The Quitter Chronicle: Life without Facebook - Week 5

Do I have the self-control of a 30 year old . . . or a 13 year old?

And just like that, I was back online.

In a lot of ways Facebook can be as much of a time vortex as shopping can be.

This strange Bermuda Triangle between my need, desire and the enabler (choose between shoe/clothes/homewares/food shopping or Facebook as they all exercise similar powers over me). I can be shopping, decide I need the bathroom, leave the store and head for the bathroom – only to end up there 45 minutes later after I have been to about three stores along the way.

Facebook is much the same. I estimate I have spent about an hour on there over the past week. Not bad, you say? It is if you’ve decided you want a Facebook-free February (and January)!

At least I’m not at the stage where I’m scrolling while I stand, waiting, at the traffic lights. That would be bad.

Not to say that I haven’t enjoyed checking out a few news stories and friend’s updates this past week…

With just three weeks of my challenge left - surely I can give my brain that extra space!?

How long is too long to keep a lipstick?

My current favourite make up range - Inika.
I promise I have no financial affiliation with Inika -
I just like the way it makes my skin look.

Tears on my pillow, petroleum on my cheeks

I'm in the process of changing my cosmetics and skin care from 'I have no idea what's in this stuff, there's a chance it could have been a by-product from the Exxon Valdez oil spill' to 'organic and natural and not tested on animals and ingredients your grandma would recognise from her garden'.

Aging grace-lessly

I'm swapping over my cosmetics and skin care because it no longer makes sense for me to slather chemicals on my face. And I am starting to see lines and wrinkles that aren't just laugh lines, no matter how often I 'fake laugh' into the mirror to see which ones are laugh lines and which ones are just me ageing less gracefully than I would like.

Doing it for the rabbits

I also feel a sense of environmental responsibility - not just to the ecology around me, but also to the animals who are used for cosmetic testing. If I can vote for change with my cosmetic dollars, why not find out what I can and choose products that are good for me? And good for the rabbits? And the carrots that both the rabbits and I like to eat?

One tube at a time

But the scale of the job can seem overwhelming. I've spend hundreds of dollars on these products and I feel guilty throwing them away. Also - I like to think that if one day I want to wear khaki eyeshadow, it will be there for me. But not at the expense of my health.

How long is too long to keep a lipstick?

I stumbled across the following list of how long to keep make up for, in this great article '25 things to throw out today'. I am assuming as well that the timespan refers to those products that have already had a finger, brush or make-up sponge put into them (not unopened ones) as this is where the bacteria gets in.

Lifespan of cosmetics:

Mascara: Every three months

Foundation: One year

Concealer: 12-18 months

Powder: 18 months

Blush/Bronzer: 18 months

Cream blush: 12-18 months

Eye shadow: 18 months

Eyeliner: 18 months

Liquid eyeliner: 6 months

Lipstick/lip gloss: 18 months

Lip liner: One year

Nail polish: One year

Makeup sponges: Wash after each use, then throw away after a month.

I know I have some stuff older than this! At least this list will make culling the old and rounding up a smaller selection of new products a bit easier.

The Quitter Chronicle: Life without Facebook - Week 4

I feel like I should have been more specific about the parameters around 'quitting' Facebook.

New friends, new connections

Over the past week or so I have made a few new friends, and it was a joy to be able to connect with them through Facebook - to add more the little I already knew about them. I also posted a party invite there.

So I find myself checking in about once every few days to see if someone has a question.

Finding moments of peace

But I'm not trawling constantly whenever I have a spare minute while waiting at the traffic lights or in the coffee queue. Instead I run an errand or two while the barista prepares my daily hit. Or I reply to a text. Or I just stand and enjoy a moment of doing anything.

I've stopped reading people's updates - not that I don't care, but that the updates will happen when I read them or not and no-one ever had their day made, or ruined, over whether I 'liked' their status or not.

I'm enjoying the space I have created. I may well stay like this when the end of February rolls around.