Anti-Social Networking… and an apology of sorts

So… due to personal issues, I de-activated my Facebook account last week. The crisis resolved itself (sort of… it’s a long story), but I’ve actually been enjoying my time away from Facebook, as it tends to be a distraction.

I learned a valuable lesson when I de-activated my account: Social Networking sites don’t necessarily strengthen already existing social bonds. Several of my closest friends made an attempt to contact me, asking me if there was a problem and how they could help. On the other hand, several people on my friends list freaked out, as if I had vanished from the face of the earth. These are people who know where I live, have my phone number and whom I see on a regular basis, yet because they can’t contact me on Facebook, they assume they’ll never hear from me again.

Strangely enough, leaving Facebook actually strengthened a few friendships…

Now to the apology. I feel bad for neglecting my blog, but there are two factors at play:

• I’m working on another website for a friend, and that’s eating into a large portion of my online time. I hardly have time to read my favorite blogs, much less comment at them, and I don’t have much time to write for my own blog. I don’t want to turn this site into a repository of YouTube clips, but I might have to do that for awhile, to keep the site looking lived in.
• If the comments are anything to go by, Throatpunch.com is read primarily by Russian pharmacists specializing in Male Sexual Enhancement. Fortunately, askimet catches all the spam comments, but the sheer amount of spam comments I’m getting indicates that my blog might have become a dead end on the Information Superhighway.

I’m not giving up on the blog just yet, and I’m not planning on going on hiatus, either. Nevertheless, fresh content will be slow in coming over the next several weeks.