Unfortunately, social media sites provides stage for all of life's little melodramas

I smell and my shower is broken.

Are you still reading?

This isn’t a comment one would normally expect to hear from the stranger on a bus, a colleague and probably not even a close friend.

But turn on the computer and login into Facebook or Twitter and one can find all sorts of dirty little secrets that people normally wouldn’t utter out loud.

Facebook — the original intent and purpose seemed clear— who was hanging out with whom and where were people meeting up on Saturday night?

Now with more people on board, the potential use is even better. People can share their special announcements — engagements, babies on the way and also create events and share the locations and times for gatherings.

But as we get more and more comfortable with using this social platform, people too have become more comfortable with what they say and are, on some occasions, over sharing.

We’ve developed etiquette for many social occasions and it might be time to consider a few etiquette rules for Facebook.

The following are a few suggestions on what not to post when logged in.

The this-is-what-I’m-doing status:

- I just watched Lord of the Rings

- House clean laundry done ... Now time to relax :)

People want to make sure you know they’re still there and still connected. The thing is, something exciting and interesting doesn’t happen everyday so they compensate by sharing everything that comes to their mind in case something sparks an interest with someone else.

The gross-out status:

- Cleaning up this newly resurrected grilled cheese and ham sandwich

- Finally, my water broke

These gross-out comments are made because telling us what you watched on TV last night is too blasé. If you want people to comment, you have to make it interesting. These statuses always seem to be posted by parents, who want us to know who is sick, how long it’s lasted and who else in the family has now contracted pink eye or chicken pox. What makes it worse, is every time people comment it just propels the writer to continue.

Don’t-you-remember-adding-your-mother-as-a-friend status:

- Was just served breakfast in bed by a very handsome gentleman this morning ?

Something to think about every time you go to press “post.” Who have you added in the last few years and maybe have forgotten? A mother, grandparent and maybe even a past teacher or a boss?

We all get the innuendo on how a handsome gentleman ended up in this woman’s bedroom with breakfast in the morning. Who really needs to know?

The guess-what-I just ate status:

- Don’t judge me, I’m at McDonalds.

The incessant food updates are usually accompanied with the sepia-toned photo of the burger and fries to make it look like it was eaten in the 1960s, for some reason. I don’t know why anyone wants to see pictures of half-eaten “nom-noms” at two in the morning in the parking lot of some dive. Yet, the more unhealthy the food, the more it is shared. It’s as if to avoid feeling guilty about artery-clogging food, a person just has to share it and get reassuring comments from someone else that they did it too. “LOL”

Photo status: There’s nothing wrong with this, usually. However, one of the benefits of digital cameras is you’re supposed to be able to pick and choose what photos you want to use and toss the blurry or irrelevant ones.

But still, people will load 600 plus photos of their weekend with baby and grandma. And even the picture a person accidentally took of the pavement still makes the cut.

The emotional status:

- Looking for a nice guy who doesn’t smoke, do drugs, cheat or constantly lie. Is there really someone not like that?

This is when people drag their personal problems into the realm of social media so we can all learn how horrible a friend or husband has been.

As you can see, just like with any other social “gatherings” there needs to be rules and etiquette with social media sites.

Not everyone wants to know what you had for breakfast, lunch or dinner; who you have been sleeping with or how you smell at any given time.