How’s your January going so far with all those well-intentioned self-improvements? Sorry, I didn’t mean to rub salt into the wound. It’s just that it’s cold and snowy outside and I’m a bit cranky, sitting here with my hand in a bag of Miss Vickie’s feeling like I should really do better.
Because I like chips so much, I’ve decided to skip the good intentions and go straight to what I think might end up being the Word of the Year. Not my personal WOTY, but a word that I’ve been seeing a lot lately: “deactivated."
I’m talking about my Facebook friends*. More and more of them are drifting away, deactivating their accounts, leaving behind only that default avatar and the promise that if they ever come back, we’ll still be friends. (Beats the sting of being unfriended.)
Why are so many people leaving? It couldn’t be the deluge of ads and clickbait, could it?
I, for one, am getting tired of always being fed content that ignores anyone I’m following. If I’m bored enough to scroll past the first six or seven posts in my feed, I might find a friend*. What I’m seeing nowadays is mostly related to my personal interests and my geography. It’s the circle of (Meta) life: In exchange for every picture, every reel and every post we “like,” we’re sucked into an algorithm that monitors our curiosity while harvesting all sorts of information about us so we can see more sponsored content. I guess some people have decided that Mr. Z needs them way more than they need him.
Why are so many people leaving? It couldn’t be the deluge of ads and clickbait, could it?
Even though I’m spending less time on the Facetagram ecosystem, I’m not ready to deactivate just yet.
Sometimes, I’m just bored and looking to be entertained. Other times, I need an escape from reality. And then there are those times I just want to share my joy and a picture of my grandkids (because, seriously, how amazing are my grandkids!) It’s also a great digital diary of where I’ve been, what I’ve done, and how I’ve changed.
As some sort of writer (not sure what sort yet), I’m prone to random acts of self-reflection and sharing my thoughts on Facebook because I don’t believe in private writing (even though I sometimes feel a twinge of exposure regret). I’m hanging onto the hope that maybe, just maybe, one of my friends* will see it and read it and feel some sort of connection (I’m not immune to that little “thumbs-up” drug!). But I know Facebook isn’t the best place to share words — lots of words — which is why I’m giving Substack a try (home to my newsletter-blog-type thingy). Plus, no algorithm overlords and no ads!
Maybe one day I’ll wake up and wonder why I gave my attention to any of this. But for now, and today, before I get sucked into the Metaverse, I’m going to spend an hour or two reading and staring at a candle where I can encounter that mysterious threshold that’s thin and messy and full of Truth, followed by a few hours thinking random thoughts and hearing them say, “So nice of you to think of me.” (Believe me, they’re not always that polite).
Then, I’ll probably go outside where I can feel my heartbeat and touch a tree because trees are always nice. They never get cranky.
Perhaps I’ll find a friend* out there.
