Might As Well Face It, You're Addicted to....Facebook?

(Post by Evan)

“I can stop any time I want to,” is the phrase we’ve all heard from many who have addictions. Most of the time it’s not true. As much as I hate to admit it, I recognize that I have had addictions over the years including everything from pistachio nuts to video games. I just discovered my latest addiction: Facebook.

I spent a wonderful weekend with friends in the Berkshires where I enjoyed relaxing on the ski slopes and chilling. (A casual mention of the -6 temps might be appropriate here.) When it was time to leave, I dutifully cleaned up, packed, and loaded the car for the return trip. During the multiple runs to the car I was breaking a sweat, so I hung up the ski parka I was wearing by the door while I finished the task. As you have probably surmised, I forgot to pick up the parka when I jumped into the car. What does this all have to do with my Facebook addiction? Tucked away in the upper left pocket of the parka, was by Blackberry Curve.

Now many people would be upset about losing their mobile phone access. There are plenty of phone addicts. Just witness all those who walk around in public with the Bluetooth earpieces plugged in. I found that while not having my phone was inconvenient, I also found it kind of liberating. The worry of someone calling me from work to ruin my holiday was magically erased. However, rather than using it as as a phone, I realized I use my Blackberry more for the mobile Facebook application to update my status and check up on my crew of FB regulars.

I felt a little more lonely now, especially since my family was out in California. I wasn’t in agony by any means, but I kept on wanting to reach into my pocket for a quick fix. I never realized how many times a day I used it until I didn’t have access. The good news is that I didn’t have to wait too long to get it back. My friends brought my parka home with them on Monday evening to New Jersey. I drove to their place after work on Tuesday from my office for the happy reunion. My Facebook activity should return to normal levels now.

[Update: I discovered later that my Blackberry had developed a new problem. I have to reboot it every time I want to use it now. At 2 minutes per reboot cycle, I think my Facebook quick fixes will be severely diminished….]