A new kind of clutter

I suscribe to three listservs: The freecycle listserv for my town, one for AP English teachers, and another for Ottobre sewing patterns. Right now I have the following unread messages in each folder:

• Freecycle: 130
• AP: 119
• Ottobre: 804 (!!!)

My question to myself: WHY? Why do I subscribe to listservs when I rarely have the time to read the messages, let alone participate in discussions? For all three listservs, any discussion I am interested in has run its course by the time I read that thread. Any item on freecycle I may be interested in is gone, although I mostly use that one for getting rid of things than for getting things.

I am trying to simplify my life, and listservs provide a new, different type of clutter. I have to schedule time to just delete emails, like I have to schedule time to dust (okay, that doesn't happen often), sort through piles of paper on my desk at work, or cull through the closet for clothes that need new homes.

The Internet has revolutionized communication, and in the process has added a lot of things to my to-do list.

Maybe I ought to just let go and unsubscribe.