Thursday, October 24, 2013

Facebook deactivation. The Gang is Back together!

We're back!!!

(I know my last name isn't a secret but for professional reasons I try to keep it off the blog.  I dunno?)
Basically, Kristina and SarahOual doing Carlsbad too!  Sarah is doing the half (marathon haters anon) and Kristina is doing the full.  I am way excited to not be the only crazy person on board for a little mid-January fun in San Diego.

Kristina is the fastest person that you'd never know she was fast until you stalked her times on the internet, btw.  Like a secret agent?

My training is going just fine.  I finished last week with about 46 miles done which was funny because it felt like about 100 relative to my super low mileage weeks lately.  I did a successful "longish" tempo on Tuesday with 7 miles at about 7:25 pace.  Started at 7:38 and ended at 7:12 with more laps around the elementary school.  It's great because there are no stoplights.  The cross guards who stand there and see me run around the school 15 times must think I am truly insane.

It looks kind of like this. 

Facebook Experiment

Are you on Facebook?  I'm guessing there's a 99.9% chance the answer is yes because isn't everyone these days?

I decided a couple weeks ago to deactivate my account (you can't delete it, apparently that's nearly impossible) in an effort to have more free time / real interactions with people.  It was kind of embarrassing the amount of times I realized I was signing in every day.  I am not allowed to go back on it for one more week and am kind of unsure if I will stay off it. Here are the emotional stages of grieving I've gone through so far.

1) Internet Twitches: For the first couple days, I kept accidentally going to the site to sign in and realizing I couldn't.  It was like those people who took Ambien and started eating in their sleep.  I was probably trying to sign in in my sleep as well.

2) Posting Withdrawal:  Something hilarious just happened to me!  Was it still funny if I can't exaggerate it and post it on Facebook for all to see and laugh at and hit the like button?

3)  Stalking Stalking:  Ok fine.  This one has been the hardest.  There are a few people on facebook who I LOVE to stalk.  Not really for any reason beyond the fact that I got into the habit of stalking them and now I feel like I know all of their friends who I've never met too.  I have a problem.

4) Relief:  I am positive that people in our generation have been subjected to seeing more birthday parties, motivational phrases, Nike+ runs of 3.0919 miles, engagement rings, and drunken duck faces than all other generations since the beginning of time.  It is a relief to not see that anymore.   

5) Out of Contact:  This is the only part that I kind of regret about being off the site.  There are some people I actually like to keep up with for totally normal reasons.  I'm sure I'm also missing birthdays.  Maybe I'll use a calendar like a normal person?

6) Connected to EVERYTHING:  I can't us my Spotify account any more!  Everything is connected to facebook!!!! Ahhhhhh!

6)  Smug Confusion:  After about two weeks off Facebook, it's safe to say I don't really miss it anymore.  And I love the idea of smugly telling people this.   But it's probably safe to say that eventually it's sweet siren song will lure me back and I'll be back to reading about babies, birthdays, and Aunt Mildred's crazy political views.

5 comments:

  1. There was a time when you could sign up for Spotify without a Facebook account, though my boyfriend is the only person I know who has actually done this. (And it was a long time ago, so perhaps that option doesn't exist anymore.)

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  2. I've been FB free for like 6 months. It's the besets!

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  3. I wish I could go FB free, I really do. But when you live on the other side of the world from your family and friends, it's a wonderful way to keep in touch!! I envy you!

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  4. I quit the facing book over a year ago and it was the BEST decision ever. I do miss out on things, but meh, it's all good.
    And I'll be at Carlsbad too! I hope to see you guys :).

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  5. I stopped signing on FB as of 1-1-13, but my account is still technically active. The only thing I've really missed actually is deaths -- when parents die of friends, running buddies, even old classmates that I'm barely in touch with but have fond memories of being at their houses as a kid. As to people I see regularly (friends, running buddies), if something big like that happens, I tend to be the only one who doesn't know and that sucks. But thankfully not a lot of parent deaths in my circle (yet I guess). My plan was to go back on FB in 2014, but I'm not sure if I will.

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