I feel like this challenge was both liberating and an opportunity for me to reflect upon the ways social media effects my life. I returned to the world of blogging in this abstinence of Facebook, and found myself constantly talking about Facebook in the blog.
The first few days were the most interesting. Since I have a Facebook application on my phone, I am typically connected to the network and browsing it during my “free” time. Free time would be considered walking down Mill avenue to class, walking between classes, on breaks at work, and unfortunately, while I am in traffic, at times. So in deleting the application I still found myself reaching for my phone in this moments of activity where I’m not fully engaged. It was startling to me, to find that Facebook use had become such a habit that I was repeating the ritual of phone gazing at times.
The further I got away from my last Facebook use, the more comfortable I became with not using it and more aware of previous habits and activity. I feel like I reconnected with the surrounding world and was no longer this unaware zombie, walking down the street with his eyes focussed on the screen of his phone. I noticed people around me walking with their gaze fixed to their phone for whatever reason, and I’m sure about 50% of these reasons were Facebook related.
I think that it is a great tool for cultural related activity, it keeps us connected and up to date on the lives of the people we care about. It allows us to build stronger connections with those we interact with in day to day life and allows us to share information that we are passionate about. I definitely would fall into the category of someone who spends too much time on the website. I like being connected with friends and family and in their absence, while I am living alone, it takes away the edge of the feeling of loneliness. This would be no excuse though to make a personal connection with someone else walking down the street, enjoying the songs of the birds and the sound of the fountain at Mission Palms Hotel in Tempe. I think Facebook is detrimental to this type of interaction because when two like people are walking down the street, both gazing at their phones, they will miss each other and miss that acknowledgement of sharing space. You notice much more and interact with the environment better when you’re not concerned about how many people will press the “like” button on the picture of your food.
In conclusion, I will be tuning in less to the digital realm of Facebook and focusing more on my personal relationship with my environment. The moments I gather on my day to day routine won’t have to be shared for me to get the ultimate experience from the interaction. Of course I won’t deactivate or delete the account as I cherish the connections I have on the network. I know my abandonment would be devastating to many. This break was refreshing and I now know I have the will power to tune out for some extra fresh air.
fuck this shit
http://www.wired.com/2014/04/donna-j-wan-death-wooed-us/#slide-id-719621
In other news,
working on some shit.
Imma go on Facebook Friday and be all, “fuck you facbeook, i quit”
The Anticipation
Friday is the day I can log back on to FaceBook. I will be able to viciously peruse my entire list of friends’ timeline’s. I will see everything that they have made public for the past two weeks that I have missed out on.
The excitement, the joy, the inspirational quotes.
I am like an addict. Anticipating the peddler’s arrival. Will it be as good as last time? Will this overload of information be so glorious that I will have to start taking two week sabbatical’s from FaceBook more frequently in order to attain this ultimate high?I may… I just may.
Is it any coincidence that I am off, this entire Friday? I know what I’m doing.
I’ll eat again, what I’m craving.
I’m the drunkest
I love beers and not working until 1600s
I only love when I;m drunk and I’ve smashed my phone to smithereens on the floors of a bar due to karaoke of beautiful disturbed glory holes.
throw up on my shoes and throw the balls at my face. I’ve I’ve I’ve I’ve I’ve I’ve I’ve I’ve I’ve care about the competition, keep me high. in smitheries theres nothing left for spell to check
clearly i cant drive so ill walk home. it’s only a block we started out at throwing up fish, 7 o clock.
where do you go out when someone else sits at home reading nothing but the feeling of loneliness, burgess. dreams of vines that i cannot reach. ‘
the end of everything, no more reading nonsense.
alcholism is a good song i sang too many times.
I listened, you were there. I spoke, you left.
How much longer
Can I survive
This faceless reality?
I am moving towards 1 week completely free on logging on to FaceBook. I will admit, I did access the webpage today only to bathe a classmate in the glory that is The Rebel Set. This is a group I highly recommend all Word Press subscribers give a listen to.
