A Dumping Ground for Whims?

     I'm in a reflective mood today, and there's something intriguing about being on the internet and knowing that there is so much information out there about me. Part of that is the basic terror of "someone could find me and use this information to harm me" and another part is a "what if..."

     For those of us who grew up as the internet became popular there were the usual internet stranger-danger lessons: don't talk to anyone you don't know in real life, don't give anyone your information including your real name and age, don't do this, don't do that. But now that we're all adults the world wants us to give out all that information and live our lives in the virtual realm. There are even sites devoted to sharing everything from your name to what you ate for breakfast to a picture of that breakfast. 

     Personally, I don't understand the desire to share what I ate for breakfast, or a picture of it, with the world (for those of you asking: cinnamon toast and apple juice). But there are times when sharing something is appropriate, like friends posting about their engagements and asking for help with wedding ideas. But where do we draw that line?

     Should  we be posting on Facebook, Instagram, or Pinterest all the details of our every moment, or should they be reserved for thoughtful or intentional shares? Is the internet, the archive of our present, a place to record the development of our thoughts and ideas or a dumping ground for our every whim?

Just a thought...

Stephie