Living a Week Without Facebook

By: Sarina Vasta
Posted In: Opinion

On Saturday Nov. 21, 2009, I set my Facebook status as “I will not be on Facebook for a week because I am writing an article for SRU Mosaic.is it possible to go days without Facebook? Let me know what you think.”

Since then, I have been tempted to check my Facebook a few times just to see what people have responded. I usually check my Facebook at least three times a day. It is so easy. My computer is always on and it is a great distraction from the homework I should be doing. I am by no means a popular person and my notifications range from three to seven at most on some days, a friend request every now and then, but Facebook for me, is just a way to stay in touch.

Facebook is a useful social networking site that allows people to reconnect with friends and family they haven’t seen or talked to in a while. Yet I understand how it can be addicting. Once you friend someone, you have access to their information, pictures and anything they post. Stalking definitely happens, although it may not be intentional. Sometimes it is more interesting to see what so and so did last night than work on your last five calculus problems. With games such as Farmville, Café World and multiple quizzes that the site offers, it is easy to stay distracted for hours.

Recently Facebook teamed up with J.P. Morgan Chase Bank in an effort to give a total of $5 million to charities. Facebook users get to choose from a list of 5,000 nonprofit organizations. Voting started on Nov. 15, 2009 and will end on Dec. 11, 2009. According to AOL News, “On December 15, 100 charities winning $25,000 will be announced. A second round of voting will take place from Jan. 15 to 29, with the winner netting $1 million and five runner-ups receiving $100,000 on Feb. 1, according to Facebook.”

The hope is that by asking the site’s more than 300 million users which local charities matter the most, there will be an even bigger impact and awareness for the different causes out there. Facebook has suddenly become more than just a way for teens to connect with their peers, and has evolved into a communication device for businesses and companies to interact and poll the general public.

After a full week, the results were 68 notifications, two friend requests, one group invitation and one inbox message. With all the time I did not spend on Facebook this week, I was able to focus more on my work instead of what people were posting on Facebook. The time away from Facebook allowed me to get away from my computer for a while. We do not need to check Facebook constantly to see what people posted on our wall, or what new pictures were recently added. Facebook is a tool. It is not a necessity. How long can you live without yours?