Dear Grandparenting: We went to see relatives in Florida recently. They belong to a little beach club with a gorgeous swimming pool where my granddaughter Tracie works when they need extra help. I was at the pool one afternoon when Tracie came around with three girlfriends I’d seen before.

I don’t think Tracie realized I was so close because my reclining chair faced the other way. I was sitting there reading my book when someone said, “Do I look hot?” It was one of Tracie’s friends. Then I heard it again. Do I look hot? Do I look hot?

I’ll cut to the chase. Turns out Tracie and her friends spent 70 MINUTES!!! in that pool taking “selfies” with their cell phones. They pouted their lips, scrunched up their shoulders to show more cleavage and dangled their legs.

Here’s what really got me. Instead of having fun and laughing about it, the girls took it so seriously, like life and death. What am I missing here? June Hurst, Wyomissing, Pennsylvania

Dear June: It would be difficult to overstate the value of a simple self-portrait or “selfie” to grandchildren in this age of social media, an increasingly visual medium that rules all.

For many granddaughters, the search for the perfect selfie is an endless quest for an unattainable image in their mind’s eye — the idealized self. But since selfies are so easy — just extend your arm, pose, pout and click — what’s the harm? In case you were wondering, photographing and examining oneself is established as an engaging and rewarding way to spend time for the universe of young females.

And while appearances have always concerned teens, the pursuit of the perfect selfie means you have to put in the work, really apply yourself. The best photos may have you looking relaxed and casual, but typically they’re rehearsed, repeated and refined. And that takes plenty of pool time.

The technology boom means grandchildren are bombarded with ever more sexual images and content. Sex still sells, and some granddaughters are sold on the idea it’s in their best interest to present and be perceived as “hot” — if only they can nail that photograph to embellish their online identity.

GRAND REMARK OF THE WEEK

Mark Snyder from Lake Stevens, Washington, enjoys the company of his nine grandchildren. “Grandkids are like the straw that stirs my drink. They’re a great comfort in old age.”

Wife Roxy didn’t miss a beat. “They’ll help you reach it faster too,” she duly noted.