Social Studies: I Misunderstood the Assignment
note to self: You might not get the joke or know what the current fashion trends are, but do not—I repeat, do not download those apps again.
I want to start off by saying that this was NOT the angle I had planned to take for this post, “Social Studies” was supposed to be a deeper look into someone or something cool I found on social media...Umm, however, I haven’t been on social media much these days...so I don’t have something to share with the class. It’s giving my dog ate my homework. And for that I’m sorry. But instead let’s talk the absence of social media and the 90’s computer room reboot. (can you hear the dial up, if you can’t here’s a video of the most annoying sounds you’ve ever heard: (wait on second thought, maybe don’t play it, I’d love for you to stick around and read until the end)
Now if I were giving myself a grade for how much attention I’ve paid to social media lately, it’d be a big fat F. But honestly, I’m not that mad about it.
No social media + Computer Room boundaries = Major Mental Clarity. So if I’m giving a grade on being focused, for once in my life, I’m getting an A+.
Now, I’m not here to gloat or pretend I’m above social media. Believe me, I’m not. I do miss it. There’s something fun about curating the perfect images to sit next to each other in the grid, it’s like an ongoing mood board. I also miss seeing what my friends are up to, but more and more I was seeing less and less of them, forced to see what the algorithm thought I wanted. It’s been about six months since I last really showed up on my socials (mainly TikTok and Instagram, because please, I am NOT giving up YouTube, Pinterest, or Substack). Still, I don’t see myself rushing back to doom-scrolling anytime soon, even if I do feel a bit out of the loop. For now, I feel so much better just not participating.
I’ve been thinking back to the last few trends I actually remember. And if you’ve been on tiktok in the past few years then maybe you got my title reference…the trendy 'I understood the assignment' sound bite. Even Taylor Swift got in on it. Unfortunately, it was also a phrase I said every time I got something right, OMG. Cringe. However more recently my algorithm timeline was very demure, very mindful. Then of course I was sat for Aspen Ovard’s divorce, her unbothered attitude around all the drama.
After that we had de-influencing culture, jelly donut blush, me contemplating whether I truly needed a mini Longchamp that wouldn’t fit much more than my car keys but how badly I wanted to wrap a cute silk scarf around the handle and buy bag charms that were actually larger than the bag itself and participate in the Birkin-ify trend of it all (but where is the uniqueness when we all follow these trends, I’ll save that topic for another post though. And then...the algorithm lost me. Enter Bethenny Frankel and her drone-tok era. Was I paying attention? Yes, because WTF was even going on. That might have been the final straw that sent me quietly deleting the big two: TikTok and Instagram. (For some, this might even be the big three—if you count Facebook. Personally, I haven’t paid attention to Facebook in years, so I don’t even include it.)
Anyways, I haven’t really looked back.
Not because I think social media is bad, (addicting maybe), but mostly because I think my brain needed a little more quiet. Without the constant stream of other people’s lives, I noticed how much more creative I felt. It became easier to focus, to make things, to be present in my own little corner of the world. Trends move fast. It can be a lot. And honestly? I just don’t feel the urge to keep up anymore.
The Computer Room (Rebooted)
I want to share how I’ve been slowly recreating the “computer room” energy of the 90s in my own life, and offer a few tips if you’re also thinking about logging off.
Let’s start with how I’m feeling.
This might be the biggest shift I’ve felt in my mental wellbeing and focus in a long time. Removing the doom scroll has given me back so much brain space. I suddenly have time for new hobbies, for more creativity. Honestly, it’s like someone turned the idea tap back on. I’ve been bursting with creative things I want to try. The clarity and focus is wild.
When I think back to growing up in the 90s and early 2000s, we never spent more than a couple of hours on a computer. Let alone online. We had one desktop in the house, dial-up internet, and a landline. For anyone who doesn’t know, that’s how we used to make phone calls. If someone picked up the phone, the internet cut out and every progress bar froze. RIP to all the illegally downloaded songs lost to bad timing.
AOL entered the chat with AIM around the time I hit middle school. That was my first real taste of social media. Rushing home to check if your crush had messaged you, crafting the perfect away message, you know the drill. But all of it was limited. Quiet. Tucked into one room of the house or closed away in the ugliest desk you’ve ever seen, yes I have strong opinions about weirdly specific things…the computer desk with its door, drawers, rolling keyboard shelf, and tacky veneer is one of those oddly specific things, don’t even get me started on corner desks, no offense if you have a desk like this…all I’m saying is maybe go thrifting and find something else, perhaps a vintage solid wood piece (full transparency we have a desk like this, so maybe I’m just mad I haven’t found a replacement yet). Whoa, we got off point for a moment sorry about that. But I have to say, ugly desk aside, I’m genuinely grateful to have grown up in a time when tech wasn’t screaming for our attention every second of the day.
I’m not sitting here trying to bash on technology (just ugly desks)…you’re talking to a girl who took her gameboy EVERYWHERE and as a teen I was definitely obsessed with new tech and still am to this day (I have too many apple products sitting here now: my laptop is open, monitor connected, iPhone and iPad at my side…I may or may not have a pair of Meta Ray-Ban glasses. And I’m sorry, but Beat Saber is SO FUN. When I was 13 I did odd jobs and saved up just enough money to buy my first digital camera, an Olympus with a whole 3.2 megapixels. My iPod was always in my pocket and my boombox blared Hillary Duff’s “Metamorphosis” loud enough the whole neighborhood could hear. Anyways this might all be beside the point but I wanted to emphasize that I do enjoy my share of technology, it’s not all bad and actually really shaped me and my career (is it a coincidence that all the kids obsessed with coding their myspace page ended up as UX or graphic designers, probably not).
