In which research is a very good thing

[imood mood at time of entry: bizarre]

So (Yes, I am beginning yet another journal entry with “so”), I was having a look about the Internet, because I wanted to see what would come up when I put in certain phrases. These certain phrases were going to be keywords in an entry I was planning to write, but wanted to first check and see if the entry could be traced back to me. Back to my offline self, that is.

Turns out that if anyone actually goes looking for it, they probably would find these phrases in connection to me, seeing as how I managed to find three managers’ MySpace pages. I kid you not! The main manager I was going to have a good old rant about (Jennifer) came up as one of the first results. I thought that this couldn’t be. I know that she’s doofy and all, but she could not possibly have a MySpace page.

I looked it over and it was her all right. Not only did I have her, I saw another manager (Katherine) on her friends list. That manager led me to yet another manager (Greg) that was at my store when I first started and has since transferred. The point here is: Employers, beware what you post on the Internet, because some of the employees that hate you could potentially find it. Not only could employees that don’t like you publicly embarrass you, stalkers and crazies dig chicks that give out way too much information to strangers.

From this manager’s (Jenn) profile alone, I know which restaurant she works in and which city it is located in. I also have visual identification from this particular manager herself. All I would have to do if I wanted to seriously harm this woman would be to look up the building’s address on the Internet. It would be that simple! This woman better be glad that I am not someone who is trying to stalk her, because she’s already given me the right-away.

Finding all of this has gotten me thinking back on the whole adopting a false name for online purposes debate/issue/discussion. I have always found this to be stupid, because I am Danielle, no matter where I am. I never saw any valid reason why I shouldn’t use my real name wherever I go, since I didn’t like the idea of trying to create a new and better me. I’ve always thought, “Hey, what’s wrong with the person I am if I have go online and become “Sexual Chocolate” or whatever other silly name people give themselves?”

So now that I am years deep into the Internet and years past the point when I would not only give out my full name to complete strangers, I would give them my address and telephone number to boot, I have to wonder what the hell this 34-year-old woman is thinking by doing the same thing. See, I did all of that when I was 12 and 13 and searching for Hanson Guestbooks to sign. I did that when I loved Yahoo! Chat Rooms with wild abandon. I did that when, frankly, I knew better, but didn’t really think anything of it, because all of ‘those people’ I talked to were so far away and had no way of really meeting me.

So, if I figured things out and watched and read reports of what happened to people who gave out too much information online, why can’t this woman do the same? It really is disconcerting to know that I now know what my managers’ online pages are. Sure, it’s amusing, but I now know way more about each of them than I did mere hours ago. In a way, this is both good and bad. You see, on one hand, I now have a secret I can smile about to myself when these fuckers are pissing me off. On the other hand, I now have a secret I can smile about to myself when these fuckers are pissing me off.

I am so very tempted to tell everyone what I have found, but it would only get back to the persons in question. There would have to be a meeting and things could get messy. Clearly, that option is out. But it is just so appealing to finally have something to hold over them, that I fear I might just blurt it out when I’m bored and have nothing better to do. (Oh dear.)

I can’t help but wonder what would happen if I posted anonymous copies of their pages and such at work somewhere. I’m sure there’d be an even bigger meeting and things would get VERY messy. This should be avoided, too, but this option is as appealing as the first.

See, this is what happens when you consistently treat people badly. When they finally have a chance to strike back at you, they just might take it. Even though I am really trying to squash this desire to shout about this and call everyone from work, it’s not the easiest impulse to suppress. I mean, I am the kind of girl who does and buys things on impulse every single day. My entire being is shrieking at the top of its silent lungs, “Why should this be any different?” It just is, but I can’t wholly get myself to latch onto this concept.

Still, there is the fact that the first manager (Jenn) outright admits the same things that we’ve been saying about her for ages now. Those things have all pretty much been that she’s a control freak, crazy bitch that micro manages and can’t find anything else to do with her time. It was a trip to see her write the same things about herself.

Ugh. I want to go into the horrible time Jenn has been giving me and everyone else, but my arm/elbow is killing me. Will need to jot that down eventually, so everyone would get why I dislike her so much. Hell, I need to jot down anything at all about work, because I haven’t really written about it here. It’s usually due to the fact that I am usually at work or too tired to write about work when I am not there/don’t want to even think about work when I am not there.

Anyway, to wrap up this entry: Don’t tell me everything about yourself right off if you don’t know me. Saw Harry Potter and it vaguely resembled the book if you squint and tilt your head. Bought weird, skippy bootleg of Transformers. Am now praying for legal copy to hurry the hell up so that I can watch it at home in peace without missing funny lines because the disk is unscratched, but skips regardless. Am halfway considering (at this particular moment) going to see it (Transformers) for a fourth time in theaters before it leaves, just so I can enjoy it the way it was meant to be seen on the big screen. Am waiting for pins I ordered through eBay to arrive. They have a pattern of being slow. Am also waiting for Simpsons movie and final book in HP series. Will positively die from excitement when I finally do get all of the aforementioned.

Love and Hugs,

Danielle