Nothing is private on social media.
Quite often Hawke's Bay Today gets texts about how snobby people in Havelock North can be.
Well, this past week I have found the opposite to be true. Shopping for a mother-of-the-bride outfit is no easy feat when you are an indecisive shopper like me.
Luckily I have a daughter who traipsed around the shops with me.
We started in Hastings with no luck.
Then on Thursday we hit the Havelock North shops with a 2-year-old in tow.
I lost count of how many outfits I tried on but what really stood out for me on the day was the willingness to help from the lovely women in all the stores.
They would say things like "you start trying on and I'll keep them coming". They offered toys to the little chap, they chatted to us and asked about the wedding.
They gave advice on outfits, made suggestions on accessories and didn't try to tell me something looked nice on me when it obviously didn't.
We decided to call it a day when the 2-year-old started saying "no, no" when we entered a shop.
I didn't feel under any pressure to buy and in fact went home empty handed but with lots of options to think about.
So thank you Havelock North.
I did eventually find an outfit the next day in Taradale.
Apart from shopping this past week, I have been following the case of the "offensive cake".
On Friday the Human Rights Tribunal reserved its decision in the case brought by former NZ Credit Union Baywide (NZCU) employee Karen Hammond against her old employer.
I'm not going to go into the ins on outs of this case or the rights and wrongs.
That's for the tribunal to decide.
What I will say, however, is that this case is a reminder to everyone that Facebook is not private.
Even if you send a private message to someone all it takes is for that person to share it, and suddenly something meant for their eyes only is out there for the world to see.
I often have people popping up on my Facebook "newsfeed" who I don't know from a bar of soap.
But someone I do know has maybe commented on one of their posts and it pops up in my feed.
To be honest I don't know how the hell it works.
There are different settings for privacy, but I wouldn't trust that one little bit.
Posting pictures of drunken evening out with your mates might seem like a good idea at the time but consider what will happen in the future.
Employers are most likely going to Google your name and guess what will pop up.
Even if you take the post down, if it has been shared by hundreds of people who knows where it will pop up.
I sound like a killjoy, I don't mean to. I like Facebook.
It's a fantastic way to keep in touch with friends and family, especially if they live overseas.
But take care what you share ... it might come back to bite you on the bum.
-Linda Hall is assistant editor at Hawke's Bay Today.
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