Facebook

Melodramatic? Maybe a little. But, seriously, your obsession with social media and your Instagram feed is probably sending you straight to Crazy Town.   I tend to roll my eyes at every report about a new “study” just released that contains mostly alarmist “results,” because, much of the time, context is not provided and a “study” of a few hundred people by some crackpot scientist isn't the most reliable piece of information. That being said... a new survey conducted in the UK about the effect of social media on human beings seems pretty spot-on.

Same-sex couples will now be able to announce their marriages on Facebook without the presence of a heterosexual symbol. The social media site has added icons for same-sex marriages to replace the standard bride and groom icon, according to Mashable . The new feature first gained attention when a blue icon of two grooms appeared over Facebook Co-Founder Chris Hughes' timeline announcement of his marriage to partner Sean Eldridge. Read the full story here .

(Note from the Wingman: In this column, I use the word "friends" the way Facebook does. It's basically the people you know socially who won't kill you and take your stuff if given the opportunity.) I'm not surprising anyone by saying Chicago is a city of "Who do you know?" Your associations here define the experience, and your friends can make or break your social standing. You remember "Super Friends," right? That group of big-time heroes who united to stomp evil (and hang out with teenagers for some reason)

Most of us have high school acquaintances-turned-Facebook friends who pop up on our feeds with updates that make us feel sorry for our 16-year-old selves. THOSE were the people we chose to befriend?! The updates range from the TMI "friend" who posts frequent updates about catching her boyfriend in the act of cheating to the folks who write cryptic, passive-aggressive posts in hopes that someone will ask, "What's wrong?" My problem lies a bit beyond the above examples - it's with certain "friends" who use social media as a platform to panhandle.

I have met this girl a couple times and I find her to be very cute. The last time I ran into the girl, I got tongue-tied and didn't want to make myself look dumb. Now I was thinking that I could go and search for her on Facebook and see if I can do introduce myself that way. What do you think? Or should I go about it in another way? - Lost and confused It's not the most direct route, but Facebook is a perfectly acceptable gateway to your crush's heart. I know because I've done it m'self a few times.

Remember on "The Simpsons" when Helen Lovejoy would yell, "Will someone please think of the children?" Apparently the folks over at Facebook were listening. The Wall Street Journal reported this week that the social networking giant is developing a way for children under 13 years old to use the service that won't open them up to being skeezed on by pervs. I'm pretty annoyed by this development, but not for the reasons you think. See, it's kind of crappy that all my current Facebook friends weren't around to witness my entire development.

If the 2012 election teaches young people anything, it will be that if you're someday hoping to hold elected office, start behaving yourself now. And by “young people”, I mean first graders. For most of us in the Facebook generation, it's already way too late. The general election campaign between Barack Obama and Mitt Romney - still in its hot, sloggy summer days - has increasingly demonstrated that the past is not only fair game but will be vaunted, vilified, deconstructed, and debated with a fury normally reserved for all things Kardashian.

It's summer in Chicago, which can mean only one thing: Our out-of-town friends are coming to visit. When the weather turns from Nordic-Midwestern misery to our three months of decent weather, out-of-town friends suddenly find an acceptable plane ticket and descend upon our fair city in droves. While this is very enjoyable, visits from out-of-town friends also typically lead to behavior most resembling power-mad monarchs from "Game of Thrones. " These friends wield the ultimate trump card, which is, "C'mon, I'm here all the way from ____.

You've probably seen SoYeahDuh by now, yeah? Locals have driven themselves into a tizzy about the hilariously accurate GIF depictions of being a young 20-something Chicagoan with a certain amount of disposable income. The Based God Kevin Aeh even has a poll going guessing to the identity of who's behind the account. Because the streets have been asking (and because f**k work, right? It's Friday before Memorial Day weekend ), I corresponded with the person behind the account and got some insight into the mind of a GIF master.

Let's get digital. Mayor Emanuel tonight will host his third Facebook town hall meeting to discuss topics such as food trucks and education reform. The hour-long event is set to begin at 6 p.m., livestreaming at facebook.com/chicagomayorsoffice and livestream.com/chicagomayorsoffice . Seven hundred people submitted more than 300 questions at askchicago.org for the session, said Kevin Hauswirth, Emanuel's director of social media. Participants voted on which questions the mayor should address.