October 9, 2012

Unplugged...


I did it.  I might have just committed social suicide but I am taking the bold step to unplug myself from Facebook. Why?  Because I just can't take it anymore.  I need to start my days without a social media barrage. Without opening up Facebook's home page only to find posts, ad nauseum, basically telling me I'm an apparent moron for not necessarily agreeing with various political agendas. Whatever happened to a civil exchange of ideas instead of a daily Chinese water torture until the victim yells UNCLE?   I need some peace.  I need some tranquility.  I need MY SPACE (and not that OTHER social media gathering spot).  And for the record, I am referring to supposed mature adults who should have enough life experience under their belts to be able to respect each others' differences.  I mean isn't that one of the lessons we TRY to teach our own kids?




"Unplugged"
(Self Portrait Project 32/52)



So I sat with my Wawa Pumpkin Spice coffee this morning and just breathed before taking on the day.  Just me and silence.  Well...me, silence and two dogs.  So I guess it really wasn't that silent.  BUT, they are of the same political party and leanings that I am...so we get along quite famously.   I am what I am.  I believe what I believe. No postings of derogatory cartoons,  agenda pushing "news" stories, or venom filled diatribes is gonna change that.  All it does is make me angry.  Sure wish I was mature enough to rise above it all and not let it effect me. But I guess I prove that just because someone is 52 doesn't necessarily mean they can control their emotions and rise above the fray untouched.




"Hear the Silence"
(Self Portrait Project 33/52)



Call it a self-imposed "time out".  But I am quite content to sit myself quietly in the corner until after the elections, as far as Facebook is concerned. MAYBE even longer (but that is a quite tentative 'maybe').  I had been toying with the idea of a Facebook solitary confinement for awhile now.  But recently two things happened that forced my hand to either act upon my thought, or go ballistic and lose some friends who I might go Chris Matthews or Shawn Hannity all over (I want to remain equal opportunity ballistic here):

1.  I was having a Facebook discussion about one of my favorite television shows "Downton Abbey" which happens to be on PBS.  Before I knew it the discussion somehow morphed from HOW we were gonna survive until January to see what happens to poor Mr. Bates, to  "Romney wants to obliterate PBS".  To me, this is akin to going to a Bruce Springsteen concert and being lectured on the evils of the GOP.  I didn't sign up for this.  I'm being held hostage against my will.  FREEEEEE MEEEEEE PLEEEEEEEESE.  All this girl wants is for Mr. Bates to be happy.  I don't think President Obama OR Mitt Romney have that power.   I quietly left the conversation, but quite honestly...the seething inside me percolated much longer than it should have.

2.  I find myself finding it harder and harder to curb my enthusiasm.  I can't tell ya how many times I've copied links to the BEST posts...and then delete it before I hit "publish".  I came perilously close the other day.  Yep, I found the dreaded PERFECT quote on Pinterest and was gonna slam all my "friends" of the opposite affiliation.  It was definitely time for an intervention.  My name is Kathy, and I ALMOST became a bully.




"Fingertips"
(Self Portrait Project 34/52)


Too much coffee isn't suppose to be good for you.  But now that Facebook is outta my life until at least after the election...I'm pretty sure I can drink as many cups of Joe as I desire and STILL not come close to the jitter levels I was feeling before unplugging.  I'm not sure if this election is different from previous ones, or I'm just getting older and not as comfortable with the levels of dare I say it...hate...that I am seeing from people I consider friends. And I'm unbiased on this because I see it on BOTH sides of the aisle.  I don't want to participate.  I consider myself a well-informed citizen.  I know which candidate I feel is best for the country.  It might not be the same as your candidate.  But I respect that you are passionate enough to have an opinion..whether it is a shared one or not.

God Bless America, Fox News and MSNBC for giving us the rights and the knowledge to make informed decisions. And God Bless Big Bird for teaching us how to be good friends.  But for now...I'm unplugged.  I've made my choice, so it's time for me to find silence.  Not to mention with all the extra time I can finally knock off some of those pesky portraits I need for my dreaded self-portrait project.  God forbid my family think I REALLY just sit around and drink coffee all day.  Only my dogs know for sure.

--Kathy 

P.S.  For those interested, the two color photos are edited using Florabella's new Colorplay actions set.  After doing my "basic" every day edits (sort of like washing my face every morning), I ran the Perfect Color Action and toned it way down (sort of like when I tell Thing #3 to take some of that crap cat-eyed eyeliner off those beautiful eyes of hers)...then I finished it off with the ButterCream Action (yep, that's sort of like spritzing a bit of my fav Thierry Mulger's 'Angel' scent on my wrists).  I'm totally going Bill O'Reilly over Florabella's new collection.


linked to:  In the Picture Self Portrait ProjectSarah Halstead's Wordless WednesdayWordless WednesdaySnap ItLive and Love Out Loud Wordless WednesdayWordful Wednesday,, Black and White Wednesday,  Jenni From the Blog WW


25 comments:

  1. Seriously. I feel as if Social Media has made everything trendy from sports to politics and I am quite disgusted that it took social media for them to be informed about this kind of stuff. I am disgusted how people behave in a manner a bully as well. Why is it so hard to agree on disagreeing? That's just the problem, some people have lost respect for one another. Things just are not as sincere as they used to be. And, people are stalkers more than ever!!!

    And I do love these photos! They are beautiful! And I have no problem if you drink coffee all day! I would if I could.

