Word: Infomania

infomania

[in-fuh-mey-nee-uh, ‐foh‐]

noun

1. excessive enthusiasm for acquiring knowledge.

2. Digital Technology.

1. an obsessive need to constantly check emails, social media websites, online news, etc.:
   The fear of being out of the loop, not in the know, fuels infomania, especially among teens.
2. the effects of this obsession, especially a decline in the ability to concentrate:
   She attributes her increasingly poor “life management skills” to infomania.

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              Karen looked around nervously.  She fidgeted at her purse as she walked.  It took a huge force of will not to open it and take her phone out.  But she was determined not to use it, at least for one night.  The fact that she had made a bet with her boyfriend, Tom, did not hurt either. 

               But everything was calling to her.  A new sign with a punny comment.  A pair of birds fighting over a discarded muffin.  A kid with a balloon.  Everything was begging for her to take pictures of them and put on her Instagram page.  And think of all the things she was missing.  Pictures to see, messages to read.  Everything was right there, covered only by a piece of cotton slung around her shoulder.

               She had to remain strong.  She could not lose.  She had lost too many bets with Tom already.  This one would go to her.  All she had to do was not look at her phone for one day, with the exception of answering phone calls.  It sounded so easy, but the small device was calling to her.  Tempting her with its many siren songs of photos, messages, tweets, and more. 

               She heard a small chime coming from the purse.  Another reminder that her phone was there, and that her followers and people she followed were still out there.  Some were no doubt wondering why she had not updated her various social media pages since the morning.  Others were simply posting things that were happening to them.  And she was missing out on all of it. 

               How could she have been so foolish?  So she had spent most of their date on her phone.  So what?  She spent just as much time talking with him as she had posting.  But he had gotten upset for some reason.  It did not make any sense to her.  Tom spent almost as much time on his phone as she did.  At least, that’s what it seemed like to her.  But no, he they had argued about it.  Most of her followers agreed with her, of course.  Then the bet happened.  As long as she could stay off her phone, she would follow one of her commands.  It was a valuable thing for her, and she was determined to win it.  Especially since the cost of losing was wearing something she hated, but he loved.  That alone gave her the drive for victory.

               Another chime drifted to her ears from her purse.  Was it telling that she could hear the tiny, muffled sound over the much louder noises of the city?  She gave it no thought as she reflexively reached to get her phone and see what was happening.  She caught herself with her fingers just starting to enter the bag.  She clenched her fist and held her hand at her side.  She would be strong.  She would triumph.  The thought about her victory posts was glorious. 

               A rapid series of chimes and tones reached her ears from the now open purse.  Her hand trembled at the thought that she was missing out on so much.  She bit her lip.  She had to remain firm.  No phone.  Not yet.  But the chimes just kept coming.  They sped up, as if to tell her to give in.  To just check once.  Tom would never know.  It was not like he was monitoring her actions or anything. 

               She quickly ducked into a nearby building and gave in to the siren’s song.  She scrolled through her messages, checked her feeds, and indulged in finally being connected.  But then it happened.  She had gone too fast and not been careful about what she was looking at.  She landed on a text message from Tom.  The moment she read it, she knew the game was up.  The text was a few hours old, and said two words: I win.

               She sighed and continued to scroll through her social media sites.  She had lost, so why not?  Besides, she would win next time.

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A good way to keep this under control is to not have tons of social media accounts.  I only have a handful, and don't use them very often.  Because of them, I have no real need to constantly check them. Yay me.