Facebook Addicts
'C'mon just admit it'
Deirdre Thompson
Issue date: 1/27/10 Section: Entertainment
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Standing in the library, you've realized that you're not going to make it to class on time. To turn around right now and give up on printing your paper is not an option, since it is due for the class you're going to be late to. But what exactly is the hold up? Closer inspection of the two students standing in front of the computers by the printers show one is hard at work on a word document, while the other may be a Facebook addict.
Ok, they may not be an addict, but as their eyes glaze over and their face gravitates toward the screen, your patience wears thin. Meticulously they feed their digital fish, clean the tank and watch them mate. Two clownfish spin around and around in the newly-cleaned tank, the bubble hearts signal a successful mate and by the time the egg drops from the fish's union five minutes of your time have been wasted.
And that's only one application. On Facebook you can play just about any game you wanted, with some of the favorites being Mafia Wars, Farmville, Happy Aquarium and Yoville. Not all applications take only five minutes and with just those four mentioned out of hundreds and also being able to chat with friends, one could be on Facebook for hours.
According to the article "8 Ways to Beat your Facebook Addiction" from TheDailyMind.com, this is one sign that you might be an addict. Other signs, the Facebook addict will obsess over is whether or not their friends agreed with their status or made a comment, and constantly thinking about what their new Facebook status will be. The author discounts the article as being kind of a joke, but the first step to realizing you have an Internet addiction problem is an important step; you must admit you have a problem.
The interesting thing about Facebook Addiction Disorder (yes it's called FAD, look it up) is it could be anybody, anywhere. Snatches of their conversation can be heard over the low hum of Christmas music, people ordering food and employees raising their voices over the din. They were here at Quizno's on a lunch meeting, these two very different ladies upon first glance. One looked to be in her early forties and the other her early thirties.
Yet they both agreed setting up the networking group for their organization took way too much time away from playing their favorite applications on Facebook. For the older lady, Farkle (a dice game reminiscent of Yahtzee) was her favorite, for the younger lady, Uno. These women demonstrate another sign that one may be a Facebook addict, letting their work and other responsibilities in their life peel away to immerse themselves in the seductive Internet community of Facebook.
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