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  2. Amen, well said..... Love your selfies

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  3. Kathy, we loved watching Downton Abbey. My lips are sealed on the Mr. Bates issues. As for the other mess.....Mike and I looked at each other just yesterday and after a political advertisement or twenty and he said to me "that's it, I'm writing in Alfred E. Newman again." You probably don't remember him (age showing here). I said "yep, either him or Pat Paulsen (more age showing). Love the selfies. Did you make that sweater?????

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  4. Ah you see you should adopt the UK technique of only giving them about 6 weeks to campaign in, I think politicians realise we'd have them all deported if they tried to do it for longer :O) Good on ya for going unplugged.

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    1. 6 weeks? The British are always so efficient and no-nonsense it seems :)

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  5. Well done for unplugging.... and I agree with Barbara above... 6 weeks campaign limit is the way to go. If you can't make your point in 6 weeks then you can't make your point at all.

    Mollyxxx

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    1. Yikes - I didn't mean to delete! Love your self portraits! This political season has been brutal - good luck with the Facebook thing!

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  7. Good for you! I almost did the same thing, as this election year has really worn on my every last nerve! None of us are going to see eye to eye on the same things in life, politics, religion, love . . . and isn't that a beautiful thing, because I believe when people keep an open mind about others beliefs and come to the table without their finger pointing and bashing and name calling, that we can actually learn something from one another!! I'm not able to completely unplug from FB for a few reasons, so I have just hid people, and seriously may never unhide them - I can only imagine how exhausting it may be to live with some of them! ha

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  8. Love the self portraits. Unplugging is necessary from time to time.

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  9. I am so glad you said you feel that way. I do too. Facebook has become a ridiculous bogus sounding board for people with their political agendas and other nonsense. Oh and the stupid game requests- REALLY??? Enough. What happened to the good old days when someone would post "Shopping with my kids today" LOL. I hardly ever go on facebook anymore b/c of the stupid political stuff lately - ENOUGH already. Who cares. Do you really think by you posting some stupid article about a politician is going to make me vote for or against them?!?! I am so over the overkill. Even my best friend, god bless her, posts 50 thousand pitbull pictures daily of wounded dogs, saved dogs, dog benefits, dogs with missing limbs, abused dogs, ugh. I am ready to block her even though she is my best friend. I am ready to leave facebook too. OK theres my rant in response to yours LOL.

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    1. All rants welcomed :) As long as they agree with MY rants, haha.

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  10. LOL. You said it all for me too. I quit watching my morning news program four years ago during this same time because of the politics. I'm very well informed and keep up with both sides--both make me want to scream at times. I try so hard to keep my mouth shut when "friends" bash one way or the other. I used to take up for whatever side was being bashed and bring some logic to the discussion, but then people took it to be an endorsement. I have so many of my friends "hidden" now on my newsfeed that it's not interesting to look at Facebook. Thank you for venting for me too. Have a lovely week.

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  11. You are reading my mind... I have come so close to doing this very thing but for some reason I can't. There is one group I like to follow and so I do go there and think I would miss them. You have encouraged me to maybe just stay away for awhile and give it a go. I think it would be a real relief. And your photos are beyond beautiful.

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  12. My facebook news feed is one huge spiritual billboard, sprinkled, in between the political rants. I stopped once, I regretted in because I lost contact with my niece in Alaska, my cousin I'm Maine and my favorite aunt in California. It's a really quick and easy way to stay in touch. I refused to let others take that away from me.

    I have blocked the crazy ones and I check it once per day!!

    Nice selfies...you have a very hip look!!!

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  13. Love the self-portraits. The only reason I am facebook is to plug my book from time to time. I just hide those people who don't know how to mind their manners and respect others' opinions. I can't tell you how many times I clicked a link to share and then changed my mind. I might be famous one day :-D and somebody will say, "Look what Kenya shared". So that helps me with the self-control ;-)

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  14. Yay for you!! I unplugged several weeks ago and do not miss it at all...it is hard enough to keep up with my little world...never mind 1,000+ 'friends'.

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  15. Super dreamy photos Kathy and unplugging from FB and over a year ago Flickr-were 2 of the best decisions I've made. It's like going thru withdrawals but u know what? Nothing changes! The world doesn't end and the one time I had to go on- it was the same crap. I rolled my eyes and sat completely satisfied!!!

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  16. Good on you for unplugging from FB.......I am heading in that direction too.....starting by giving it a miss for a few days & hopefully then getting rid of. Love your self portraits & thanks for linking up with snap it x

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  17. Wow...that would be enough for me to unplug from FB, too. Luckily, most of my friends aren't too political...or, if they are, they save it for somewhere else. What IS (almost) making me want to unplug, though, are those "Click like and share, in order to win" contests...driving me BATTY, I tell you! About half of my Home Page is filled with posts about receiving a year's worth of oil changes for the car, winning a birthday cake, or getting free obedience training for my dog. Arrrrghhh!

    Thankfully, I can escape to wonderful places such as your blog to read your always entertaining posts and see your beautiful photography and self portraits! But, start offering me a chance to win surveillance cameras for my (non-existent) farm, or a bus trip to a monster truck rally, and I'm outta here! ;)

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  18. Hi Kathy! I'm BACK & it sure feels GOOD! Totally, couldn't agree with you more regarding unplugging from FB. FB has become a place to air dirty laundry & a boxing ring. #people have too much time on thier hands. Good for you taking a stance not to become sucked into the polictal bureaucracy. Your beliefs, your choice, your vote...is your business.

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  19. I totally hear you about Facebook! I think it's much easier for people to act uncivilized online. On a happier note, I really love the pictures!

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  20. Love the creaminess and dreaminess of your self portraits. It makes me want to say ahhhhh --- and a big YES to unplugging!

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