Terremotos and Facebook

Minneapolis better watch out- I've lived here a lot longer than either Hispanola or Chile. Seems that several years after I leave a place, it has a major earthquake? Oh, what? It's not about me? Oh, ok.

I get overly sentimental. I find it an absolutely annoying part of my personality but basically harmless. When I was in Chile in 2002, I didn't love it. To be more precise, there were situations back home that kept me from enjoying it entirely. However, I made some pretty incredible friends there, mostly Americans. Ok, fine. All of them. I spent my time traipsing about the country with some of most fantastic Americans I know. And we had a blast. Wouldn't change a thing about it.

Today, I've been looking through my photo album from Chile. Twenty year old me, Sarah, Roisin, Liv, Jota, Christie. I can't remember vividly the bad feelings I had while in Chile. My pictures certainly don't reflect those. It looks like the time of my life. In some ways, no doubt, it was. Much laughter. Much debauchery. Much freedom. Much adventure.

Then I started to wonder about this friend I had in Chile- the grandson of this old woman that I stayed with when I was in Arica. He was the only Chilean friend I had. I haven't spoken to him since leaving Arica, but I found myself wanting to know what he's doing- hoping he was ok after the earthquake.

Enter Facebook. I pity the fools who grew up pre-Facebook. Like, when you lose touch with someone you might actually never know what becomes of them. Or there might be reunions 50 years later chronicled in novels or on Lifetime Television for Women! Pu-shaw. I have Facebook. Click, click, click. Oh, there he is! Still in Chile. Still playing the guitar. Married! 4 year old daughter! To not be entirely creepy, I sent him a message along with the friend request. Is that actually creepier? No, it seems strange to friend request a real (would this be the appropriate place to use "IRL"?) old friend without actually talking to them. It is entirely unlike accepting the friend requests of people I was never actually friends with. I need to stop accepting those requests in the first place. I would never actually talk to any of those weirdos.

Back to my old Chileno friend. I like knowing where he is. I like being in contact with him again. So, yeah, I get overly sentimental and nostalgic. Earthquakes make me find old friends on Facebook. Maybe if there's some sort of monsoon in Minnesota this summer, I'll actually want to talk to my Facebook non-friends! But, I'll probably have de-friended them by then so I'd have to go back and do new friend requests. Tiresome. Let's hope for calm weather.