My Life Without Facebook

I’m Brie Engelken. I’m 23 years old and I’m a Facebook addict. Facebook began in February 2004 and by October I was an avid user. By May 2005 I was addicted – checking every hour I had access to a computer (this was before mobile web browsers took off!) just to see who was doing what, who broke up with who, and more importantly, who had scandalous pictures from last night’s big party.

Today, Facebook is a primary means of communication in my life, as well as the lives of my peers. I start my day at 5:00 a.m. every weekday morning and by 5:15 a.m. it’s fair to say I’ve checked the statuses I missed while sleeping. I log in when I get to work at 8:00 a.m. and keep a tab open all day, checking in regularly just to see what’s going on. I get home around 6:00 p.m. most nights and I’m logged back in by 6:30 p.m. with a window open until at least 11:00 p.m. that evening. It’s fair to say that I don’t miss much.

Starting at midnight on Wednesday, February 17th (tonight) I will be giving up Facebook as part of my sacrifice for Lent (I’m Roman Catholic). For 46 days I will journal my life without Facebook, and the challenges I encounter along the way. The only leniency I will have is the ability to go in and un-tag pictures, but I can’t waver from that page onto any other part of Facebook. Check back for weekly posts about my journey (aka Blast from the Past) leading up to a MAJOR gossip catch up at Midnight, April 3rd/4th.

Want to hold me accountable? Feel free to visit my Facebook profile and see my inactivity.