I will divide into categories my online clutter
Email and Email Newsletters:
When I got my first email address back in probably 1997, I was on cloud nine. I felt like we had finally caught with the 20th century! Back then we had dial- up internet and what a pain that was. For you young whipper snappers who don't know what dial up is, you had to use your phone line and there were phone numbers your internet provider supplied to connect to the internet. Our was America Online now known as AOL . Back then America Online would send you a free disk to download to your computer and then sign up for their service.The problem though because you had to use your phone line, people couldn't get a hold of you because your line was busy.
Anyhow as I was learning more about how the internet works I found several free email account services so I was signing up for no reason other than to have fun user names like tea4two, crochetmama and threegirls4god just to name a few. Before I knew it, I had so many email addresses on so many sites, I couldn't keep track of them all.
I eventually deleted most of my accounts though I'm sure there are some still out there collecting spam.
So now I still have four email addresses but they each serve a purpose.
There is also the problem of those email newsletters. I can't even tell you how many newsletters I'm subscribed to and I ask myself why. Why am I letting all this clutter flood my inbox?
Last week I decided to unsubscribe from Bed, Bath and Beyond, Walgreens, Sally Beauty and more. I don't know when or if I will shop these stores it's silly for me to have the newsletters coming to my inbox when all they want is for me to buy, buy, buy.
My next topic is social media which I will include blogs and popular sites such as Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, etc.
a. Blogs- Can I tell you how much I love reading Blogs? Not just the ones I'm subscribed to but the random blogs I'm come across while surfing the net. Most of them are faith based but sometimes I come across a blog that people have left rude comments or spam and I want to "put them in their place" by pointing out how wrong they are.
So, I've made a conscious effort to follow the advice in this verse " Do not answer a fool according to his folly, or you yourself will be like him. (Proverbs 26:4 KJV)
b. Social Media Sites (Facebook, Twitter, Instagram etc) I told myself I would never ever get Facebook, Twitter and the like because there is just too much drama. Enter stay at home order in our state in March and boredom. Then at the end of a sewing newsletter I get had these four words "Follow us on Instagram". Words I've seen on almost all my newsletter. Went to the site and the next thing I knew I had created an account. Now you see another reason not to have so many newsletters .
I admit I do like Instagram and I thought it would be safer than other sites as far as drama is concerned. Well I was wrong and once again I found myself arguing with someone on a friend's site or are they are called pages?
As I learn more about how Instagram works (thanks to all my daughters and their expertise, I'm seeing how it can become a true time waster. It's so easy to get caught up in multiple Instagram stories, click the "Follow" button on a recommended site or engage in an argument with a commenter on a friend's site/page.
I realize this post is getting a little long so I want to talk a little bit more about popular social media sites and some words of caution on my very next post.
