A week ago I decided to do something many of us have only dreamed of.

I thought about it long and hard, weighed up the pros and cons, opened up the settings tab inside that little blue box on my phone and clicked “deactivate my account”.

 That’s right. I’m having a Facebook holiday.

I’m off the grid, out of the zeitgeist and have no idea what any of the 300 or so friends, family and acquaintances I’ve gathered over the years did today.  No food snaps or inspirational quotes. I don’t know who got a haircut, found $2 on the sidewalk or what Miley Cyrus has been up to. Seriously, I’ve checked out.

Part of what made it so easy was the fact that when you deactivate your account, you can get it all right back if you log in again (presuming you remember your password).

It’s been a week now, and I’ve noticed a few things happening that usually don’t when you’re connected to Facebook-land…

 1. People wonder if you’re OK

From my sister-in-law asking my husband if everything’s alright, to one of my Mum’s friends sending her a private facebook message to check on me, people have assumed I must be having a break-down to abandon Facebook.

So for the record, I’m totally fine. Well, you know, not totally fine, but as fine as I’ve ever been – with or without Zuckerberg’s addictive invention.

 2. You get more text messages

Friends of mine have texted to see if I want to catch up, or to let me know what’s happening in groups I was a part of.

My sister figured out I was gone about five days in and sent me this:

“Have u left fb??”

Heart-felt huh?

 3. You don’t automatically know about the day’s funniest cat video

Or in this case, quokka selfie. You heard right. Quokkas are those little kangaroo-cross-rats that inhabit Rottnest Island off the coast of Western Australia.

My husband came home from work the other day saying “did you see the quokka selfies? They’re hilarious!” only to remember I’m off the grid.

They’ are pretty funny – but having grown up in WA and spent many a family holiday on Rotto – I’m not convinced they’re real. I’ve never seen a quokka smile.

4.  You find out information about your family members from other people

My whole family lives on the other side of the country, so phone calls are important to keep in touch. And, as it turns out, so is Facebook.

I had a really long chat with my mum the other day. Afterwards, my husband asked: “did you see your mum’s looking after kittens for the pet store?”

“No, ” I said, “she didn’t say anything about that on the phone!”

My mum is a notorious cat lady, who already has two cats, and according to Facebook she wants to keep one of the kittens. So really sometimes you need Facebook to tell your parents off.

5. You learn to just sit and take in the world

The other night I was at a pub with a friend when she went to get supplies from the bar.

I did initially reach for my handbag, where my phone was neatly waiting in one of the pockets, but thought better of it.

I sat and watched the people around me laugh and chat, noticed the beautiful dusk sky and the fact that the leaves above me were just starting to turn.

It felt really nice to be present and a part of what was happening around me.

 I know I’ll go back to Facebook eventually, but for now, I’m staying on holidays.