Getting Facebook shamed is weird, right?

by Claire Isaac

I am old. And I am juvenile. What's your point?

Pretty damn old, if truth be told (though these days, thanks to Botox, good skincare and a childhood in the UK, the truth doesn't often have to be).

I am old and also really into Facebook, much to my husband's horror. I'm like your mum. There is nothing I like more than a good old scroll in the evening, and I think you know what I mean.

I post photos of my cat, of swans in the park and food shots.

I'm everyone's mum.

I also post a lot of my work on social media. I have no real filter so I don't mind making a tit of myself if it gets a laugh, and I often write about myself because of this.

Hence this piece.

So imagine my delight when I was sent a screenshot of a, we'll call it a rant, from someone I know on Facebook and in real life, basically shaming me for not liking her comments on my posts.

Let's just break that down: Someone liked my posts, commented on them, and then got the shits when I didn't "like" her comments in return.

So many shits were got in fact that she blocked me, and then wrote an opus on my "spiteful" behaviour and accused me of "lavishing attention" on other people by blatantly liking their comments and ignoring hers.

Is that a thing? I don't think it's a thing. Is it?

This person who shall remain unidentifiable also said twice that I was old. Twice. Now I have never denied that. She started by describing me as "considerably older" than her.

Then she said I was "old enough to know better" though about what I don't know.

She also called me "juvenile" for in her mind at least taking joy in ignoring her. And all I could think was, make your mind up – am I old or am I juvenile?

I had never been shamed before on social media for doing something I didn't know I'd done BECAUSE IT'S NOT A THING.

I didn't know how to deal with it. I felt terrible but at the same time, amazed.

There is a tiny piece of me who thinks that someone not commenting on or liking a post can be a little heart wrenching, especially if it's something you're proud of, or something personal but not liking a comment ON a post? Is that a virtual step too far?

I think so. Is it a thing? No.

But then, is that because I'm juvenile? Or was it old, I forget.

I worried I had caused so much offence by so little and yet, I was so shocked that someone would take so much offence from it. The math doesn't add up.

The offence-to-intent ratio is off the charts. There was no intent and SO MUCH OFFENCE.

And did I do it? No. I didn't. Not on purpose anyway. But I'm not going to tell her that. Instead I'm going to like every comment and every like of a comment and every like of that like until I implode. Just in case.

#etiquette

*this originally appeared on 10daily