just for now

Well, for those of you who may have been wondering where I've been lately, I'm back.  Apologies in advance - today's post is going to be fairly short on visuals, and long on prose - because lately (and ironically?), I've been feeling blah about blogging.  It's not so much that I lack material - nor is it a case of blogger's block; the truth is, lately, I'm just not into it.

Now, this could be partly due to time constraints - against my better judgement, I recently took on a second (part time) job, (in addition to my full time gig) which, in turn, has made me even more sensitive to the amount of time I spend online.  When I have SO little "free" time (I'm not even sure what that means anymore) - I'm not all that sure I want to spend what time I do have sitting in front of a computer screen.  This extends beyond blogging, of course.  With the advent of Apple's new operating system (iOS 8), I did a little autumn housecleaning, and made the momentous decision to delete the Facebook app off my phone (oh, the horror!!!).  Now, I haven't gone whole hog and left FB altogether - I still check in on my computer from time to time - but the truth is, I was waking up, grabbing my phone (or iPad as the case may be), and scrolling through my FB feed to see what my peeps were up to - but increasingly, my friend feed has been slowly and insidiously replaced with "suggested" posts - that amount to little more than ads for what "the book" thinks I might be interested in.  I'd spend a fair amount of time scrolling through FB "ads", instead of using time that could be better spent:

a) reading a REAL book,
b) going for an early morning walk,
c) making a healthy breakfast
d) all of the above.

(For the record, I'm sure there are FB settings that would allow me to customize my FB feed, but frankly, I can't be bothered to spend the time figuring it out).

While many of my peers shook their heads at me, I embraced technology fairly easily and enthusiastically from the early days of the internet - from those first dulcet tones of the dial up modem, to furtively downloading music via napster (when it literally took HOURS to download ONE song), to making virtual friends from all over the world via membership in online fan clubs for favourite musicians (a few of those friendships still precious and lasting).  I've been on the bandwagon ALL the way along, keeping the rhythm with unbridled glee.  I was one of the first people in my social circle to own an original iPod, and I've owned every model of iPhone since their introduction (I don't have one yet, but I'm sure there will probably be an iPhone 6 somewhere in my future).  So I'm not knocking technology - it can delight, inform, and entertain us.  It has become an integral part of our lives, whether we like it or not.  But as one who lived a fair amount of my life on the BEFORE side of the technology line - before computers, before cell phones, before the the internet, before the monster that is social media - I survived.

I survived without having to be in constant contact with my friends and family.  I survived by using a paper map, of all things, to find my way to, and around, a new city I was travelling to.  Hotel and plane reservations were made, and not only did I arrive safely at distant destinations, I arrived with a sense of mystery and anticipation intact, because I hadn't already virtually walked the streets of (insert international travel destination) via google maps street view.  I went to concerts and was surprised by the setlist the musician was playing, and awed by the show's production - because I hadn't followed the real time tweets from those attending the same show the night before.  I heard something that I thought was current and newsworthy, and wasn't greeted with a blasé, "yeah, I read that yesterday on (insert social media outlet)" when I shared it with a friend.

I could go on, but you get the picture.  Yes, I lament the "old days" - and no, I'm not abandoning technology, or social media entirely.  Maybe I've just got a case of techno fatigue.  Maybe I just need time to adjust to a newer, busier, schedule. For the moment though, I'm stepping back a tad from blogging.  I'm pretty sure the mood will strike me (likely sooner rather than later) to pick up the blogging pace, and once again, I'll be off and running.  But for the time being, my free time will be spent, out of necessity and desire, enjoying the mundanities of everyday life. I just won't be sharing them here as often.  It won't be forever, I'm sure. Just for now. :)