Imagine aliens devise a trap with the lure of entertainment to draw us in, a trap in which we are instantly immobilized, our vision tuned into one direction, sedatives applied so we ignore physical discomfort.
I just lost about 4 hours to facebook video. They were riveting, amazing, adorable, mindblowing ... and time-wasting. That is not how I intended to spend Tuesday.
How does it feel? It's like eating cotton candy - it tastes oh-so-good while you're munching it, but the instant you stop, you feel like you just rotted your brain. Numb in the keyster, a little twinge in my lower back, tension in the back of my neck.
What did I intend to do? Nothing I had planned will be a tenth as entertaining as what I just witnessed ... How can real life compete with the top produced videos continuously poured into my eyes with no effort, no cost. Except my time.
How do I extricate myself from switching channels and diving into Youtube or Amazon Prime or Solarmovie?
No matter how long I "invest", I don't feel any different. Nothing has changed in my life except for the passage of time. I've eaten breakfast and drunk a cup of tea without notice, while my eyes and ears continued to be mesmerized. It's like getting caught in a force field.
How do I escape the trap?
Step 1: recognize it. Label it as a trap designed by someone else to steal my time and prevent me from tackling my own goals.
Step 2: Move. Get up. Get dressed. Meditate to clear my mind and identify the goals I choose for today. Write them down. Put the computer to sleep and set out on a mission to tackle a task.
Step 3: Set counter-traps to evade capture the next time I dare enter this room.
I'm closing all the "look at later" tabs and I've added the Block Site extension to Chrome.
Now this is cute - the default website to block is facebook :-) My redirect is guidetothegood.ca. I can only peak in after 10PM to catch Rachel Maddow ... if I really feel the need to spend a single minute more in that dystopian universe.
I've also raised my keyboard and monitor so this is a standing workstation - now I'm more inclined to *move!*
And my new personal assistant, Andy the Butler, has been warned not to notify me of new youtube videos.
I think I just eluded the Talosians!
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