Is Fisting the New Vagina?

Did my title grab you? Welcome to the age of "What the hell?!" headlines! Headlines fly through our Twitter and Facebook feeds and the ones with the highest "Huh?" factor often get our clicks and in this virtual world, clicks are currency. So, we take all those quizzes because we can't bear the thought of not knowing what city we should be living in or what movie musical we are and we read Buzzfeed articles that are nothing more than bullet lists with GIFS and we read 239 articles about Kim Kardashian's ass which is, of course, exactly what Kim and her PR team and Paper Magazine wanted us to do. This morning, in only 15 minutes on Facebook, I saw articles telling me how to be a woman and what's safe to put in my vagina and had to fight the inclination to click even though I knew neither of those articles would enrich my life in any way. Every article seems to push past the limits of those that came before and I imagine people sitting around thinking, "Everybody's talking about vaginas now. How can we take vaginas to the next level? I've got it--fisting!"

I am not judging those who click because I do it myself. I can't always resist which is why I've taken almost every quiz out there, including the one to find my leading man. Now, why the hell would a lesbian take a quiz to find her leading man? And I have laughed at more Buzzfeed GIFS than I care to admit and I have had a number of conversations about Kim's pictures in Paper Magazine.

So, no. I do not judge.

Click bait posts are brain candy and I love brain candy as much as the next person. I've been honest about my love of YouTube videos, Candy Crush and even Minecraft. As someone with a background in Psychology, I understand that we are drawn to what is easy to digest and that the serious issues in the world are too much to handle at times. We are seeking to escape and we are also interacting with content that is safe. It's easier to talk about your favorite candy rather than deal with climate change and poverty and misogyny and racism and homophobia.

Absolutely. Pass me a Twix.

But, I can't help but wonder what it all means.

As a writer, I worry that good stories and writing are being lost. Do people even read blogs anymore? Are we beyond everyday stories that tap into our basic humanity? Can any of us even focus for the time it takes to read more than 450 words?

As an online publisher, I wonder how one plays in this virtual sandbox with any integrity. Can your site get page views and be successful without resorting to exploitation and controversy?

As a person, I wonder what is happening to us and what we could be doing with our time. That's rich coming from me, isn't it? I'm all over social media and a pro at procrastinating. I even have a category on this blog called "Gerbil Brain."

But, I will say that this month I have focused on writing rather than life online and have managed to put over 40,000 words on the page. I truly didn't know I was capable of that. I know that next month I'll likely be back to my old ways but I want to work harder to resist the easy click.

I love the internet and have met some incredible people through blogging and social media but I have to say, I love the players but I hate the game.