Parental Lapse

In a moment of weakness today, I let my (younger than legal age) daughter create a Facebook account. I was on Facebook myself and had just read a post that my cousin-in law’s photos were featured in the New York Times.  I called Ruby over to have a look.


One thing led to another and then boom, the question I’d been dreading: “Can I have a Facebook account?” I knew the answer - “NO. Not until you’re legal and that isn’t until you’re 13” - but recently I’d been losing my conviction.  So many of her school buddies belonged that I was feeling that she might be left out (although that was likely me projecting my own insecurities). Also, I reasoned to myself, if I let her join I could teach her the rules while she’d still let me.

The Kid Talks Back

Ok, so you probably know who I am.  Ruby (a.k.a. the tween). Parents, it is ok to let your kids read this one. I have been meaning to write a post for a while and my mom wants me to do a book report on this book "A girl's smart guide to the internet." But I think I will get to that in another post (don't worry, I will have more posts). 

The Dog Ate My Homework

This morning I had to write the modern day equivalent of “the dog ate my homework” letter to Ruby’s home room teacher but this time the blame went to the internet. Or lack of it. Our connection went down last night throwing us both into a panic. I couldn’t access the recipe I was planning to make for dinner. Our Vonage phone line was down. But, most punishing (or rewarding) of all, Ruby couldn’t access her homework, which is posted daily to her school’s intranet site.

Facebook Tops 100 Million U.S. Users

Facebook has crossed the 100-million-user mark in the U.S. a week after announcing it had surpassed 350 million members worldwide. More startling, however, is the fact that if FaceBook were a country it would be the 5th most populous in the world.

According to Comscore, 52% of Facebook users are between 18 and 34 years old and 19% are 35 to 44 but what I really want to know is how many Facebook users are tweens (10 -12 year olds).

A Rite of Passage

My daughter experienced a major rite of passage this past weekend. And it wasn’t her bat mitzvah. She got her first cell phone and it makes my Blackberry Pearl look like child’s play.

Perils of Texting

Pause to Ponder, LG’s new campaign educating teens on the downsides of impulsive texting/ sexting might have been better targeted to celebrities and politicians given today’s article in the New York Times: Text Messages: Digital Lipstick on the Collar

Living Life Transparently

One of the hallmarks of “digital natives” is their capacity to live their lives transparently, online. For me, this generation gap is thrown into stark relief when my mom visits. She is constantly astounded by how much people reveal online. “But why on earth would anyone post this much information about themselves,“ she asks when I log on to Facebook to catch her up on my friends’ lives. (I’m scared to even tell her about Twitter). “Because it’s such a great way to keep current,” I counter. “To reconnect and stay connected, no matter what the distance between you.”

The Same Rules Apply

One Friday night, I arrived home from dinner with friends. My daughter was spending the weekend with her dad – alternate weekends off being the major perk of being a divorced mom. It was pretty late but I fired up my computer to catch up on some emails before going to bed. An IM instantly popped up on my screen: “Hi Mom. It’s me, Ruby.”

Living with a Foreigner

My daughter, a true New Yorker, often pokes fun at the quirky accent and idioms of her South African born mother. “Mom!! Waddya mean - don’t get your knickers in a twist?” But the truth is, I’m the one living with the foreigner.

OMG - My Digital Coach is a 10-year old!

Whenever I used to make a digital gaffe at work, I would joke - “Well, that’s what happens when your digital coach is a 10-year old!” Little did my colleagues know the truth behind my bravado. And little did I realize just how much my digital habits had been formed and informed by the tech-savvy 10-year old who shared my computer. Social networking? I learned the ropes on Club Penguin way before I had my own Facebook account. Shortcuts on my Mac? My digital coach taught me more in one tutorial than I had picked up in a lifetime. How to IM on Skype? Once again, geek-kid came to the rescue including a lesson on how to “moon’ someone with an emoticon, a skill I treasure to this day.