As the days progress and I am further and further away from my last log in date, I am more inclined to us the site less. This is probably a reiteration from a previous blog but it’s true. I should be spending my time more wisely. I should be more focused at work on such things as trash, recycling, and store cleanliness. While I am at school, I should be more focused on producing great shit and getting my assignments completed with great integrity and sailing beyond the professors requirements.
I must say I am impressed with myself, this term. Six classes, 16 credit hours and so far, straight A’s. This may bring my GPA to a 4.0 or higher, if all the A+’s hold out through the semester. Boast boast boast, and gloat.
I notice the friendly things I have missed while being glued to my phone walking through classroom halls or down sidewalks. I just noticed a classmate walking down the hall without any awareness of me sitting only ten feet away from the elevator. This is my cue that it is time to go practice my piano piece, I have mastered Mary Had A Little Lamb.
What I learned today:
Jim Morisson came on stage wearing a lamb around is neck during his performance at the Coconut Grove in Florida.
My resume is bad ass
It’s Working.
In my four day absence of FaceBook I am beginning to realize how it is only to my benefit to learn how to refrain from visiting the platform as often as I do. Of course now my attendance to WordPress has increased. I think this is only for the better though. In using WordPress more, I am able to express myself in a more precise way without the assumption that my thoughts and expressions are going to impact a network of select individuals. Social activities have become more personal when purging the desire to take the moment to snap a photo and broadcast it.
While enjoying a pitcher of beer with a friend at Four Peaks Brewery in Tempe, FaceBook was on my mind. How would FaceBook change this moment, what would it be like if FaceBook was here with me and my friend right now, how would I interact differently or in ways the same? As I was finishing off the last drops of our pitcher, the thought crossed my mind that the final pour would make a great picture, entirely for FaceBook. The desire to pull out my phone and commence existed, but I resisted. Of course I brought this up in the conversation. The disconnect when someone pulls out their phone to interrupt the present moment exists. Whatever was going on prior to that often times gets forgotten about. Once it is posted and live, we await the feedback, further interrupting our process of thought and attachment to what is happening around us. Only for that satisfaction of some red notification appearing on our application, or a vibration of the phone, for the more obsessed.
What will the future be like when we are all wearing cameras and able to capture any instance and display it publicly?
Without FaceBook I am more inclined to find some other distraction like Twitter or Instagram. Both are social media networks I’ve purged in the past 6 months. I can still easily access either one without an active account and I know plenty of handles that are active if I want the momentary satisfaction. I think my time can be spent much more productively, however. I think these social networks are becoming more and more of a tool for me to promote myself rather than mindlessly scrolling.
Having said all this, WordPress is distracting me from getting a few things done.
Cheers.
Without FaceBook, I’m A Mess.
But not really.
It’s a total support group. I willing to bet that people in AA have the largest network on FaceBook. Or there has to be some statistic that states one in every ten AA attendee’s have reached FaceBook fame. Damn, maybe I should start going to meetings to increase my numbers. That, or bars. Hell, I’ll go to both.
It’s taking its toll on me. Not sure how much longer I can last. Yes, until next Saturday.
I’ll survive.
Interesting Article of the Day
FaceBook has become HAL 9000
I’ll admit, this detachment from FaceBook is rather depressing. I’m missing out on lots of fascinating science articles and pictures of friends being cute or witnessing passive aggressive disputes between status updates.
I am somewhat perturbed by the fact that FaceBook has gone out of its way to e-mail me notifying me that I have pending notifications on its webpage.
What on earth could 28 people possibly be wanting to tell me in my 2 day absence? The suspense is horrifying. Maybe I don’t want to know. Maybe I never want to go back. Too familiar, this. 2001, A Space Odyssey, Bro. Long story short I have unsubscribed from FaceBook notifying me of anything. I was certain I had already taken care of that, though.
I’m spending great thought and consideration as to what my returning post will be… Saturday, May 3rd, 2014.
Deuces.
Happy Holidates.
Whoever believes in the aliens and dies, fights, bleeds for the the aliens will be abducted by the aliens and eaten by the aliens.
impress the empress
with
a rainbow cup
Pixelized Reality 