Too close for comfort. 05:54

I've been job hunting. For quite a while now. I intersperse that with video / film projects some voluntary stuff at my local theatre, whatever it takes to stay in the present and, more importantly be ready for the future. A large part of this involves my social media presence. For me twitter, facebook, myriad tech / science blogs, YouTube and Chinese ebay stores are like Clive Barker's "Great and Secret Show". Somewhere in amongst this mass of data and communiques something fantastical is happening and if you're at the right spot at the right time wonders will be revealed to you. Or perhaps you'll see a link between 2 items and unite them to create a market for yourself. Or maybe you'll get distracted and fall down a Russian dashcam K-hole.

Either way it's what I use these networks for. You are free to connect, observe, laugh at, with or about me because I made a choice to put myself out there.

Yesterday, while filling in an online application form there was a section which required me to give links to several of my social media accounts.

Facebook - Friends / Family. (Maximum privacy settings, but taggers are inevitable) Barely use it. Keep it because twitter is not for family.

twitter - Friends / acquaintances and many other great people, Window on the world, Stream of consciousness mind puke, film info /news /reviews, uproar igniter, Search Engine, art gallery, Jobsearch, occasional current affairs, creativity booster (No really! look up, cash4Dignity and Berlin Stredit)

Linkedin - Grudging connection to some people. Of no value to me. Ever.

YouTube - The World. There's corporate, community, animation, experiments, music videos, documentaries, time-lapses (Again, probably a bit of a mind puke)

All my choice, publicly available.

I looked at that section in the form and thought... Fuck That. I didn't give them a single account address

Why not? Because I don't have to.

If you want to hire me for a video job, Google me. If you're curious about my professional connections, search Linkedin. If you want to find out how racist and homophobic I am, twitter.

If you want to know more about me as a person. Invite me for an interview!

But dear companies, corporations and entities. Don't ever think that I'll voluntarily surrender information to you, giving you tacit permission to use, access, sell, monitor or retain my data. You must be out of your bloated, algorithmic minds.

And let's be perfectly clear here.
You have no right to demand this info from me. 
You can ask. I will decline.

I got a very quick response to my application. Sent at 9.45am, rejected by 1.30pm. If my rejection had anything to do with my failure to submit those details then I'm pleased. You can't know about me from my social media presence any more than I can know your company's morals and ethics from the About section on your website.

In the meantime, here's some of my data.

 I know right?

Black April huh? 17:38