You have one new message.”

The majority of teenagers have felt the rush of adrenaline that comes when one reads that pop-up message, accompanied with a short jingle or a computer voice. Questions form in your mind. Who is it from? What does it say? Is it good or bad? Your hands shake as you click on the new message, hopeful that it is from that special someone, or a best friend, or even from the one person on your friend list that you never talk to.

Regardless of who messages are from, or whether or not you have a new message, checking your inbox is becoming an addiction for teens — and adults.

Facebook, the latest social networking craze, lacks jingles, but feeds our addiction to feeling connected in a way few things can.

Facebook links friends together — from the friends that you see everyday, to your best friend in kindergarten who now lives in a different country. When you first become a Facebook member, friendship must be confirmed on both ends before you can officially be known as friends. It is remarkable how many friendship requests are received. People will never feel so popular again. Friends are coming at you from all places: ex-girlfriends, old friends, and even people that you have never met suddenly want to be your friend — resulting in feelings of flattery and even creepiness.

But Facebook doesn’t only give you instant popularity, it also gives everybody a front-row seat to your personal life. There is a cute little option where you can change your relationship status from “single” to “in a relationship” and even to “it’s complicated.” This may sound fun at first, but who knew that a little red heart defining somebody’s relationship status could cause the amount of gossip that it does?

The instant that little heart goes from “single” to “in a relationship,” messages are posted everywhere, asking about all of the juicy details. The majority of the time, I have no idea that two people know each other exist until I read it on Facebook. When the “in a relationship” changes to “single,” hundreds of messages are posted about it, the majority of them from “friends” you never talk to, wanting more details than when you originally got together.

Break-ups are generally complicated, but they’re even more complicated when they are public for the 200 or so friends on your list to talk about and leave comments about, ultimately rubbing it in your face.

And if people reading about and commenting on your personal life doesn’t make you feel like you live in a goldfish bowl, then the pictures of you posted all over the site should. The majority of the pictures on Facebook come from friends or family members, and they are never flattering. The pictures posted are usually of you at your worst. Just before you go to bed after a long bus ride, or moments after you crossed the finish line of a grueling 3 mile race in the mountains. And people gravitate towards awful pictures, leaving comments like “gross” or “Hmmm…interesting,” ultimately resulting in the feeling that nobody in the world is photogenic.

Despite all of this, Facebook has become the greatest time-waster ever invented for teens. I will admit, I am a fan of Facebook. I love mindlessly chatting with others and looking at their pictures. I love taking random quizzes and adding new friends. Most of all, I love watching the dynamics and the drama that are revealed on the screen. True colors come out online, when there isn’t a fear of interpersonal communication. People say how they feel, no matter how melodramatic or silly it may sound.

So next time you’re online, say how you feel, post your worst pictures and laugh at the gossip. Don’t be afraid to send meaningless messages to each other or laugh at the drama. And most importantly, give in to the excitement that comes when you have that one new message.

Courtnee Cartwright is a senior at Grantsville High School.