About a week ago, Facebook made a video for me to celebrate my 10 years on Facebook. Instead of being excited about their video of photos and words I've posted, all I could think was what a waste-book-a-versary. (haha, I've been waiting to use that joke.)
Seriously though, it immediately made me realise I had wasted A LOT of time in the past ten years. Somedays more than others.
I have a love/hate relationship with FB, and I'm pretty sure I'll never quit (unless, of course, all this time those silly posts saying FB is going to charge if I don't copy and paste are true... I didn't copy and paste.)
The things I like about FB aren't really what I see anymore. I like seeing photo of my friend's kids, or a vacation. I even kind of enjoy seeing the delicious food somebody is about to eat. I like the happy posts, and the posts that make me happy for the person posting. I like the real posts about things that are hard in life.
I share too many photos of my life. Of my baby, of my dog, of my partner and I. I have friends and family from a far, and this is my way of sharing my life with them. I used to share a lot more details. Happy or sad.
I've slowly tried to share more of my photos on Instagram instead, but not everybody (my Mom) is on the photo sharing media. I find it a bit happier over in Instagram land.
Either way, I'm getting a bit off topic. My point is, I saw that I had been on it ten years, and it didn't make me want to celebrate.
I like to think it's there for good reasons. I would have lost touch with quite a few people if not for the social media time taker. Or... I just would have made more phone calls. Who knows. My Katimavik friends, my Korea friends, my university friends, people I've met (and want to keep touch with) from many jobs of my past... most of them hang out on FB. We don't talk every day, but I know they are there.
Unrelated to the ten years on FB, but kind of related last night at around 10, I decided I would try to shut down for 24 hours. I wanted to spend the day with my family, and to catch up on reading and writing.
I had already deleted FB off my phone, but I wanted to actually have a technology free day. I put my phone on airplane mode (instagram, games, texting, calls), I didn't open my computer, and I didn't turn on Netflix. Netflix is on A LOT these days.
(Side note, I got rid of FB months ago because it wasn't working correctly on my phone, but it's been wonderful not logging in all the time from my phone. I'll never get it back on.) I do use it on my computer.
I did turn my phone on once at 2 to check texts, and again at 5 for no good reason at all.
I turned my phone back on for good after Anthony was down for the night.
What did I learn from this? A few things.
First of all, I can read while holding a sleeping baby:
Actually, I can read while holding two sleeping babies:
Second, my phone is in use A LOT. For no real reason. I pick it up and use it whether I need to or not. I'd like to continue using airplane mode for an hour or two every day. I really don't need to have it in my hand all day. (I do have to have it nearby because it's my camera, and I'm more addicted to taking photos than I am of anything else.)
Third, although I spend most of my day paying attention to and talking to Anthony (or Clint and Drogo), today I they got all my focus. I laughed a lot. (And sometimes yelped when Anthony bit me, or Drogo tried to trip me.) My family makes me happy. The break from Netflix and wasting time on my phone was lovely. The time with my family (all spent in my lumberjack onesie -seen above) was priceless.
And fourth, I finished a book (it took all day - and most of it was after Anthony went down for the night), and found out I hadn't written in my journal for a year. A YEAR. I guess that's what happens when social media gets involved. I spent 10 years telling the world my story, but forgot to save some of the healing writing for my journal. Also, I started the journal in 2012. I'll be writing in it now JUST to finish it.
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| My OLD OLD friend |
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| First journal entry in it. |
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| The last time I wrote. Just after I found out I was pregnant. |
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| Today... |
So to end this post, I have been on FB since I was 26. I'm now 36. I love seeing bits and pieces from my friends and family. But I need to slow down and enjoy my life for real. Not through a computer. I'm not going to quit FB, but I don't need to be on it or my phone as much as I am. (Also, I LOVE the On This Day, and will love it even more when photos of baby Anthony start popping up. That alone will keep me from quitting.)
Some quick other news, my baby boy was ten months old yesterday. Time flies. He makes me happy every day, and I only hope I can do the same for him.
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| He met Batman on his 10 month birthday. |
Happy Sunday, all.
"Write it on your heart that every day is the best day in the year."
Ralph Waldo Emerson
©ErinLeahMcCrea All photos I share on my blogs are my own, please Ask Me For Permission Before Using Them.
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