Oh, no! Not another one!

Yes, something else to gobble up my time. And you thought Facebook was addicting. That thing is pure drivel by comparison to LinkedIn! They've got groups coming out of your ears. The thing about them is this, they are based on where you live. I am now a member of 10 groups and waiting for confirmation on 2 others, including one for former students at the Defense Language Institute (DLI - the military language training center at the Presidio of Monterey, CA), one for current students at Capella University (where I'm doing my Ph.D), Angelo State University (in Texas where I got my BA and M.Ed.), and several sub-groups for the above. They post discussions of all manner of trivia. The thing is, this is what should be going on in my courseroom at Capella--but it's not! Nobody has posted in there in weeks that I've seen. I even had to catch my mentor on Facebook chat this evening to let him know I had a new post of my problem statement! The thing is, though this may be fun and it may even be beneficial, it's not going to be that productive for me that I can see--at least not just yet. Later, when I've finished my dissertation, maybe. Anyway, if you want some social networking that looks like it really works, join LinkedIn and let all the knuckleheads post on Facebook.

8 months later...

I noticed my last post was in February--eight months ago. So, have I been able to stay away from Farm Ville? Yes. Have I even wanted to go back to Farm Ville? Yes. Why? Well, I'm sure a good psycho-analyst could come up with a myriad of reasons. Of course, I'm not a good psycho-analyst. Let's just say, "Idle hands are the devil's tools." When I'm not focused on what needs to be done, especially when I'm procrastinating, that's when I am at my most vulnerable. We all have certain things that we enjoy doing. Sometimes they become addictions (i.e., "idols"). Then, whenever we find ourselves with nothing to do or something that we don't want to do, that's when we become vulnerable to relapse. Fortunately, with this Ph.D. thing I'm working on, I shouldn't have much time for frivolity. I say "shouldn't" because sometimes I do. It usually happens when I've had a steady diet of elephant (as in "How do you eat an elephant? One bite at a time"). Anyway, I've been catching up on some things and this was just one of them. I'll be back sooner next time.