This post is going to be a little different than most because I'm giving you a little piece of my mind, which I rarely do and it will probably also seem contradictory since I have a blog and rely on social media for promotion. But, after some revelations I had this weekend while away at the beach, things may be changing once again for me and my blogging anyway. This whole blog was created because celebrations, traditions, and events are a huge part of my life. Blogging is a great outlet for me to show case what I do. But I don't want to get so caught up in blogging and promoting that I forget to actually enjoy my life and celebrations. So read on for some truth bombs and maybe you will see things a little differently as well...
1. iphone madness
I'm Stephanie and I am addicted to checking my iphone. Actually I am going to go past addicted, I am programmed to constantly be checking my iphone. I have become this robot. I feel uneasy if my phone isn't near. Like my phone is a life line or something. But thats what it has become. It is a life line to the whole world...and its practically all we do now.
2. Facebook started all this.
I am also programmed to check my Facebook news feed every hour or more which leads to mindless scrolling and clicking and scrolling and clicking... until I start obsessing over something that I have to look up right away like how much a luxury treehouse costs. Even though I know I'm never going to move into a tree house... come on. But instead of enjoying what I do have, now I am thinking if I would be happier in a treehouse... why!?!?
Then beyond that mindless crap, I am constantly looking at what others are doing and saying. And instead of comparing myself to say my best friend or neighbor (people who I actually see and interact with), now I am comparing myself to EVERYONE on social media, even freakin people I don't even know. It's total overload, unnecessary and crazy.
3. Photos and Instagram are now Life.
I spend more time trying to look cool on social media now than I do actually enjoying life. I go out of my way to get a perfect picture to post to Instagram, rather than snapping pictures on a disposable camera and leaving it up to fate whether its good or not. Its like I plan my outings around photos. A simple photo has become work; choosing filters and angles and editing with text and pretty icons. After I take a photo, I try to make it look perfect for 15 minutes to go up on social media, instead of actually enjoying what I took the photo of in the first place.
4. What happened to Wondering?
There are no surprises anymore! Do you remember being a kid and wondering if your summer crush was going to come to the pool that day. And you waited and watched and had a tickle in your stomach all day, just waiting and wondering... That wonder is gone now because we are all connected, like the Borg on Star Trek. We know who will be there, what time, what they will be wearing, and probably how they feel about it since we can conveniently pick an emoji dictating our feelings. It's insane.
The days of people knocking on doors is even weird. You hear a knock and don't understand, who could that be, no one has texted me their coming by. You can even watch your pizza get delivered. Is all of this technology and social media supposed to make things easier? Because all its doing, in my opinion, is taking the wonder out of life.
5. Constantly Connected
Anyone can reach me at any time, this includes family and friends (which is fine), but it also includes work, telemarketers, and lets not even get started on email and the Facebook notifications that pop up. Getting sucked into some one else's life instead of enjoying your own at the moment. I can be on a beach, having a wonderful day, and get sucked into someone else's drama on the other side of the country or get an email from work and get angry about it. And as connected as we are, why do I strangely feel more disconnected from my own life? Probably because I am so caught up in others, that I forget who I really am sometimes.
Conclusion
As technology has grown over the past few years, the more distant I have felt from myself. I am sure there are people who will feel completely opposite of me. But the person that I am...the person who enjoys the beauty of living, being in nature, experiencing, loving, laughing, and being in the moment...I am being held back. I can picture the iPhone being a person, and just when I start to live my life and jump into the ocean, they put an arm out blocking me and say...
"Wait! stop! don't jump in yet, go get your phone and take a picture of this moment. Okay now go stand like your about to jump in. Cool. Got it. Want to see? Maybe we should do another, your hips look kind of big. I think its the sunlight. Get a coverup and lets do it again. Got it. Eh, it still looks kind of bad. Oh look notification! Betsy is also at the beach and just posted a picture. She looks happy and so skinny! We have to do better. Lets try over here in the sand instead, maybe lay down for a better angle. Forget about jumping in the ocean and being happy."
So what am I going to do about it?
Sometimes I just want to throw out my iPhone and get one of those old flip phones that doesn't have internet. But I won't go that far...yet. But I am going to start using my iPhone less and shift my focus off of Facebook and social media. I am going to start using a CAMERA again, what!? So that when I go to the beach or the pool, I don't have to bring my phone, I can bring a camera, and just take some good old fashioned pictures. I am going to bring the wonder back into my life by living more in the real moment rather than in cyberspace, which means I am going to limit my social media/iphone usage. I did an experiment yesterday. I typically check my iPhone 3 times an hour....!!! So for now my goal is going to be once an hour, with an end goal being once a day eventually.
I challenge any of you to take an honest look at your life and how much social media impacts your actual living. You may be surprised. If you feel a void that you can't explain and an unending anxiousness about you, you may be suffering from social media overkill as well. Take the challenge with me and lets put the phones down and live a little more.
