Muted on Facebook

Well, I got muted on Facebook for saying something about crazy cat ladies.  No swearing, not nasty, just a simple one liner that was funny.  But the censor-bots on Facebook muted me for 24 hrs, I appealed, and lost...

So, like many things - I pick up the pieces and improve things.  I hate the search algorithm on Facebook.  I've written a lot of posts that I can hardly find. I have decided to copy those posts to here... It'll be a slow process but worth it in the end...

This Blog, Facebook, and a New Direction

For some time, I've been wondering what to do with this blog as I don't want to delete it but I don't have time to do a lot of writing for it either.  My Facebook group, Feline Health Research Group, seems to have taken most of my free time between answering questions and reading articles to summarize.  The big problem with Facebook, other than the personal threats, is that searching on there is a joke.  This blog, however, is indexed by Google and is very searchable....

So, I'm going to transfer some of the summaries of articles I wrote for the FHRG to this blog. Not only will the information eventually be searchable, but I can change types, add photos, add links, etc.  I can also do a bit more digging on some topics and add more to the articles, usually newer information.

Resigning From Facebook

I do not suffer stupidity well.  Never have, never will, and honestly, I don't even want to try.

I had the idea of creating a small group of people who would research feline health topics and then discuss their findings -- a real discussion with give and take.  I mentioned it, I set it up, and I got rude messages about it.  Why is my having a discussion at my level bad?  Oh, because my level is not for the average person and therefore very rude.  I'm intimidating, arrogant, overbearing, and disgusting.

Well, that group is gone -- stupid cat owners of the world celebrate!  Also, since it was pointed out to me that I'm egotistical and I stifle discussion in my other cat group, I will only reply when tagged.  And let's not forget that I'm not a vet so I shouldn't even be giving general advice... which really doesn't fit with me knowing so much vet material... but let's not be consistent... it is the hobgoblin of little minds.

And while we are at it, my owning a non-rescue persian is evil... Peaches' page is now history.

So, I hope I have made everyone happy.  I know this is petty and childish on my part, but at this point I don't really care.  I want to read and learn about cats.  I would like to discuss it with others, but obviously that can't happen on Facebook, at least not in public.

Peaches so very upset of the loss of her FB page

Making Plans for a New Year and New Me...

Yes, it's a bit early to make New Year's Resolutions but, with Facebook not in my life, I have begun to understand how much time it eats up.  Actually, it took most of my non-working, non-commuting time such that I neither exercised nor read nor did anything fun.  Worst of all, I didn't dote enough on my cats....

So, I've been thinking of what to do and how to do it.  There's so many things I do want to do, but I really have a very limited amount of time, even without Facebook.  Something like learn to play my flute just isn't going to happen -- practice 1/2 an hour every other weekend....  But there are a number of things I can or need to do:

• Do something about my weight.  Yep, I'm fat.  Not only are some of my favorite clothes not fitting, I'm beginning to feel a bit inconvenienced when I move around.... I need to lose weight and get in shape.  Now, I know me -- if I say diet, I will for about 2 hours and then binge on something.  With tom losing weight and needing extra calories, I can't even keep the stuff out of the house.  So, maybe eat better, more nutritious meals is more realistic than a diet.  Then rely on exercise to actually help lose the weight.  I have a great book on losing fat via working with weights, so I'll start on that.  The program is simple and designed to be done in 20-30 minutes, which really does fit my schedule.  While walking would be nice, I don't have the time to do a 30 minute walk every day, and I won't do it after dark here.  (Too many semi-feral dogs wandering around looking for a fat juice morsel...)
• Read something other than cats.  Yes, I love cats, but really, I don't need to read about them all the time.  I just finished a book on the Great Influenza Pandemic of 1918 and started on an older book on English Dialects.  They both reminded me of all the other subjects I'm interested in.  So, I did the only logical thing -- I ordered 5 books on linguistics.  That will be my 'area of focus' next year.

Now those are the things I've decided on, but there's a number of other things floating around in my head.  Things like:

• something to do for fun -- stamps? quilting? cross-stitch?
• organizing the house -- cleaning, finishing painting the bathroom, building bookshelves, etc.  I suppose tackling THAT closet should be on the list too.
• bathing and grooming the cats
• really studying either feline nutrition or nephrology -- I have wonderful books on these topics, but I need the time to work through them.
• eating better -- as in actually cook something, not just heat it in a microwave.
• deal with the stuff from my father's house that is in storage in Iowa
• sort out my retirement/investments

I have about 2 weeks to sort through all this and come up with a game plan.  

Facebook "Improves" Again

Once again, Facebook has improved something to the extent that I, being the last person in the Western hemisphere on dial-up, can no longer use it.  Yes, I know (according to a lot of people) -- I should fork over the $60/month and get satellite internet, but why?  So I can get on Facebook?  Is it worth $60 + taxes per month?

What is the worth of Facebook?  What do I get out of it?  That's a couple of interesting questions, because I can think of several reason why Facebook is not worth it, even if it was free.  Namely:

• lots of bitching, bickering, and pettiness by adults who act like 5 year olds
• more and more people wanting money for either themselves or for their cats which desperately need _________ treatment and they can't afford
• people who I either have never talked to or only casually know suddenly asking me to diagnose and suggest treatment for their cat and then NOT taking the advice
• posts in groups are barely searchable so it's a pain in the butt to look something up
• a specific group of do-gooders who want to save persians (noble ambition) but whose method is to annoy the rescue people who are actually doing the work in the trenches
• the fact that 95% of all users basically 'share' items and never write anything meaningful on their timeline

So why use Facebook?

