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I don’t know about any of you, but the last time that I checked, Facebook was a social media site and not a full-blown food blog. Normally, I would be excited that so many people are interested in the art of cuisine, but the sharing of Buzzfeed and Tasty short cooking videos has gotten out of control. These videos feature brief tutorials to make quick and simple recipes that are accessible to all people. You can bet I have put these videos on the list of “things that have ruined Facebook for me.”
To begin, these videos act as black holes which you enter with good intentions and leave broken, alone and confused. Last quarter, I would go on Facebook to check something quickly while doing my homework, and within five minutes I would be on a trip through 50 15-second videos describing the versatility of sweet potatoes. I would come out of the haze unaware of who or where I was; it was a truly terrifying experience. Do not get me wrong, I love sweet potatoes and think their versatility is nothing short of fabulous, but I wasted valuable homework time spacing out on delicious recipes. Call it a lack of self-control, but these videos made homework last quarter almost impossible for me.
Over winter break, I decided that I would put all of those skills that Buzzfeed and Tasty taught me to use. I had the resources now that I was home; too many hours were spent in my apartment drooling over what I could not afford here on campus. I tried a few recipes and failed at each one. I would say that I am a pretty decent cook, but this took Pinterest fails to an entirely new level. Now these videos wasted my time in a new way — an unforgivable way. I tried to turn apples into roses, but they ended up looking like inverted dog parts (let that image sink in). Could it be my personal skills are faltering? Could it be these videos present their information too fast for my slow mind? The world may never know.
Now I must address the root of this Facebook food blog problem; no, it is not just Facebook algorithms at work, it is the same three people who insist on sharing these videos for their friends to see. They usually come in the form of old high school friends and family members, so I will keep this message to them quick and painless: There is a lovely feature that Facebook provides where you can save links. Facebook is not Pinterest, so you do not need to pin the videos to your feed in order to save the recipes for yourself at a later time. Please do yourselves and the rest of us a favor and cease the sharing, unless you feel like it is absolutely vital, which in some instances it may be. I do love a good croissantwich. I think I speak for everyone when I say we would much rather see how you are doing on a daily basis than the cheeseburger hot dogs you plan to make at the next family function. We will still eat it, though.
