What Can Happen when You Join Myspace

Ok, so when you join Myspace, you get to set up a profile with your interests, pictures, pictures of friends, family, or whatever else you want to add so that people can know a little bit about you. Some people put a whole lot of work into their profile, believing that people will read EVERYTHING or at least most of what is written. For instance, some people believe that if their status indicates that they are married or in a relationship, no will try to hook up with them, right? If they put that they are homosexual, then no straight people will bother, right? If they put an age range or other set of standards, then only people who meet those will respond, right? WRONG!! Come on people, things just don't work that way.

I have been a member of myspace for a long time and I have gotten messages from people that I haven't seen in years, friends that I see everyday, new interesting people, as well as creepy people that I have never met, nor want to meet. My status clearly says married and proud parent. I have also had pics of my husband and i, and pictures of my baby all over it. Does that stop swinging couples and old men from trying to ask me out? Of course not! I've gotten messages from people saying things like, "My wife and I are new to the city and think you're sexy. What do you think about joining us one night, and whatever happens, happens..." or "Hey baby, you look hot. You and I should get to know each other better." The funny thing is that when I respond most times by saying, "Sorry, if you had read my profile and were really interested in me, you would know that I'm in a committed relationship and not interested in destroying that", some of those people are still persistent. No, I'm not playing hard to get! I'm not playing any games at all. I never joined Myspace in hopes of hooking up with random strangers, but rather to network and find old friends and coworkers.

Yes, you have the option of making your profile private, but there are still ways around that. With technology today, almost anyone can find a way to view and send you messages. Sadly, many people will make fake profiles just to get you to befriend them. Very desperate indeed! Many ex-boyfriends, or ex-girlfriends have also been known to do this...What better way than to keep track of an ex than to stay on their friend list, right? LOL!

What about the pictures? Are they always the real thing? A lot of people have some sort of photo editing software on their computers. You can even go as far as simply googling up a random image of a girl in a bikini or a hot guy with a six pack and a tattoo and post it up as your own. Even if it is their pic, it could be years old, before they started eating all those late night tacos and burgers. The person may not even look the same today. Also, all those people who put scantily clad photos online and expect no one important to see them, think again!! ANYONE IN THE WORLD with a computer can view them somehow. Think about it---managers from your work, fellow church members, teachers, PARENTS, other relatives, etc.

There is one thing that all people on myspace should be careful with. When the profile asks you for your occupation, you don't have to be specific. You don't even have to put anything if you don't want to . If you put the exact location of where you work, there is a big possibility that anyone in the world could just show up. I am living proof of this. However, I just mentioned a name of a familiar company, knowing that there was more than one location in the city. A few people actually found exactly where I was working at and approached me. Scary to think about right? It does happen though.

I am not against Myspace in any way. In fact I am a very active member and really enjoy the site. I am simply writing this for those of you who don't know what you may just be getting into. If you are joining, be aware of all the possibilities. Join for fun, not for serious hookups (yes, you may get lucky and meet someone if you really want to, but then again you might not). Join because you are willing to be seen by people everywhere and anywhere. Yes you may be criticized, yes you may be insulted, yes you may make new friends, yes you may find old friends, yes you may meet stalkers, yes you may run into people that you don't want to run into, yes you may actually befriend a real celebrity, and the list goes on... Just remember to keep an open mind and be careful what you post.