Complaints and Grievances: The New Facebook Layout

Social networking sites have become all the rage over the course of this decade. For many, it gives us the opportunity to keep in touch with old friends and long-estranged family members in ways never previously available. For some, it gives a unique capability to stalk and creep on every girl you've ever wanted to get with, for example.

One of the more popular social networking sites is Facebook. Started in 2004 by then-Harvard student Mark Zuckerberg, it has developed into the widely-used and super successful corporation that it is today.

Facebook has underwent several facelifts over the course of the past five years. What started out as a simplistic, collegiate and less-creepy alternative to MySpace is starting to look like it's trying to emulate its rival. This brings up a new theme in my blog to join the ranks of HR people and less-than-honest prospective employers who hide information about door-to-door Willy Loman-style sales, called 'Complaints and Grievances'--inspired by the late comedic legend George Carlin's 2001 HBO stand-up special of the same name ("And I'm gettin' really sick of guys named Todd. It's just a goofy fuckin' name.") I digress.


Facebook used to offer users only the most basic information (birthday, hometown, major, interests, photos, etc.) However, as a result of its massive expansion, many changes ensued. Changes including extending the membership to high school kids, middle school kids, and to round that out, middle-aged people and ANYBODY with an e-mail address. The advent of the "News Feed" occurred a few years ago. This convenient tool allowed others to peer in on your the daily occurrences in your life based on the changes that you make to your profile.

It just underwent another change in it's layout which pretty much exclusively focuses on the news feed updates. Great, updates that combine your friends, family, and people that you can barely even remember. Like I give a damn if Johnny Varsity that I haven't seen since high school is currently taking a shit at the moment. Facebook, MySpace, and Twitter are all moving in the direction of being carbon copies of each other.


The level of creepiness and stalking that is a by-product of this new level of MyTwitSpacebook's info accessibility is reaching new high levels. How far is too far? And where is Chris Hanson when you need him? ("Nice to see ya, have a seat.")

The Greatness that is Yuengling

I need to just pause for a moment and put my perpetual quest for a legitimate entry-level career on hold to talk about the greatest beer company out there. It's called D.G. Yuengling & Son, Inc. This brewery, located in Pottsville, Pa., started in 1829 (the same year President John Quincy Adams left office and Andrew Jackson was sworn in) and is the oldest operating brewing company in the United States, talk about consistency!

When you want to talk about a true American lager, the sheer mention of Yuengling's Traditional Lager is enough to whet anybody's palate. That also comes in light. Other choices they offer include: Premium and Premium Light Beer (a pilsner), Original Black & Tan (another great one), Dark-Brewed Porter, and Lord Chesterfield Ale. My two personal favorites are the Traditional Lager and the Black & Tan.



Primarily distributed in the East and concentrated in Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Delaware, it extends north and east into New York and all the way down the east coast to Florida, where they've opened another brewery. It is also popular westward into Ohio, Tennessee, and Alabama. To ensure consumers of a truly American taste, they use corn from Minnesota and hops from Washington. Despite the great taste of a fine beer, Yuengling is remarkably inexpensive (some places charge around $17.50 or less for a case....about halfway between expensive import beers and Mickey Mantle's Nati Light).

There is a nearby region of the country which is conspicuously absent from their distribution map. New England. My friends from CT and Mass. used to love when I would bring a case or two back to school after being in NJ for the weekend. This is both an outrage and a travesty. Pennsylvania is not too far away from Connecticut, and it's not much further to ship to other parts of New England. There are many people that would love for this to happen. In fact, there is even a Facebook group, called Bring Yuengling to New England with approximately 7,400 members in only a few months of existence. More and more support for this movement is being garnered every day and hopefully the time comes in the not too distant future when they too get to experience the taste of a great American classic.



Join the movement, Yuengling needs to be sold in New England. It's the taste they've been thirsting for.