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At the time, it seemed like the most appropriate thing to do.

I had just received a change-of-address e-mail from my brother, who was leaving his Seagrove home of some 25 years. An unwanted motorcross race track had been built 200 yards from his house, and the constant loud noise spurred this life-changing event.

So, having sold his home on Craigslist at a ridiculously low price, he packed his bags and went to live with our mother until he could finish renovating our late grandmother's home.

This was not a decision he wanted to make, this wrenching departure from his friends and neighbors and -- most poignantly -- his cherished tool shop. It just seemed fitting to share his unfortunate situation on Facebook.

I was surprised to receive a snippy comment from an old high school acquaintance about the positive attributes of motorcross race tracks -- that they preserve the lives of children who need a safe place to ride their dirt bikes.

I was not aware that roaring, invasive sounds that induce window rattling and hinder the health of my brother's neighbor, a dialysis patient, had any constructive features.

Impulsively, I fired off a sarcastic reply, waited a few minutes and then did what I have never done before.

I unfriended her. And I deleted her comment and my retort from my page. She was always posting pushy invites to her network marketing parties anyway. I would not miss her.

Later, as I soaked in the tub reading, I recalled that my brother had worked with this former Facebook friend's father at one time and even praised this man's culinary offerings in the break room.

Sigh.

This Facebook thing can be really complicated. Although it is supposed to be a friendly place to share positive or neutral tidbits from your life and view photos of distant family members, it sometimes becomes something else.

I tend to use it as a convenient platform to air my aggravations with health care and Type 1 diabetes. Others take polls letting people know how they feel about current events and public figures. Some choose to post encouraging Bible verses, and others rage about the president and stimulus packages.

Sometimes reading posts and votes can be unsettling, even maddening. Sometimes you learn more than you ever wanted to know about people you don't even really know.

I tried taking a break from Facebook for a week. My older child had noticed that I was frequently on it. "You are always on Facebook," I think she said as she searched without maternal assistance for a pencil to do her homework.

But the opportunity to have a voice lured me back. I guess people can just unfriend me if they don't like my blather.

When not wasting time on Facebook, Janice Carmac works as an editorial assistant for the News & Record. Contact her at janice.carmac@news-record.com or 373-7098.