I love my Internet life - sending and receiving email, blogs and blogging, social networking, finding and sharing information, etc. For a writer and resource-connector, it's bliss.
But so much energy goes into these wonderful long-distance relationships, while my close relationships remain weak, and I start to feel like the Internet has taken over my life.
So, some days (especially when I've been at the office too late) I'll leave the laptop at the office or in the car. Not knowing if anyone has written to me and not being able to "check" the various things I'm in the habit of checking can be disconcerting.
Yet when I'm less connected I'm also less fragmented.
I need those breaks to learn how to be whole. I used to fast from radio, newspapers, magazines, and novels, one day a week, too. I haven't tried that in some time; living in such silence sounds so difficult!
So, the internet? I have a love/hate relationship with it. It's a tremendous tool, opportunity, blessing - and a big time-sapper, soul-sucker, distraction, bane.
Do you feel the same way?
What other things are, to you, a blessing and a bane?
11 comments:
I feel the very same way about the Internet. At this point I couldn't image fasting a day from it... maybe that means I should.
I have a love/hate relationship with caffeine. I love the way it picks me up and the package it comes in is just delightful (coffee, chocolate and coke). But coming down off the rush makes me nervous and jittery, which is no fun.
What about vacations/furloughs? Does it stress you out to pack up your whole family and get them out of town?
Think how much richer your life is WITH the Internet. Maybe you should also PLAN people meetings off-net. I'm trying to do that.
I've written it into my goals.... "cultivate life-giving relationships by getting together with people I care about and wouldn't see otherwise - at least 2-3 times a month."
Yep, I definitely have a love-hate relationship with the internet... I adore how easy it is to get information and stay up to date with people and events even when I'm thousands of miles away, but I hate that I find it too hard to drag myself away.
Also, the missionary life - I love the adventure and the wonderful relationships I get to make, but I hate the transitory nature of the lifestyle and the relationships - a friendship is never the same once you're living in different places.
uh, why did you just join twitter, then? WHY? i get antsy on the days that i work in one of the warehouses (they have internet but i don't log in and i don't have it on my phone.) therefore i text jesse instead.
Meg, do you hear the "love" in love/hate? I really like all this stuff, but it can do bad things to me.
Re: Twitter. I did, yes, join. But not so I could tweet, not really. It's because we set up an organizational twitter stream. I wanted to be able to follow it (so I could contribute), so I had to set up an account.
Holidays - I also have a love/hate relationship with holidays, since they are so focused on being with loved ones and I am a bit lacking in that respect. Not orphaned - I have four parents - or friendless - I am well loved - but since the dramatic changes in my life a few years ago when our ministry fell apart, I haven't had close companions to do stuff with, socially. Need to push myself to take more initiative to change this pattern, rather than just bemoan it.
@ngie - I don't know that not being able to imagine a day w/o Internet means you SHOULD do this, necessarily. Not unless you see ways it is hurting you or costing you that you are not willing to accept.
Fiona - I know what you mean about transitory relationships; so many hellos and goodbyes!
Laundry and my kitchen are the love/hate relationships for me.
I love the smell of clean clothes, especially when they come off the clothesline. However, since I grew up in a big house and laundry was one of the chores; I've grown to hate it.
My other is the kitchen, I love to cook, have people over for dinner, and try all sorts of new foods but hate to clean the kitchen.
If I lived closer, J, I'd come do your dishes! I find kitchen cleaning brings one of those rare opportunity to really bring order to a chaotic world. Love a clean kitchen. If only one didn't need to do it over and over! Back at "home," both my dad and stepdad are committed to cleaning up after dinners, a good pattern...
Laundry is much easier for me, at this point - about one load every two weeks. But, like everyone else, I still have a hard time finishing that last step, the folding and putting away!
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