Internet time

I have read several posts about how mamas worry about time spent on the Internet.  I have the same worry...I feel like I spend too much time here, cruising around, reading other people's blogs, working on this one, and just being on Facebook.  And I do think I could be more productive if I spent less time here.  On the other hand, I think it is somewhat symptomatic of the fact that the way our culture is now, raising small children at home is wonderful, fulfilling, important, and a bit lonely.  I have been reading Radical Homemakers by Shannon Hayes.  Well, sort of...I have been skimming it.  It is good, but maybe trying to be more scholarly than I appreciate at this juncture in my life.  There is a bit too much review of different feminist theories, of which I grow tired.  But anyway, she does talk about how pre-industrialized families were all at home, doing the work to keep food on the table together.  Although the men and women had their own discrete tasks, they were all home-centered, and also, we were not so spread apart.  Here I am, in WNC, with my wonderful parents in Boston.  (And I am lucky because they make such an effort to visit us.)  And I live in a wonderful, friendly neighborhood.  Still, much of my time with my children is me, alone, doing the tasks of the household, doing stuff with the kids, alone.  And getting on Facebook or reading someone's blog for ten minutes when I am feeling tired feels like a way to connect.  I don't necessarily think it's the best way to connect, but sometimes that is all there is.  And I find that the best ways for me to recharge are not about going out and having a break, but hanging out somewhere, preferably pretty, with my children and other mamas.  Occasionally (very occasionally) we have gotten together and made food for supper while the kids play...but that is hard to organize.  I keep wanting to have a preserving party...but anyway, the fact of the matter is that the culture is slightly isolating, and although the Internet is a poor substitute for face to face interaction, sometimes that is what is available, and has to be what does it for us.