IT'S ALL COMING BACK TO ME NOW...

I generally do not like having my picture taken because I've never considered myself very photogenic. That said, I do try to take at least one new photo every 5 years or so...sort of like a mile marker for how quickly or slowly my looks are fading as I age. This year's picture wasn't too bad (if I do say so myself) and I'm happy to report, that I can safely leave my house without using a disguise or having to place a bag over my head. I was actually really quite proud of it. As a matter of fact...so proud, I even felt secure enough to update my Facebook™ profile photo without fear of snarky comments. I took the plunge and posted my new picture. All of the feedback that I received was positive and then it happened...

THE BACKSTORY:
A couple of years ago, a former coworker (a woman I'll call Anna) sent me a "friend request" on Facebook™. I've technically known Anna for about six years, though I haven't seen or worked with her for over two and haven’t really spoken to her in at least one. We weren't particularly close, but there really wasn't any reason I could think of not to be "friends." She seemed like a kindhearted person as I recall and I got along with her fairly well... so I accepted her friend request. That was my first mistake. Mistake #2 happened about a month ago...

CURIOSITY KILLED THE CAT...:
Curiosity is a double-edged sword. After not hearing from her for over a year through regular channels and never through social media..... Anna sent me a private message via Facebook Messenger™. My instinct was to just ignore it. Besides...the message was more than likely just small talk...

'hi, how are you?'💬...

'oh really?'💬...

'that's nice'💬…

'see ya...bye.'💬

I thought about pretending that I accidentally deleted the message when I tried to open it, but... curiosity got the best of me, as I wondered what she could possibly have to say after all this time. Could it be that my new profile picture showed up in her newsfeed and it prompted her to say hello? Only one way to find out...open it. As I suspected, the message started out with...'hello, how are you?' It ended though, when she took aim and fired off a single shot...figuratively speaking. She wrote that she had just read an article about the actor, Danny Aiello. It's true that the Internet had several stories and pictures of him because he had died the day before, but what did that have to do with me? Anna went on to write that she thought that he and I looked exactly alike...especially our eyes😳. And there it was, folks... another random, off the wall comment lobbed directly at my looks (see my previous post  entitled Ignorance is Bliss). All I could say was 'are you kidding?' It made me wonder what kind of a vibe I was giving off...that after more than a year of no contact... this woman was compelled to send me a message out of the blue... just to insult me? 😟

BUT SATISFACTION BROUGHT IT BACK:
I really had nothing else to say to Anna after that...and even if I did...it wouldn't have been anything that she would want to hear. My lack of a reaction was probably the best comeback I could have come up with. If she meant her comment as sarcasm...a negative reaction on my part would have fed her satisfaction at hitting the mark. The fact that she spent the next few minutes trying to walk back her idiotic statement to an unresponsive audience was my satisfaction. In the end, I decided to take the high road and assume that Anna meant no harm (and maybe she didn't, but seriously...Danny Aiello?). Why couldn't she have at least picked someone younger, female and alive for the comparison?! 😕 It's all coming back to me now as to why I haven't spoken to her in over a year.


LESSON LEARNED:
If there's a lesson to be learned from all this...it is that friends are people that you choose to have in your life. They should build you up ...not tear you down. Going forward...I will need to be a little more selective in who I choose to "friend" on social media sites.

Before I close out this post...I want to go on record as saying that I think Danny Aiello was a heck of an actor and while I have no firsthand knowledge to the contrary...I'm sure he was a really good guy (emphasis on guy). This post was not meant as disrespect to the man, at all.

My vent is over and now if you'll excuse me... I need to log on to Facebook™... there is something that I need to take care of.... 😉