking well-traveled ground.
Earlier this week I posted the following to Facebook:
"Hmm. Odd reaction from myself.
I'm home alone. There was a sound at the front door of someone opening the screen door and futzing with the interior door. My first impulse was not to see who was there, but to secure a weapon or weapon-like object.
I waited until the sound stopped. No attempt had been made to open the door. I then turned off the lights in the front room and turned on the porch light. This put me in shadow while lighting whoever may have been on the porch. Then I looked to see what was going on.
No one was on the porch. A letter from the property manager had been left between the screen door and interior door.
I thought my reaction to a strange noise at the door was overly cautious or fearful and I was surprised at myself for feeling that way. I wondered what others thought but I did not specifically ask that question.
After a while people on Facebook began to notice what I had written. It quickly received three "likes" each without comment. Later a few comments were added but most centered on my use of the word 'futzing'. One seemed to applaud my desire to have a weapon handy. More likes came in later, also without comment on what I had written.
What exactly did these people like? Without asking I cannot know. Were they simply acknowledeging I had written something? Did they approve of my actions in response to the strange noise? Were they amused by the fact I had reacted so strongly to something that turned out to be merely a routine note from the property manager?
The Like button is a vague and imprecise tool. I often find that it raises more questions than it answers.
I'm still not sure why I reacted the way I did to an odd noise at my front door. My neighborhood is not the nicest but I don't think of it as out and out dangerous.
Earlier this week I posted the following to Facebook:
"Hmm. Odd reaction from myself.
I'm home alone. There was a sound at the front door of someone opening the screen door and futzing with the interior door. My first impulse was not to see who was there, but to secure a weapon or weapon-like object.
I waited until the sound stopped. No attempt had been made to open the door. I then turned off the lights in the front room and turned on the porch light. This put me in shadow while lighting whoever may have been on the porch. Then I looked to see what was going on.
No one was on the porch. A letter from the property manager had been left between the screen door and interior door.
I thought my reaction to a strange noise at the door was overly cautious or fearful and I was surprised at myself for feeling that way. I wondered what others thought but I did not specifically ask that question.
After a while people on Facebook began to notice what I had written. It quickly received three "likes" each without comment. Later a few comments were added but most centered on my use of the word 'futzing'. One seemed to applaud my desire to have a weapon handy. More likes came in later, also without comment on what I had written.
What exactly did these people like? Without asking I cannot know. Were they simply acknowledeging I had written something? Did they approve of my actions in response to the strange noise? Were they amused by the fact I had reacted so strongly to something that turned out to be merely a routine note from the property manager?
The Like button is a vague and imprecise tool. I often find that it raises more questions than it answers.
I'm still not sure why I reacted the way I did to an odd noise at my front door. My neighborhood is not the nicest but I don't think of it as out and out dangerous.