Tag Archives: wikipedia

Apologies for absenteeism. Does anyone else ever get anxious that real life is getting in the way of all of the things you want to read on the internet? That doesn’t seem super healthy, but it’s honestly how I feel sometimes.

Are you familiar with the concept of FOMO (Fear of Missing Out?). From Psych Central: Teens and adults text while driving, because the possibility of a social connection is more important than their own lives (and the lives of others). They interrupt one call to take another, even when they don’t know who’s on the other line. They check their Twitter stream while on a date, because something more interesting or entertaining just might be happening.

I have relatively low social FOMO. I like spending time alone, and the idea that friends are out without me doesn’t send me into dizzying spirals of anguish about all the hilarity and bonding I’m missing. But is there a comparable acronym for virtual FOMO? Because that I most definitely have. vFOMO? iFOMO? FOMOlite?

The number of articles starred in my reader is insane. I knocked out five of them yesterday on a long bus ride, and I barely made a dent. They were all excellent (especially this one on a couple with one HIV partner), which is the real problem, because then I just think about all the other fascinating things that might be waiting in the queue. There’s also, of course, favorited tweets, which are almost exclusively reading recommendations, TED Talks that need watching, arcana that needs Wikiapedia-ing, and the actual physical pile of books that are calling out to be read.

About two months ago, my roommate told me to wikipedia the Pitcairn Islands. I haven’t done it yet, but it’s still on a mental list somewhere, and every time I’m at Wikipedia, I remind myself that I’ve been meaning to read about the HMS Swallow. Maybe someday I’ll actually do it, or maybe someday I’ll realize for the love of god, who cares!?

Related Post: Counting friends and other things.

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