So what do you do?
Your niece, who has never paid much attention to you before this, has invited you to join an online chat page, an ongoing group discussion. She wants you to register with Yahoo, give your name and age, let them have your e-mail address, possibly to bury you in spam and pop-ups and, heaven forbid, cyber-cookies.
What do you do? You've never heard of a busy 20-something wanting anything to do with a Baby Boomer.
You get onto the chat, and there they are - sons, daughters, a sister, cousins, and their children. Individual icons are tiny photos of slightly recognizable family members. There's a link to the "blog" (Web Log, or online journal) of your son's oldest daughter, where she chronicles the daily routines of her three bright-red-haired children, which seems far from routine, and is surprisingly entertaining.
Then you ask yourself: where was this 30 years ago when families were just beginning to struggle with two incomes, losing touch with their extended families, becoming too busy to fix a daily meal for the first time in the family's ancestry? Back when only a few loyal sisters would write weekly letters to one another.
In this technology age, could it be that we are being drawn closer to one another? Sharing everyday photos, everyday commentaries, unimportant exchanges . . .just for fun.
Don't let a fear of viruses or exposing too many details keep you from jumping in when a loved one offers a new connection. There is some risk, but consider the motivation of the bad guys. It's unlikely that they would want to discover your address lists or saved documents. Armed with a modest anti-virus and a Windows-provided pop-up blocker and firewall, you have a good amount of protection. Keep the profile information minimal if you like, and "uncheck" the boxes that permit the host to send you junk e-mail. Know that the info kept on your bank's Web site is corporately protected online, separated from your family e-mail exchanges. Isn't the fun and interaction with your family worth the effort? You bet it is.
