I know people are super-concerned about Big Brother monitoring our online activities (or at least, we were a little concerned until the latest version of Candy Crush/Game of War came out and distracted us).  But when I visited my Google Ad Settings today — a fit of random curiosity when I clicked that I didn’t want to see a certain ad any more, and YES I HAVE ADHD — here is the list of things Google thinks I’m interested in.

And, okay. I’ll give them a few of these (obviously books and literature, and who ISN’T interested in Food & Drink or Celebrities?) But I don’t own a bicycle, and I’ve never shopped online for one that I remember. Nor do I have a Hybrid Vehicle — and I’m ashamed to admit I haven’t even looked into it, really. I mean, Vanischewitz is a hybrid between a taxi and a Star Destroyer, but I don’t think that’s what this means. Rap & Hip Hop are great, but not my first choice of listening genres — maybe this is because, like everyone else, I was Googling Kanye West after the Grammys?

I kind of wish I was more into Bollywood and South Asian Film. That one makes me sound more interesting than I really am, I think. But shooter games? Um, no. I couldn’t be LESS interested in shooter games at the moment, especially since I just finished reading Jodi Picoult’s NINETEEN MINUTES last night.

Between this list and the fact that I keep seeing ads for the same two companies everywhere I surf, I’m thinking it will be a while before Google is really all in our business. They certainly don’t have me pegged, yet, which is surprising since they’ve had access to my email for years. It’s sort of a relief that the real me is still partly private, but then again, inaccurate information “out there” feels like it has more potential for annoying/dangerous misuse. Or… maybe Google is so accurate that they’re one step ahead of me, and by next year I’ll be playing Call of Duty while the Hindi hip-hop soundtracks of my favorite films play in the background.

I haven’t decided if I’m going to take the time to correct Google by deleting the things that aren’t a good fit (you do have that option). What do you think? If true privacy is really extinct, would you rather “They” (whoever they are) had the right information about you, or are you happy to maintain some mystery, even if it means you get served ads and other stuff that don’t quite fit?

Come to think of it, I would kind of like to have a bicycle.

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I’m M.J. (Manda) Pullen, an author and mom in the Atlanta, Georgia area. I blog about writing, publishing, motherhood, food, psychology and whatever else strikes me in the moment. And let’s be honest, that could be anything.

My books include The Marriage Pact series, a trilogy of funny, semi-realistic Contemporary Romance/Women’s Fiction novels coming Fall 2015 from Thomas Dunne/St. Martin’s Press in association with Macmillan Entertainment. If you enjoyed this entry, you can follow the blog or click here to join my email list and receive my free short story, BODY ENGLISH. It’s a “love at first head injury” kind of story.

Comments are always welcome. Thanks for stopping by!

MJ Pullen

M.J. Pullen is a distracted writer and the mom of two boys in Roswell, Georgia, where she is absolutely late for something important right now. Her books include quirky romantic comedies and playful women's fiction. She blogs erratically with writing advice, random observations, and reflections on raising very loud kids and dogs. Join her Distracted Readers newsletter list for updates, free content, giveaways and more.