The first step is admitting you have a problem...

I am an internet addict. I'm always finding more ways to waste time on the computer.

Today, Sweetie introduced me to the crack den of Facebook. I lost the entire afternoon reconnecting with friends I haven't seen in five to twenty years. While it was fun to do that, I didn't get laundry folded or my house tidied.

I check email no less often than hourly. I have six to ten blogs I read regularly. I belong to a group called Swapcycle, where I list things I don't want anymore and swap them for things I do want. I check the database there once or twice a day. I have email notifications on ebay of items I'm looking for, so I spend time checking them out. I look for recipes, shop, check tv listings, news and weather.

Sometimes I sit down to look something up on the internet, and I get distracted by something there. The next thing I know an hour has gone by and I don't even remember what I came to look up.

I'm going to start setting limits for myself. I will check email in the morning, lunch time, after dinner and before bed. I will allow myself one hour of internet time at lunch time and in the evening. I'm sure I will have set backs, and I won't be able to conquer this addiction in one day, but I must take control of my life and my house again. The dust bunnies mock me as I type.

Note: I put in lots of links, so you can click on them and forget you were actually reading my blog, which you will realize an hour from now, and then wonder where the time went. Misery loves company.