A day in the social life

7 a.m. — Wake up
8–8:40 a.m. — Drive to job interview

8:44 a.m. — Open Facebook and Twitter to review notifications from last night and this morning.

9–10 a.m. — Interview
10–10:45 a.m. — Drive back to Milwaukee
11 a.m.-noon — Meeting

Noon-1 p.m. — Mailroom shift in McCabe Hall
I was doing mail-related stuff and returning emails most of my shift, and then…

I decide to check and make sure we have social scheduled for some upcoming MUSG events/initiatives on my laptop…

…while simultaneously clearing Facebook notifications on my phone.

1–2 p.m. — Work/eat lunch in the MUSG office. While walking from McCabe to the AMU, I check Instagram for the first time today and see this horribly depressing post about Parks and Rec’s last episode.

2–4:45 p.m.— Class. While waiting for the elevator in Johnston Hall, I scroll further back in my Instagram feed and see this post from Marquette. I screen shot for this assignment and also because I KNOW THE GIRL WHO MADE THAT! (s/o to Julie Posh)

5 p.m. — Go home. Call my mom to talk about the job interview. While on the phone, check and make sure Facebook events are scheduled for upcoming MUSG events and that our cover photo is changed.

6–9 p.m. — Watch Jeopardy, Wheel of Fortune, Parks and Rec and eat pizza with my roommate. I also write thank you notes to the people I interviewed with today.

9 p.m.-12 a.m. — Go to Murphy’s for $2 taps. A wonderful weekly tradition. During a lull in conversation and popcorn consumption, I go on Instagram to look for more sad Parks and Rec posts. I succeed.

Side note: Joe Biden is great, and so is his Instagram. His posts are always funny, timely and on point.

Midnight — Go to bed. Too tired to check social accounts one more time, although that is a nightly routine.

After paying attention to my use of social throughout the day, I found two patterns: I use social during life lulls and I use social for my job.

Instagram is my clear choice during a life lull. I also typically use Tumblr more if I’m on my computer. During busy days, I’m on my phone a lot more and I don’t go on sites like Buzzfeed or Tumblr like I would if I was on my laptop.

The Parks finale corrupted all my newsfeeds all day and because it was an emotional time for me, I was seeking out social posts to commiserate with.

When I’m clearing notifications, I typically just go to the notification bar on both Facebook and Twitter and try not to get sucked into the newsfeed, especially if I’m in a rush. However, before bed I scroll through things that I’ve missed during the day. I also typically spend some time in the morning doing that on Tuesdays and Thursdays, but the job interview prevented me from doing that today.

All in all, I think I use social differently because I’m a Comm major. I see it as more than just a “time waster” or a “procrastination tool,” though I use it for both of those things. A lot of the time I spend on social is for work.