To curb online shopping urges, take a sabbatical from social media!

I have several episodes of compulsive behavior. A most recent one is to shop for a cast iron dutch oven online.  Influenced by decades of research habits, I dive into the knowledge ocean of dutch oven, learning different veneers and shapes of ovens,  and how they affect cooking and matching veneers and shapes with cooking purposes.  I even went on to compare cast iron ovens with other types of cooking wares that I already own, such as ceramic cookware, stainless steel pot and pressure cooker, and fancy  Korean-made Cukoo electric multifunctional rice cooker. 

The verdict is that  I should get one, but which shape and what size to purchase? What is the best time of year to buy? Do I still have space for another pot in my small kitchen?  the questions went on and on. The initial impetus of buying a dutch oven sparks a series of questions that one is capable of digging out through googling.  Before I knew it, I spent a few nights searching online before bedtime.   Then, I suddenly realize: the time I spent on searching and collecting information online actually is worth much more the functionality of the oven itself because I am only an occasional baker, and I don’t have a big family to feed to justify investing so much energy and effort on cookware.

The temptation of finding the perfect answer/solution to a problem, or finding the best deal when online shopping when vast information is accessible at our fingertips is irresistible. It is also insidious since the time you spend online saves you money and enables you to make better decisions.  However, if you are not careful enough and do not put an upper limit on how long you want to search online, the purse of information to make the best decision can easily deplete your spare time, sap your energy, and flatten your wallet too. 

How did this episode of reactions occur? Why does this frenzy sound so familiar?  I have had similar experiences only that I was shopping for something else. Luckily, this dutch oven shopping frenzy started not long ago, so I can easily trace its origin. It was started right after I watched a Youtube video on baking!  The video touted the dutch oven as the best utensil for baking! And I am just about to embark on the journey of baking since the lockdown.

Now looking back, I can tell it is through this trigger-reaction mechanism that social media has eaten my precious time and energy, and at the same time made my wallet a lot slimmer. This trigger is Youtube.   One vice of mine is binge-watching Youtube videos. Yes, some videos are really great, mind-opening, inspiring, and emotionally calming; but many are not.  Even those good ones one should take only a modest morsel, too much of it can drain one’s energy and ability to think independently.

In order to curb the online shopping urge and frantic search for deals, I must refrain from watching videos hosted by ladies who tout fashion and sleek home interior designs. I should also watch fewer videos that are considered as good, such as those showing how one brings relaxation into life through fixed daily routines such as coffee brewing, house cleaning, and cooking.  Why watch someone else doing these on a glass screen when you can structure your day so you too will have time to do those activities mindfully?

Just like one cannot live in a room without empty space, we need to leave idle time in our daily schedule, not attempting to fill out every minute.  In those free time, you can do the thing you normally wouldn’t do, or simply being idle, doing absolutely nothing.  Habitually, we do not like just being; if we do nothing, we bore ourselves to death. Whenever we have a minute or two to ourselves, we take out our smartphones and start to browse Facebook or Wechat. Our mobile device became an adult pacifier.

Thinking back to the time households only have dial-in slow internet, how do we spend our spare time?  For me, I practiced  Yoga, learned to play piano, read, and meditate, or just listen to classical music played on CDs or from NPRs. I was much calmer and less agitated then. If this is so, then there certainly is a  way to revert to it by starting at least a day in a week, untethering myself from a laptop.  The earth will not stop revolving,  and it is unlikely that I will miss big events; on the contrary, I will probably be calmer, less easily distracted, and able to accomplish more. That will be my new year’s resolution.