April 1: Area Man Celebrates 1,000th Facebook Friend by Watching Netflix Alone

Aaron Escobar/Wikimedia Commons

Louisville native Josh Rialto added his 1,000 Facebook friend this week, celebrating on Friday evening by watching a Netflix documentary on sea urchins.

Rialto, 26, a transcriptionist who works remotely, sent a friend request to a former co-worker. The person had popped into his “Recommended” feed on the social platform, so he tentatively clicked the “Add Friend” button. Roughly 22 hours later, the former co-worker, bartender-turned-paralegal Jennifer Breckinridge, accepted his friend request, putting Rialto at an even 1,000.

“I hadn’t even been counting how many friends I had until one day I noticed I was at 905,” Rialto said. “I could hardly believe it. I remember when I hit 500, and I thought I couldn’t possibly go much higher.”

Rialto said he started actively seeking out potential Facebook friends after the 905 discovery, searching names of distant relatives, former elementary and middle school classmates, former neighbors and others to help increase his total.

“I’ve always been a bit of a loner, to be honest,” Rialto said. “To know I have so many friends out there is really a comfort. Makes me feel good to know so many people consider me a friend and have my back.”

“I do remember Josh,” Breckinridge, who had worked with Rialto when the two were teen-agers, said. “He was kind of quiet, I remember. I accepted his friend request mostly because I always thought he was kind of awkward, and I just didn’t want to be mean by not being his Facebook friend. Plus, now I’m only 10 away from 1,500 friends.”

At presstime, Rialto was quietly sipping an iced coffee in his boxer shorts with the lights off, considering his weekend of celebration. His plans for Saturday included cleaning the bathroom, finishing the book he’d been neglecting and maybe doing a little shopping on Amazon.