How to Cancel or Retract Friend Requests on Facebook… and Why?

Digital Citizen 40 Comments

UPDATE!

Now you can cancel your Friend Request simply by going to that person’s page, scrolling down to the very bottom left and clicking on the box that says “CANCEL FRIEND REQUEST”.

Thanks to an anonymous commenter below for the update and congrats to Facebook for finally getting smart on this feature. Now, if only if it could move on a whole bunch of other bad features it has!

Why would you care to cancel Facebook Friend Requests?

Because after you send a friend request, they can check out all your profile you would share with your friends. That’s to help verify who you are if they don’t know you, or let them decide if they want to associate with you based on what you’ve done on Facebook… or told of what you’ve done in life. It’s a bit of a spy privilege they have to be able to see your profile. Supposedly this only holds true for 30 days from when you send your friend request, but 30 days is plenty of time to browse through even the most active Facebook user to see enough of anybody and make some judgment calls on them.

If you’ve used Facebook enough, you have probably sent someone a friend request which they did not accept.

Or maybe you’ve sent it and then changed your mind.

But how do you “undo” it, if you will? How can you cancel that friend request? There is no “cancel”, “undo” or “retract” button.

No, there isn’t.

But what you can do is this.

Search the person in the Facebook search bar. As you’ve sent a friend request, Facebook should be smart enough to list that person high on your search list to make it easy to find. So even if it’s a John something or rather, Facebook should include the John you want amongst all the Johns you know.

Um, that didn’t sound very right, but you get the idea.

Select the person you want to view his/her profile.

Look down the left hand side of their profile that shows up and Click on Report/Block this Person.

From the pop-up menu, just Block them. You don’t need to report them. You might be tempted to if your ego is bruised by them not accepting your Friend Request, but play nice.

Now, you can leave them blocked. But you might also want to leave that window open in case they might like to maybe send a Friend Request to you… which you might want to accept? 🙂

However, I would recommend you Unblock them, by removing them off your Blocked List, to return things to the way they were before you sent that Friend Request you just retracted.

If you want to do this, then Click on Account in the upper right hand corner.

Choose Privacy Settings.

Click on Edit your lists under Block Lists (at middle bottom of your screen when this was written).

Click Unblock beside the name of the person you just blocked.

DONE!

And the world is beautiful once more. 🙂

If you want to ignore a Friend Request “nicely”…

What happens when someone sends you a Friend Request which you don’t want to accept but which it can be a bit awkward to ignore?

Well, there isn’t a completely effective way, but maybe try this “plea ignorance” or “blame technology” attempt before smacking reality into someone if they don’t get the hint.

Follow the same “call up their profile, then block and unblock routine” of the person whose friend request you want to ignore.

What that does is remove that Friend Request they put through. It’ll hint it to them a bit that the request disappeared, or it’ll make them try again, which will tell you they didn’t get the hint and that you need to either talk to them and smack a little reality into them, or Block them!

In the meanwhile, though, you can “play ignorant” if they ask you about it in person to say “what friend request”?

When they check your profile, they’ll see the “Add as a Friend” button present, suggesting maybe that request didn’t go through. Or whatever. One great thing about technology is that you can use it to blame all kinds of things

By the way, if someone ever asks you “did you accept my Facebook friend request?”, you might want to take that as a little sign of desperation for something or rather. Maybe they don’t want you, but just to up their Facebook friends tally. However, it seems a little desperate to me and I’d never ask anybody that.

Alas, now that I’ve shared this, I’ve lost a couple of more Facebook etiquette secrets… but it’s all good for humanity. 🙂

Other Facebook issue posts on my site:

The Prejudices and Privacy Perils of Facebook Quizzes

How to Get Rid of Your Facebook Past

25 Things For Facebook You Can’t Steal My ID With

25 Things You Gave on Facebook to Help Get Your ID Stolen

Una Guía de Netiqueta Práctica para Facebook

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Flesch-Kincaid Grade Reading Level: 5.7
(which is below Facebook policy’s age for having a Facebook account at 13 years old)

Guitar and Ukulele Tabs for I Don’t Want to Live on the Moon (Ernie from Sesame Street)

Digital Citizen 2 Comments

I came across this song at the end of May 2010 via one of those YouTube recommendation feature (enough to blog about it). The feature where because you watched something, its algorithms think you might like something else. Every now and then, it’s good, but this was something I really liked. I just think it’s a cute song, that’s all… and I don’t even have kids. OK, maybe I was influenced by the fact it was Ernie singing it since Ernie has always been my favourite Sesame Street character. But I like the song a lot, nevertheless, and I think lots of people will, too.

