Facebook addiction...

Last Thursday, I deactivated my Facebook.

It's a bit of a long story, but the short version is that Alastair and I have been thinking about it a lot... read lots of articles and stuff. We're uncomfortable with Facebook's privacy settings, amongst other things.

But since deactivating, it's become more than that. I didn't realise how addicted I was. I didn't spend hours each day on Facebook... I haven't had oodles of time to spare now that I don't have it. But I would check it quickly several times a day, (it might only take me one or two minutes) just to see what was happening... just to see what was going on... and I think it was actually a gossipping mechanism! I reasoned that I was just keeping in touch... but that's not really it. I was - or rather, I am - addicted to knowing what's going on. Not in a current-affairs-and-news kind of way, but in a who's-going-out-with-who and a what-is-so-and-so-doing kind of way... and that can't be a healthy way to spend ones life!

It's also become a habit... across the top of my browser I have shortcuts - email, online banking, blogger, weather... and Facebook. I check them all out of habit. On Saturday, before I knew it, I'd opened a new tab and clicked the Facebook shortcut. Given that my account is deactivated, it had a message to tell me that and to ask if I wanted to reactivate - and it was only when I read that message that I realised I was opening up Facebook without even thinking!!! That struck me pretty hard...

And so, I'm going without Facebook for now... and majorly suffering withdrawal symptoms, by the sound of all this! It reminds me of 1 Timothy 5:13 though, and I know Paul is talking about younger widows here, but read: "Besides that, they learn to be idlers, going about from house to house, and not only idlers, but also gossips and busybodies, saying what they should not." And verses 14-15 too: "So I would have younger widows marry, bear children, manage their households, and give the adversary no occasion for slander. For some have already strayed after Satan." Yikes!

And to finish... my friend Danielle's thoughts on Facebook.