Two decades ago we went to parties at people&#x27;s apartments or houses. We also met at a few different diners and bars where you could wander in and run into someone you knew, or wait till someone you knew showed up. We ran into each other walking across campus -- there was no &quot;distance learning&quot; in the mid-80s (to speak of, anyway). We went in big groups to movies and concerts.<p>People in these sort of shifting sub-groups would split off or join new sub-groups as they were introduced by and to others in the larger social scene. It was quite interesting, actually. I met people from very different backgrounds and with very different interests than mine, which made the world a much bigger place.<p>And somehow this math and science geek ended up with a history and Russian degree, friends who make movies in Hollywood and have active roles on TV, a publisher, a bunch of artists who do their thing quietly, homemakers, lawyers, social workers, professors, and a guy who helped discover new elements with the Russians and works at Lawrence Livermore. Do all of them know each other? No, but a bunch of them do.<p>I had a facebook account for about a month six or seven years ago but quickly deleted it. I don&#x27;t stay in touch with all these people still, but at least two dozen of them would open their home to me if I showed up on their doorstep. When I got divorced 10 years ago, I got some phone numbers and called a few of them. One even asked if I needed money(!) since the divorce led to bankruptcy, foreclosure, and lots of bad poems.<p>I honestly feel sorry for my daughter&#x27;s generation (she&#x27;s 27) because I see the reality of her social life and it&#x27;s pathetic compared to mine - and I&#x27;m basically socially inept.<p>In sum, f<i></i>* facebook and all the others. They contribute nothing of value compared to real interaction with real people in real places.