Lynsey Seuntjens | Contributing Writer

I have always been a little “behind the times.” When I was in middle school, all of my friends spent their time on MySpace and MSN Instant Messaging, talking to each other about all of the important issues the average middle-school student has. I, on the other hand, spent my time reading books. I never really understood the draw that most people have towards social media. I didn’t get Facebook until my freshmen year of high school, which was an entire year after the rest of the world had signed on.

Once I had my account, I started behaving like a typical teenage girl. I loved adding pictures of my friends and me having fun, sending hilarious “Bumper Stickers” to each other, and writing on my friends’ walls. It was a nice way to end the day. After I started college, however, I started becoming annoyed every time I logged on to this social media site. All I saw were selfies, long and dramatic political fights, and people begging for attention in numerous other ways. It drove me insane. My boyfriend and I both decided in Sept. of last year that it was time to delete our accounts and become “adults.”

I have been without Facebook for over a year now, and honestly, I do not miss it at all. It had become a huge waste of time. I would log on whenever I was bored, which most often occurred when I was supposed to be studying. Now that I don’t have Facebook, I seem to have a lot more time on my hands. I no longer have that annoying habit of feeling like I need to keep up with people that I frankly no longer cared about. I now only stay connected to the people that I want to talk to – my boyfriend, a few select friends, and my family.

Since I am a student at a small university, there are a few things that I am missing out on. It seems like a lot of events on our campus are talked about on Facebook. For example, it is a little difficult to sign-up for Homecoming shirts. This problem is easily solved, however, by asking my roommate to add my name to the list. I am also active on Student Senate, so I always feel bad that I am unable to share our Facebook page and help it get recognition. Those seriously might be the only two problems I have encountered since giving up Facebook.

I honestly do not care about seeing pictures of my peers partying or doing other things that typical college students do. I do not care about any of the drama on campus, so I honestly don’t mind that I am usually the last person to hear about the latest happenings at Buena Vista University. My roommate or other friends always fill me in if a huge event is occurring. Other than that, I feel like I am not missing out on much. If this makes me “behind the times” so be it. I am used to it!

Graphic by Grace Bodey