Facebook Day 7

Aha, here it is. The day has come. I got on Facebook just to waste time. I knew it wouldn't take long.

I was going to write about how Facebook had finally mutated into the time consuming, mind numbing entity I always assumed it was, but then I realized that Facebook didn't change. It didn't vie for my attention any stronger than it did the first day I got a profile. What changed was my resolve about how I would handle Facebook.


I didn't have anything to do today between 11:30 and 2pm (besides, you know, the homework and research papers and videos I have to make for the Optimist), so I pulled my laptop onto my thighs as I reclined in a round, sunken-in black chair and got online. First, as always, I checked the notifications that are specific to me, the ones about how people had commented on my status or my wall or on what I had commented on someone else's status or wall. That took no time. But then, I was bored, so I just let myself wander.


 I checked the newsfeed of friends' recent activities. Click. I found out that two of my friends are dating. Click. I friend requested people I don't know very well. Click. Click. I observed a conversation two people were having about a dog in a pool. Click click click. In no time, I realized I was caring about things that are a waste of time. Why should I care that someone I know found it funny that a group of people sang the Veggietales song "His Cheeseburger?" I shouldn't. Why should I be looking at prom pictures of someone I don't know and feeling like I'm beginning to know them? I shouldn't, and I don't. 


What I have done is begin to care about trivialities, things that don't matter whatsoever, because on Facebook, everything matters. If it's posted, it's newsworthy, no matter the legitimacy or merit of the content. And I even compromised my promise to myself that I would only post articles and videos that provide my friends with news about relevant or intellectual ideas, trends, and events. I posted "Conditions by The Temper Trap is the perfect soundtrack to driving through a lightning storm. Until it starts raining. Then it just makes you more nervous than you already are" because I wanted people to know that I had an enjoyable, then frightening, experience that I assumed was worth sharing to the general public. To justify the post, it is somewhat relevant, because people need to listen to The Temper Trap. Nevertheless, I bought into the mindset that whatever you do is noteworthy to everyone. 


How do you counter the way of thinking that says every action should be shared with the public? One way is to do something for the result the action provides, not so you can look cool and busy and fun online. When people do things for the sole purpose of taking pictures and posting them on Facebook, I call that Facebook-living, and I hate it. Facebook-living is a lifestyle for many people my age, but what they don't realize is that it also cheapens their real life. People who Facebook-live aren't really living. But when you reject Facebook-living and attempt to find life away from a computer, your life actually becomes more valuable. Do something and don't take pictures of yourself doing it, letting the memory of it only exist in the minds of those present. Instantly, the event is more intimate and organic, because the memories come from people's minds rather than someone's camera. 


Another way to protect yourself from practicing Facebook-living is to regulate your time spent online. If you get on without any specific purpose, you will do what I did today, aimlessly gazing at other people Facebook-living, legitimizing their illegitimate virtual lives, and mentally planning how you can become like them. Like many other things, Facebook can be a drug if left unchecked. It can provide affirmation, emotional stimulation, (artificial) connection, and other human necessities and people won't be able to stop. Therefore, take a break from Facebook. Go a few days without checking it. Some people can't, and frankly, it's sad. Tame the beast before it destroys you.