Delete All

[dotinthesky]

Yesterday, after 16 years of use, I deleted my personal Facebook account. (And by delete I mean, I removed all friends and groups, leaving it only as an admin account for my pousada's FB page.) If I didn't have a guesthouse with so many fans on Facebook, I'd permanenly delete everything. But I have to be realistic, and so the best I can do - for now - is to remove the app from my phone, the shortcut from my browser, and only use the site for work purposes.

I also deleted my Tumblr blog, my writings on Wattpad, my Feedly and Snapchat accounts. And all dating and hook up apps.

I didn't feel anything - no weight lifted, no great shift. It was just something to do, and a truth to recognise that these sites no longer served me and merely held traces of my digital presence. I felt slightly uneasy later about not feeling anything.

Today, I'm reflecting on Livejournal and if I honestly still wish to use this site. As I write this, I can see shortcuts to YouTube, Twitter, Pinterest, Instagram and Goodreads on the browser's tabs. A part of me fears I'll be completely isolated - more so than I already am - if I no longer have any social networks.

And don't get me started on WhatsApp...

Comments

[susandennis]

i get it but selfishly, i hope you stay here

[alefy]

And yes, I second this. I get it, and yet- I hope you stay here. Take care Oliver.

[picosgemeos.livejournal.com]

Thank you. x

[picosgemeos.livejournal.com]

Thank you. Livejournal will probably be the last to go as it was the first site I joined! (way back in 2001...)

[livejournal.livejournal.com]

Hello! Your entry got to top-25 of the most popular entries in LiveJournal!
Learn more about LiveJournal Ratings in FAQ (https://www.dreamwidth.org/support/faqbrowse?faqid=303).

[picosgemeos.livejournal.com]

Thanks 😊

[alefy]

I do not have any social media other than livejournal. My livejournal is a locked account where I document my life snd follow the lives of some who I may never meet, and yet- feel like I ‘know’. This is the exact opposite of Facebook… but everyone is different, as are their expectations from life and tools. Whatever you decide to do, just do what makes you happy.

[picosgemeos.livejournal.com]

I've always felt that LJ provided more of an insight into people's lives, perhaps because posts are longer, in chronological order here, and are more about personal stuff rather than memes, etc.

I've learned a lot more about the pandemic, about people's feelings about the last U.S. election, from reading LJ than from Facebook.

I don't feel any reservations when I'm here - only perhaps if I've fallen behind on my reading - but with Facebook I was constantly confronted by things that annoyed me. Also, I think of LJ as a place to put all my writing, which I just didn't feel worked as well on Facebook.

[norabird.livejournal.com]

Goodness—that’s bold! (Not so much Facebook as the rest). I suppose humanity used to live fully without them and lived rich lives however! What prompted you? I’d miss you here but understand!

[picosgemeos.livejournal.com]

I've felt annoyed with Facebook for the longest time. Little things that added up: people asking to be my friends who don't know me, posts appearing out of chronological sense, people spreading hate, fake news, annoying ads, clunky mechanism to use the site, etc.

The biggest thing was realising that I was connected with real friends elsewhere and could still stay in touch with everyone close if I left.

I feel that I still need somewhere online to write, because I enjoy it and don't want to be completely cut off, so LJ may just be the place...