• I have met a few really good friends (after sifting through a whole lot of people).
• I can help cats via my Facebook group on feline health.

This latter reason is, right now, the only legitimate reason why I stay on Facebook.  My true friends I call or email.  My cat group has helped a lot of cats, and for that I'm happy, but it comes at a price to me.  This is horrible to say but sometimes I feel I neglect my cats just so I can help other people's cats.  I will admit that I have learned a few things either from what others have said or because I looked up various things.  But couldn't I just read and look up things on my own?  Yes.

So I'm back to the initial question/situation -- why spend $60+/month to get an internet connect that can allow me back onto Facebook with no real benefits when I pay $12/month and can get to basically everywhere else I want to go?  I really can't think of a good reason....

Back to blogging!!!

Day 1 Post(?) Facebook: Recap

Well, with a couple of suggestions and some trial and error, I have managed to get Facebook to work.  It still isn't working 100%, but I can use it.  I'm happy and upset by this all at once.  Happy because I know I would miss interacting regularly with some of my friends and miss help kitties.  Upset because part of me was looking forward to not using Facebook (I have a love/hate relationship with it) and because there is something just not right maybe with my computer. (Things should work so when they don't, I get horribly frustrated!)

In any case, I'm going to try to keep Facebook to a minimum, except for my cat health group.  I worked hard to create that group and it does seem to help some people, so I hate chucking it.

I must confess during the time I thought I was off of Facebook, I got a lot done.  I had 3 things on my to-do list and they all got done.

1. Took Tom to the bookstore.  He did well getting there and while we were there, but not so good once we got home.  He found some books, and of course, I found some.  His were mainly science fiction.  Mine were all over the place from self-help (and I really need a lot of help!) to historical fiction to some art books and of course a cat book.
2. Cleaned 4 litter boxes... Oh the fun and excitement!
3. Dug out the tai chi and weight lifting books.  I still need to figure out exactly what I will be doing for the weight lifting, but I also know I need to buy some equipment and find some area to do it in.  I would like to do it in the house, but the cats will help.  So, the garage?  The tai chi I will read over the beginning moves of the 24-forms and practice them tomorrow morning.  I'm thinking even during the school year, I could do the tai chi  and qigong in the morning before I go to work, then weight lifting or walking at night when I get home on alternate nights.

Plus, I got 3 loads of laundry washed, dried, and put away!  This kind of makes up for the fact I didn't do the dishes.  I know part of this is because I stated publicly that I would do this stuff but part of it is also because I didn't have to run and check if so-and-so posted a reply or what about that kitty over there or ....

So, I'm actually fairly pleased with today.

Goodbye Facebook?

For the last year or so, I've been not blogging and instead have been writing about cats, my job, and my life in general over on Facebook.  That has been interesting, and I'll say more later, but I think it's over.  Several days ago, I noticed Facebook redid the chat module and added something about your friends' activities on the top of it.  This little addition was one of those dynamic components -- hover over and a box pops up.  And ever since this appeared, I have had issues using Facebook.

A typical problem is what happened just now.  I go to Facebook, the top bar loads and tells me I have 45 new items and 2 messages.  NOTHING else loads.  The rest of the page is blank.  I click on the items and while I get the drop down box, it never loads the updates.  Ditto with the messages.  I click on 'Home' and likewise, it loads the top bar and never loads anything else.

Several people suggested I dump the cached pages and cookies, so I did that last night.  (And now I have to remember all kinds of things the cookies took care of...ugh.)  So, when I turned on my laptop this morning, I expected Facebook to work, but it didn't.

I know the problem is probably mine.  I have a 5yr old laptop, so that is old by technological standards.  I connect via dial-up, which is both slow and also old.  I have old software, which I can't update easily because I'm on dial-up.

So, what to do?

Right now, I'm thinking of just forgetting all about Facebook.  I've had some very nasty experiences and met some very nasty people on there.  For example, I help a cat who was going to be destroyed get to a rescue, so I am told the only reason I do this is for the publicity.  Then again, I have met some truly lovely people who I don't want to just leave and through my cat health group and other groups I have helped some cats and owners and have helped save a number of cats.

So, for the next few days or week, I'm going to try to forget about Facebook, work on doing things I need and want to do, and return to blogging... assuming I can get this to work as I see a red banned that says "An error occurred while trying to save or publish your post."  Hmmm...

Juggling

I really should be in a circus as a juggler.  Why?  That's what I seem to do all day.  Juggle the needs of students, the class activities, the curriculum pacing.  And when I get home, I juggle feeding my cats, medicating several, and grooming them.  If I have time, then I juggle Persian-Cats.com, Facebook, and this blog.

It does create a bid of chaos, which unfortunately, I'm used to.  I would rather have a more peaceful life.  I know I could cut out or cut down the computer time.  It's not like I don't have other things to do.  But I do enjoy all three.

Persian-Cats.com -- This is a wonderful site for information and support when it comes to owning and caring for a Persian cat.  I have learned a lot of things over the years.  But I have cut way down on the time I spend there, especially at night, because of the other two and because I can access the site during the day.

Facebook -- I only recently discovered this site and it's fun.  I've been able to chat in real time with several friends.  And I've made some real good new friends.  The chatting does take up time but it's wonderful to have real-time chats.  What's hilarious is that almost half my friends are non-Americans....

This Blog -- I do think sitting here and writing and reflecting has helped me be calm and less stressed.  I don't think it has really helped me sort anything out, but it's fun.

So, I'm not sure what to give up to make my life simpler....  For the moment (and I'm chatting on Facebook as I type) I will continue to juggle all three....