Unplug

      Thoreau said, “we don’t ride on the railroad, it rides on us.”

      And he never experienced the internet.

      Social media weighs more heavily on us than previous generations of innovations.

     We become locked into the routine of checking. Checking email, Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, whatever. Scrolling a deleting until, eventually, we find something worth reading.

     Of course there is value in communication through social media. Business emails, Twitter posts that are real news and all that. But it is so easy to become trapped by the irrelevant.

    Advertising used to be avoidable. Now it pops up on emails and newsfeeds like dandelions in the spring. Friends used to be people we actually talked to. Now they are people we hardly remember posting photos of their grandchildren and dogs.

      I’m as guilty as anyone of enjoying reconnecting with high school and college friends and keeping up with people who have moved across the country. But, I limit my time on social media. I have always had a feeling it was more than a time suck.

   Now, more intelligent columnists than I have come to the conclusion that too much exposure to social media causes our brains to operate more inefficiently.  Of course it does. For one thing, we are sitting, staring at a screen rather than moving around and keeping our blood circulating.  For another, we are spending time glancing at paragraphs of drivel masquerading as news. Especially after the recent election, many of us are becoming ridiculously enraged at the collective idiocy of those who believe everything they read on Facebook. Or Stalkbook, as the barista at my local coffee shop calls it.

     It’s only natural to use the anonymity of the internet to create an alternate identity. It’s sort of like the boy in A Thousand Clowns who chose various names for himself. I remember he had his library card as Raphael Sabatini. Even under our own names, it is tempting to be that little boy, trying out different personas.

    While that in and of itself isn’t damaging, it isn’t terribly productive.

     I know a number of people who are taking a post-election break from social media. That’s a good thing, but it shouldn’t take a depressing disaster make you realize you have better things to do.

     I also know some people who “unfriended” everyone on their friend’s list who voted for “the other candidate.” That indicates politics is everything. It’s not. It’s possible to still care about someone you don’t always agree with. Trust me on this one.

     And trust me, you’ll be better off with a little less computer time.