So what about now? Can we bring back the “computer room” in 2025, or are we too far gone?
We all carry a mini computer in our pocket, purse, or (let’s be real) glued to the palm of our hand. If we can take the internet with us everywhere, how are we supposed to recreate something like the sacred computer room of the 90s?
The truth is, I don’t think we can fully go back. And honestly, I’m not sure I’d want to. Do I miss printing out MapQuest directions and hoping I don’t miss an exit? Absolutely not. I love that my pocket robot tells me where to go and reroutes me when needed.
But I do think we can bring back the spirit of the computer room. That idea of containing the internet to a time and place, instead of letting it flood every corner of our lives. That’s what I’ve been working on lately. Creating boundaries around how I use my phone, when and where I engage with social media, and how much access I give it to my attention, Instagram ads? No thanks.
So here are...
My Computer Room Rules
Small boundaries that help me protect my attention and make being online a little more intentional.
1. Phone-free mornings
No scrolls before coffee. I start my day with my own thoughts.
Most mornings look like this: I wake up, put my workout clothes on, take care of the dog and make a French press, that first sip of coffee is magic. Then I go outside on a mini garden walk in the back yard, literally stopping to smell the roses and feeling the sun on my face. After coffee I typically get on the treadmill and this is my time to pick up my phone and usually I’m making a to do list and scripting a new YouTube video, your girl is a multitasker. I’m not putting in a full workout, I’m just walking 2-4 miles at a very slow pace. I often also allow myself YouTube time during this morning walk if I’m on the treadmill. Some mornings I’ll walk down the trail and leave the phone at home.
2. A physical workstation
I keep most of my online time at my desk. It’s my version of the 90s computer room. I start work around 8:30 everyday so I’m often at my desk for a good 8 hours daily, I often use the internet for work so obviously I’ll be online during this time, I also use social media in my job which brings me to my next point…
3. Use apps only at the computer (when possible)
If it’s a social app that drains my attention, I don’t keep it on my phone. Pinterest, Instagram, and visual research all happen at my desktop. It keeps things more intentional. I use instagram in my job but again only logging in at the desk, Pinterest I’ve been using less and less, just because it has so many ads, and as for tiktok, ya know I’m good. It took so much of my attention and focus away, that removing it from my life and not looking back has been a positive. I don’t feel the need to check it out online or redownload. If you have healthy boundaries with tiktok I’m happy for you, but for me I couldn’t put the phone down.
4. A work-only Instagram account
I mentioned this above but I do use Instagram for work. I have a separate account to scout artists and creatives, I have 0 posts, 0 follows, 0 following this is actually so perfect because there are no distractions but I can still search for cool new artists to reach out to! Sometimes I’ll check my personal IG online but I haven’t felt like posting much there. And admittedly I started a new account for this blog but every time I go to post something I don’t, it’s not fun, am I older or is instagram the new Facebook? idk.
5. Only two social apps on my phone
Substack and YouTube are the only ones I keep. Substack feels thoughtful and slow. YouTube helps me learn and connect, especially as I grow my own channel and try to keep up with comments (if I get any). I don’t think there’s much to expand on here, other than I’m not exiling all internet usage to my computer. Like I said, I don’t think we can get back to the 90s computer room of it all, and I also don’t want to do that. I like the convenience of having something on my phone and it being accessible even when I’m not in my office. It’s really more about finding that balance.
6. Out of sight, out of hand
When I want to focus or reset, I leave my phone in another room. Sometimes I’ll even leave it at home for a quick errand. I used to check it out of social anxiety in public, but now I try to be more present. Make eye contact. Ask the checkout person how their day is going. Another easy way to keep your phone on you but tuning it out, just go on airplane mode.
7. Create before consume
Before I scroll or watch anything, I try to make something. Write, sketch, take a photo, move a project forward. That one shift helps me feel creative instead of reactive. If I’m not feeling like actually being creative then I’ll make a list of all the things I know I need to get done and then I pick one thing and start, it’d be silly to sit and scroll when I could be checking something off my to do list (easier said than done) but I do find this helps and once I start working on one thing it can start to snowball and I find motivation to continue working through other things…before I know it I’ve done like three things I’ve put off for months, time lost to TikTok’s scrolling past.
8. Touch Grass (another internet pun, they really stick don’t they)
Gardening is an amazing way to get off your phone, watching things grow, noticing what’s in bloom. Nature pulls me out of that digital void and back to the real world, to be present in the moment and appreciate what’s around me. When I’ve lost myself scrolling in the past sometimes I’d think omg I will never get that time back and what did I do? I scrolled and ordered a new pair of ballet flats because cute, nostalgic, their back, so fun, omg should I also get a pair of capris for spring, NO, get off your phone, grow a plant.
Homework
If you’re feeling a bit burnt out from social media, try picking one platform and taking a 30-day break. No announcements. No overthinking. Just step back and see what happens.
You don’t need to delete your account—just remove the app or tuck it away off your home screen so you aren’t tempted to open it. I swear my thumb had muscle memory for where the Instagram app sat. I’d swipe my phone open and there it was, the first thing to pull me in.
As always, you can find me in the chat, although no one has joined, maybe my fate will be having lunch alone at this school.