Yield, I am back on Facebook

A few lessons learned from not being on Facebook:

• For 7 days, I had to search for new cat videos and cute dog pictures, as they were not served up on my news feed.
• Missed the ease of hearing and seeing what others are up to, and the ease of communicating with friends and family.
• It is not easy to block websites on Chrome, and so I only hit the URL twice last Friday by mistake.
• As Hurricane Dorian approaches, I have not been in as much contact with friends and family in Florida as I would if hovering over Facebook.

Overall, though, I would say the experience being disconnected has been most enjoyable. What I am realizing is that Facebook can be, for me, a distraction from my day to day life.  That may be more than welcome at times, but it also can also cause me to not be as focused on life choices and decisions as maybe I should be.  It is also interesting because I am also less focused on what other people are doing and celebrating in their lives and having to be more centered on me and my family.

Let me share, I know most of what we all post on Facebook is akin to the broadcaster on TV.  Above the table is a nicely coiffed and dressed professional, but underneath where we can't see is a dingy pair of shorts and old pair of sneakers.  When we post the best of our life, the best pictures of our pets, our vacations, our homes, or even work-related successes these are the best view of our lives that there can be.  This can be good, as it gives many hope and optimism when their life may not be going as planned.  But it can also cause many people to wonder what is wrong in their own lives if they don't feel they "match" up. 

We are all sharing what we want the world to see of our lives but is the rare person on Facebook that chooses to share "everything" including the bad days.  Most people don't post what is wrong in their lives.  I must confess a few weeks back, Daisybelle was up all night with stomach issues and I left that off Facebook.  So even though, I assure you, she is the best and cutest dog in the world I didn't share that part of her life.  Or, as cute as Lucky is, I don't share the ordeal it takes to get her into her room each night for bed.

The truth is, I don't share 90% of my life on Facebook for a few reasons.  First, and foremost is a confession, my everyday life is fine for me but not very interesting.  I start 5 days a week walking around Lady Bird Lake, and as much as I enjoy it the lake doesn't change much beyond the occasional turtle or snake sighting and I don't take my phone so no pics.  I start out each day doing the USA Today Crossword Puzzle and average completing it in ten minute which is way longer than it takes Jack to do the NY times so why would I brag about that.  In the morning, my mind wonders in many directions before work and mostly is like chatter that just gets me going and so why would I share that?  And mostly, I stay away from politics, environment, or controversial issues as there are enough people posting these and honest, I don't want my professional world clouded by these issues.  The idea of sharing more on Facebook is not going to happen.

Because, the amount of data and tracking these sites record scare the hell out of me. They spend much of their time mining my browser to find out all that I do on the web whether it is with them or not.  I never installed the Facebook Messenger on my phone cause when I read their disclaimer, I was amazed at how much information on my phone they were mining that had nothing to do with Facebook.  So, the idea of slowing down even for a week was interesting to me.  By the way, I know they are probably tracking my activity whether I log on or not.  And, let’s make no mistake, as I am using Google's Chrome browser, they are tracking my every step as well.  These companies may not have anything more planned than to sell my likes and dislikes for marketing to their clients, but still it bothers me more every day.  

Instead of walking down the street to a local coffee joint and talking to one another we have decided to do it digitally for what we think is free, but the cost maybe way too high.  We share our personal experiences and digital life with others who are making money off of that data and honestly don't care how much they know or share about us and with whom if the price is right.  

Another issue is that we live in a time where profiling people and using this same data can be used by politicians, countries or other entities looking for particular people to harm or to sway elections or turn one group of people against another. 

There have been times not too far back in history where profiling and tracking people was used to try and eliminate Jews, Gay people and others from this earth and now that our DNA is out there as well this is getting to be more and more frightening to a nice Gay, Jewish middle aged male.  

So expecting me to share more of my own life online is not going to happen.

So, yes for now, I am back on Facebook but under a yield sign hoping that I am on much less than before and less online across all social sites.  So, if you want me urgently you might consider an email or dare, I say a text, or even  a phone call.

Happiest of Labor Days to all and hope Dorian turns into a wimp and turns back out to sea.