I thought when I first heard that song that it’d be a great lullaby for kids, but if you play the guitar or ukulele, you can now pull it out to accompany yourself with that lullaby. Or just sing it for fun like I do.

Ernie, from Sesame Street

The hardest thing about this song is the syncopation. The breaks in the lines are a little bit awkward in places. That’s why all the dashes and commas in the tabs. If those breaks don’t feel natural, then just take a little time to learn them and try not to think about them afterwards when you play. Trust your instincts after you’ve learned where the little breaks are in the lines.

I Don’t Want to Live on the Moon, Sesame Street Guitar Tabs Letter Sized PDF

I Don’t Want to Live on the Moon, Sesame Street Guitar Tabs Tabloid Sized PDF

I Don’t Want to Live on the Moon, Sesame Street Ukulele Tabs Letter Sized PDF

I Don’t Want to Live on the Moon, Sesame Street Ukulele Tabs Tabloid Sized PDF

These tabs all fit on one page to avoid the inconvenience of page turns. However, the letter size tabs (8.5″ x 11″) may be too small for your eyes. If so, you can either enlarge to tabloid size (11″ x 17″) using an automatic enlarge feature on many photocopiers, or download the tabloid sized versions for printing. The tabloid size tabs can be inserted into a typical letter sized binder on the 11″ size, and folded almost in half to fit. You just open each tab to use it.

Another challenge to this song is that there are lots of up stroke chord changes, denoted by the / in the tabs. Read left to right, the line goes up like your strumming motion does. If you’re not used to this, it’s not hard to pick it up. Try it and then try not to think about it is how I’d advise you learn. Just go with the flow.

I hope you, your kids, or someone else’s kids (good for entertaining), like this song!

Please click here for guitar and ukulele tabs and chords to other songs on this blog.

Flesch-Kincaid Grade Reading Level: 5.9

Guitar and Ukulele Tabs for All I Want Is You (U2)

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This is a song that’s definitely harder to learn to sing than to play, mostly because of the high vocal range required at the end. I found a very nice fan video for it, with the original recording to which I created my guitar and ukulele tabs.

All I Want is You, U2 Guitar Tabs Letter Sized PDF

All I Want is You, U2 Guitar Tabs Tabloid Sized PDF

All I Want is You, U2 Ukulele Tabs Letter Sized PDF

All I Want is You, U2 Ukulele Tabs Tabloid Sized PDF

These tabs all fit on one page to avoid the inconvenience of page turns. However, the letter size tabs (8.5″ x 11″) may be too small for your eyes. If so, you can either enlarge to tabloid size (11″ x 17″) using an automatic enlarge feature on many photocopiers, or download the tabloid sized versions for printing. The tabloid size tabs can be inserted into a typical letter sized binder on the 11″ size, and folded almost in half to fit. You just open each tab to use it.

Vodpod videos no longer available.

U2

I’ve tried to put a strumming filler between verses like in the song with the main chords and slight modifications of them. You strum to the rhythm of the phrase, one stroke for each note and resting when there is a rest. It would only take you a few minutes to figure it out and once you do, it wouldn’t be very hard to play because I’m not trying to show off any skills here. I’m just trying to avoid gaping holes in the song played by one person and one instrument when there doesn’t need to be such a gap.

The capitalized letter of the song notes are meant to be an octave higher than the notes with non-capitalized letters. The ending, as you can hear on the song, is very high. Most guys will have to use falsetto to sing this, but give it a go.

Don’t snap your vocal chords, though! 🙂

Please click here for guitar and ukulele tabs and chords to other songs on this blog.

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Flesch-Kincaid Grade Reading Level: 7.4

Guitar and Ukulele Tabs for You Raise Me Up (Josh Groban)

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At last count, there’s over 125 official cover versions of You Raise Me Up. This song was basically new lyrics written for the old Danny Boy tune. That was, in turn, ripped off from the lyric lacking Irish anthem, Londonderry Air. However, Londonderry Air has had many other incarnations with other sets of lyrics, some of which, I must say, are pretty epicly elaborate.

