Embracing the calm amidst the social media storm
Gemma Good
It’s coming into that time of year again; leaves discolour and hurtle down from their branches, people speak of the nip in the air, the need to wrap up and of course the fact that the evenings are gone. October four years ago, Ophelia ripped through the country uprooting trees and leaving several homes without power.
This year's official list of storm names were announced last month, with Arwen topping the list. That's something to look forward to.
With the gust of wind usually comes a power cut, a novel experience for all of 20 minutes. The household congregates in one candle-lit room, pondering where the nearest torches could possibly be and who had the brains to charge their phone when the wind began.
Someone (admittedly I) usually heads off to make some tea, filling the kettle by the candle's flame and flicking the switch, before it dawns on me - There’s no power Gemma!
Instances like these usually follow in succession until defeat is finally admitted, at which point you sit down and have an actual conversation.
Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp gave us a taster last week of what is to come in the next few months.
The three social media platforms, all owned by Facebook, crashed for users across the globe. They were unable to refresh, leaving you with the same feed from when they were last up and running.
I was looking at 2019 Love Island contestant Arabella Chi’s latest Instagram post all day. She seems to be living the life in Ibiza (not jealous at all!).
Similar to the power cut situation but, perhaps sadder, I was constantly trying to refresh my Facebook and Instagram feeds throughout the day. I established they were down after the first couple of tries. It didn’t particularly bother me, however, at certain points in the day I found myself subconsciously tapping into each of the apps and scrolling several times.
I don't consider myself to be a social media addict; I post the odd Instagram here and there and occasionally 'like' something on Facebook, but that would be the height of it. Nearly everyone I spoke to that evening had the same question; ‘Is your Instagram working?’ Relief followed when we realised it was the server as opposed to going over our data limit.
And so, with this new-found freedom, I went to rugby training with the girls and we all left our phones in the car. When I got home, I cooked, did some college work, and actually sat down and chatted with my housemates.
It was refreshing to focus on a real conversation with someone rather than a half-hearted exchange of words, while simultaneously scrolling through mostly meaningless posts.
Like the wind storm, I went to bed that night wondering what the morning would bring. Would the calm follow the storm, with leaves scattered everywhere or would there be trees blocking gaps and torrential rain bringing dangerous conditions?
Online articles told me a Domain Name System (DNS) issue was to blame for the social media blackout. I learned this is what brings users to the page they searched. The possibility of an insider or outsider hack had not been ruled out. I was starting to worry that my accounts would be taken over and I would be denied access to them. The joys of the online world.
The crisp, cool morning air brought with it a restoration of Facebook, Instagram and Snapchat. Facebook Engineering posted the issue was down to a “faulty configuration change” with “no evidence that user data was compromised”.
My walk and scroll home from the University of Limerick (UL) Sport Arena confirmed the good news. All was back up and running. I couldn’t wait to put on the kettle on and catch up on what I had missed, particularly from the crew back home in Killeshandra and Cavan.
I put my key card in the block door and pulled the handle, expecting it to open. A red light flashed into the quiet of the morning. I tried again, with the same result. Technology!
The joy of living in student accommodation? There is very little stir in the place until 8 o’clock at the earliest. At least I can stand outside in the freezing cold and scroll through Facebook.
The entire experience made me realise how dependent I am on my smart phone for entertainment and information, and how much more productive I could be if I left it down for a while.
Looking at my screen time, last week’s average was five hours 47 minutes per day. My most used apps are YouTube, Snapchat, and Instagram spending over seven hours per week on each. To think of the number of things I could get done in that time, for example getting my room card fixed (which I did for those of you wondering).
I’d love to make a conscious effort to reduce my screen time, or even take a social media detox but I honestly don’t think I could. You win Zuckerberg!
* Gemma Good is from Killeshandra and a second year journalism student in University of Limerick.