I’m sitting at my laptop, internet connected, everything running smoothly…with a book open in front of me. I’m not perusing people’s profiles. I’m not comparing people or playing Jetman or starting a Lil’ Green Patch. Instead, I am reading a book. I wasn’t assigned to read this book; I’ve just decided to read it. What else do I have to do? There’s a large space in my schedule that Facebook would previously have filled.

I’ve decided to kick my Facebook addiction. It’s not easy. Every now and then, my hand instinctively moves the cursor over to check Facebook. But then I remember, I no longer have a Facebook to check. With a slight pang of regret, I go to webassign​.net and complete my physics homework.

Not too long ago, I realized I had over 300 friends on Facebook. I’d been adding them left and right without thinking anything of it. To be Facebook friends with someone means nothing other than that you took two seconds to click “add friend” and they took two more to click “confirm friend request.”

I no longer get emails updating me on my Compare People rankings. Whether people think I’m more likely to skip class or smell nicer, I don’t care and now I don’t know. I don’t receive invitations to random events from people I barely know.

I don’t get invited to join groups like “IF 10 MILLION JOIN MARC ZOMBERG WILL BRING BACK THE OLD FACEBOOK!” I don’t care whether Marc brings the old Facebook back or not, because I no longer use any sort of Facebook.

Now it’s a school night and I’m watching a two-hour movie. Why not? My homework’s done; I’ve improved my mind by reading a book; I’m up to date on all the latest news. I have time to do such things now that I’m not spending a disproportionate amount of free time on Facebook.

A part of me still feels like I’m missing out on the benefits of Facebook. Now I won’t be able to get in touch with people I haven’t talked to in a long time. But really, how often did that happen? Not enough for it to be worth it. The distraction of Facebook has long since overtaken its usefulness for me.

It’s too easy to get sucked in. Clicking from profile to profile, browsing aimlessly, taking this movie quiz, adding that application. Look, here’s someone else with Godspeed You! Black Emperor listed in their favorite music; I think I’ll add them as a friend. Maybe I’ve never even met them, but now we “know” each other through Facebook. Good enough, right?

At that point it stops being about staying in touch. At that point, I’m adding friends for the sake of having more friends.

To its credit, Facebook is no MySpace. At least there is no discord between profile pages. You’re not viewing one person’s profile with a bright red background and then switching to another where it’s fluorescent green. It’s a less cluttered, less tacky design. But it clutters my mind and occupies space I could be using for something more productive.

When I go to deactivate, Facebook tries to get me to stay. For every possible reason I could be leaving, it has solutions. We can make this work if you’ll just give us another chance. Are you spending too much time here? Then limit the number of emails you get from us. Concerned about your privacy? Then alter security settings to control who can view your profile. But none of these cut it for me. The only solution is to deactivate my account altogether.

I’ll probably reactivate my Facebook when I’m in college, when I won’t be seeing everyone who I’m friends with at school every day. In the meantime, I am Facebook-free and experiencing only minor symptoms of withdrawal.