You interpret what all that means in whatever way you like, but this is a very beautiful and uplifting song.

I’ve chosen to tab the version of You Raise Me Up by Josh Groban because I knew it best and was introduced to the song by his cover.

Vodpod videos no longer available.

Josh Groban

I’ve replaced the intro violin with just a hum and strum of a verse. The rest should be fairly simple to follow. I’ve included notes of the tune because there are some crazy interval jumps in there. That’s about the only challenging part to the song. The strum should be a very slow strum to suit the speed of the song.

You Raise Me Up, Josh Groban Guitar Tabs Letter Sized PDF

You Raise Me Up, Josh Groban Guitar Tabs Tabloid Sized PDF

You Raise Me Up, Josh Groban Ukulele Tabs Letter Sized PDF

You Raise Me Up, Josh Groban Ukulele Tabs Tabloid Sized PDF

These tabs all fit on one page to avoid the inconvenience of page turns. However, the letter size tabs (8.5″ x 11″) may be too small for your eyes. If so, you can either enlarge to tabloid size (11″ x 17″) using an automatic enlarge feature on many photocopiers, or download the tabloid sized versions for printing. The tabloid size tabs can be inserted into a typical letter sized binder on the 11″ size, and folded almost in half to fit. You just open each tab to use it.

If you’re going to play this on a traditional soprano, concert or tenor ukulele with a high G string as the first string, you’re going to have to “dig deep” to find your first note because it is an octave below that. That’s if you don’t capo it to get it in the same key as it should be, but that’s not necessary. You might want to capo it quite a few notches if you don’t sing so low, even if you sing it all an octave higher.

I hope you enjoy the tabs because it is a gorgeous song, indeed!

Please click here for guitar and ukulele tabs and chords to other songs on this blog.

Flesch-Kincaid Grade Reading Level: 7.5

Guitar and Ukulele Tabs for My Back Pages (Bob Dylan)

Digital Citizen 2 Comments

This is just a great song, especially the version performed at Columbia Records’ 30th Anniversary Tribute for Bob Dylan that seems to have been ripped off the Net, but here’s a close version in rehearsal.

It is also the version I tabbed. I never thought I’d say it but thank goodness for Chinese video sites that still holds videos like the one above as YouTube has grown up and wimped out to copyright threats.

My Back Pages, Bob Dylan Guitar Tabs Letter Sized PDF

My Back Pages, Bob Dylan Guitar Tabs Tabloid Sized PDF

My Back Pages, Bob Dylan Ukulele Tabs Letter Sized PDF

My Back Pages, Bob Dylan Ukulele Tabs Tabloid Sized PDF

Bob Dylan

These tabs all fit on one page to avoid the inconvenience of page turns. However, the letter size tabs (8.5″ x 11″) may be too small for your eyes. If so, you can either enlarge to tabloid size (11″ x 17″) using an automatic enlarge feature on many photocopiers, or download the tabloid sized versions for printing. The tabloid size tabs can be inserted into a typical letter sized binder on the 11″ size, and folded almost in half to fit. You just open each tab to use it.

Just a few notes to the tabs. In verses 4-6, there is a slight change in one of the lines from the same line for verses 1-3, so I have highlighted the note in red. It’s a little thing, but gives the song a little “ooomph” after 3 go arounds of the verse and chorus. Despite having 6 verses, a great song doesn’t get boring with repetition. You just find ways to lift it even more, like with that little note in red.

On the ukulele tab, I have added a little chord modification for that note. I have labeled the chord with an asterisk and denoted it as basically a C chord but with the finger on the bottom A string to be on the 5th fret instead of the 3rd fret. Written out in fret and string numbers, it is 0005 (fifth fret fourth string from top down) rather 0003 for a regular C chord. The labeling is in the tab sheet. I have not done this for the guitar tabs because there isn’t anything similar and the C chord on the guitar handles the slight disharmony (C chord, D note) just fine.

Please click here for guitar and ukulele tabs and chords to other songs on this blog.

Flesch-Kincaid Grade Reading Level: 8.1