Garth Algar and the Suck and Cut

Wayne's World is one of my favorite movies. There are so many great gems of funny quotes and antics in there. But this post isn't about the movie.

Earlier in the week, I had a ton of stuff to do. Mostly cleaning. Nothing gets you motivated to clean your house like when you're expecting a guest. My mom came out for a day to spend time with Akiko for her birthday, which is next week.

Anyway, usually once we get Akiko off to school, I plop down and check my email and Blogger and Facebook. Can I tell you what a bad idea that is? I even did it again this very morning. Baaaad Mama (<-- to be said in a llama voice).

Well, like I said, with all the stuff I felt I needed to do and get done, I did the unthinkable... for me. I turned off my computer. Not only did I turn it off, though, I unplugged it completely, wrapped the cord around it, and set it on a high shelf.

It was an action that was completely impulsive. Not planned at all. I just really felt, in that singular moment, that I really needed to do that. Acting immediately on a spiritual prompting, if you will.

I'll be the first to admit: I'm a Facebook junkie. I will check that stinkin' site several times a day. It bugs me that I do that. There's hardly anything of worth that gets posted on there on a regular basis. A lot of stuff that my "friends" post is re-posted fodder. Some of it can be quite offensive. I try to ignore and delete those posts.

What I do like about Facebook is that I can keep up with family and friends that actually have something valuable to share, like pregnancy, birth, engagement, wedding, etc. announcements. This is especially useful for keeping track of Joseph's ginormous extended family. I also find it useful as a forum when you need the advice from your friends or need someone to commiserate with you when you're, say, potty training your child, for example.

On the other hand, a good 75-80% of the crap that people post on there is junk. And if I were a sports fan, like, if I were really into the Super Bowl, for instance, I would have to avoid Facebook like the plague.

I checked in after the General Conference sessions last week and was really surprised by how many people were posting and tweeting during the sessions. I sort of get it, but at the same time I was like, Why would you do that? I know that these social media sites can be used as a way to spread the Gospel, but to me it's like sitting in sacrament meeting or stake conference and texting or tweeting about what that speaker is talking about. Can't it wait for just a little while?

I better stop ranting and get to the point. That day I turned off my computer and put it away was one of the most productive, good mood days I've had in a really long time. I got so much stuff done. I spent time and played with my boys when I needed a break from all the cleaning and organizing. It was a great day.

There was a really great article in the Ensign last February (<-- please take the time to read it) about limiting the use of our computers and smart phones. At first when I read it, it just made me feel guilty and I got a little upset when Joseph was like, "Hey, did you see this article? It really applies to you." But, I kept coming back to it and thinking about applying those changes in my life.

I have this really cute friend from high school named Lynette. She's an extremely busy homeschooling mom to five darling children. She was also an admitted Facebook addict. She was one of the few people whose statuses I looked forward to reading because they often involved the hilarious antics of her household. She posted things several times a day.

One day, a few weeks ago, she announced that she was quitting Facebook, as in deleting her account entirely. It was a huge shock. She blogged about her reasons why, and they were entirely sound. I'm really proud of her. I wish I had that kind of willpower. That's a hard thing to do because I knew how she felt.

I can't quite bring myself to outright delete my account. I haven't even gotten around to deleting my MySpace account, you know, the one that I haven't logged into for, um... it's been a long, long, long time. I don't even remember the last time I did.

On the other hand, as suggested in that great Ensign article, I pledge to have a few days every week where I'm simply going to put my computer away. I still get email and I can still IM with Joseph on my phone, so I won't be completely unplugged, but this computer is just too much of a distraction.

So, what does this post have to do with Garth Algar and the Suck and Cut?

"Turn it off, Man! Turn it off! It's sucking my will to live!!"