Halfway restraint

It’s Day 15 of my current 30-day challenge (oh, ‘scuse me, I mean “guided retreat”) and I have so far been able to avoid Facebook. Only once or twice have I made all three of my daily allotted visits; there may even have been a day I didn’t check in at all.

And I’m okay. As I predicted, the world still turns. I don’t feel completely disconnected or out of the loop–in fact, I’ve been spending more time reaching out to friends and loved ones by phone or email. Which brings me to a concern:

Now Gmail is driving me nuts. Argh! Because my old habit is to take a break at work, check Gmail, and then Facebook. But now that I’ve cut Facebook out of the equation I’m left staring at my inbox, wondering what I expect to find. I’ve got no shortage of email to deal with–more than 300 unread, for starters–but there’s no satisfaction in sifting through the electronic mess. I want something new to stimulate my impatient mind.

My impatient mind–the whole reason I’m tackling this challenge is to become more aware of what’s happening in my head, and impatience is a big part of it. Instead of always wondering what’s next, I am working to appreciate where I am now. My inbox has enough. My Facebook doesn’t need me.

And because I noticed in the first few days that I was coping with Facebook withdrawal by simply transferring my idle clicks to other websites or my new Tumblr blog, I’ve upped my efforts to stay offline in general, to avoid FB avoidance and instead consciously abstain from distraction in all forms.

Of course, for the next fifteen days my official goal remains the same as before–I’m on a roll already, and I wouldn’t want to have to face failure/start over, would I? But in practice, throughout the rest of the month I intend to hone my concentration, so that my morning meditations are less thought-filled and more breath-based, and my online excursions are more focused and fruitful.

I can be the poster child for a new trend of moderate internet usage: Surf responsibly!