And into the fire.

How I felt on Sunday night, after taking myself off "life support".

I hadn't even finishes out one project before I jumped into the next one, namely a Facebook break. I've been feeling for quite some time that I was wasting way too much time on Facebook, so I decided to take a week off completely to break my habit a little bit and reevaluate my usage. So I deleted the Facebook app from my phone and both iPads, and declared I would not access it on the laptop until next Sunday night.

By now, I am about halfway through, and I have to say it's going much better than expected. I don't think I have curled up, cold-sweating in the fetal position even once! I do find that I miss it, but mostly in the times when I'm relaxing for a few minutes, or procrastinating doing something else. When I'm busy doing the things I actually need  or want to do, Facebook is neither nor there.

Here's when I do miss it:

• As mentioned, when I have a few minutes to spare and nothing really to fill those minutes with.
• When one of the kids says or does something cute and funny. I've just been posting those on Facebook so they are recorded somewhere that I can find them, and where family and friends can laugh at them too. 
• When I want to crowdsource a question. Right now I need a great recipe for raspberry freezer jam, and I wish I had 300+ friends at my fingertips to ask for one.
• When I've written a new blog post. I usually post a link to my blog updates over on my Project Project Facebook page, and a lot of my readers will follow that link over here to read the post. My last post has only had 10 page views so far, and I am feeling a bit lonely and forlorn! (And there are no comments! I love comments..!) Come back, Facebook friends!
• When I want to feel connected. Most of my nearest and dearest live far enough away that Facebook has been a great way to share photos, thoughts and a little of our day-to-day. I miss hearing from them! Similarly, we live in a neighborhood that relies pretty heavily on Facebook to keep everyone updated on what is going on in our community, and without it I have no clue. 
• Oh, this is a sad one: I miss Facebook first thing in the morning. I usually check email and Facebook posts while I get my eyes open, and I miss that little wakeup ritual. On the upside, it's taking me a lot less time to actually get going in the mornings. 

I don't know that a week without Facebook is going to make a whole lot of difference in my internet (over) usage, but I have already found that I am more cognizant and aware of my behavior, which can only be a step in the right direction. The next step will likely be figuring out what changes I might want to make once this week is up. Until then, wish me luck!