May 23, 2007 11:04 AM
Another Boy Busted
This is an open letter to teenage boys out there, because I keep seeing them make the same mistake. Think of it as a sort of public service announcement:
Dear Teenage Boy:I want to warn you about an impending danger that may affect your life. I like to call it "Getting Busted on MySpace". Oh, I know, it sounds silly, but just hear an old woman out. I have a teenage daughter and she has lots of girl friends, and all of them have tapped into a wonderful, foolproof way to find out if you're a good guy or not. I am talking about visiting your MySpace everyday.
Let me just tell you how it keeps happening around here. My daughter and her friends get a new boyfriend. "Oh my God! He's soooooooo sweet!" That's what I hear for the first couple of weeks. And "Look Mom! I'm number one on his MySpace top friends! Wait a minute! Who is that girl who's number 2? I don't think I know her..." So I reply "oh honey, that's great." Then I walk into the kitchen and look at the calendar and say something like: "I give it two weeks." And by the end of those two weeks, in many cases (okay, some make it three or four), that boy is history. Because of MySpace.
Okay, it's not exactly because of MySpace, because I actually think a lot of good can come from this gigantic social networking site. The problem is, I keep seeing teens who don't seem tounderstand that if THEY can see what's on their MySpace, well, so can other people, like their significant others. So this week, for the third time, a boy I know got busted for flirting with other girls on MySpace. Is it the end of the world? Of course not, I'm sure he'll be fine in a few days. But honestly, if you're in a "committed" relationship and you go to other people's sites and ask "Are you single?" or go as far as saying something like "damn mami, you're fiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiine. Can I have your number?" Or, as in the most daring one I've seen yet: "Hey babe, you like soccer huh? How about you and I play a little one on one?" Well, let's just say your girlfriend is going to find out. And all the "it meant nothings" in the world can't erase what's out there. And by the way, the boy standing in my front yard last night had the most pitiful "deer in the headlights" look on his face and, well, it didn't help him at all, and neither did the subsequent, "How did you find out?" that he saw some strange need to ask at that moment. When you're busted, you're busted. And he was. And he is a nice kid, and you may be a nice kid too. It's just that relationships are difficult for everyone, especially for teens, and putting your life out there on your Web page, well, it just might come back to bite you in the...well, you get the idea.
So, here's my advice: if you want a girlfriend, you might not want to have a MySpace site, or at least, you might want to conduct your shady business with the Private Messaging tool. I'm not condoning flirting with other girls here, I'm just saying, be smart. And be nice. And if you can't, then just be single and flirt all you want.
Sincerely.
L.C.
