How much is too much information?

I have been struggling with this idea recently –
Half of the books and theories I read on lifestyle design maintain that any person who go to be really successful read constantly, utilized all of their time, every second. They listened to podcasts when they were walking, read on the metro, had NPR on in the shower. There was not a minute when they were not absorbing information.

The rest of the theories I read say that we are ingesting too much information, that we cannot possibly retain any of it, and it is relatively useless to us to know random facts about things anyway. What we should be doing is quieting ourselves in order to more fully KNOW what we already do, in order to digest and create new knowledge for ourselves.

I fall somewhere in between. As a habit I like to pack my day with information – I do listen to podcasts when I run and walk to work, I read books on the metro and blogs at work, and my image of luxury is sitting at a café all day reading Lapham’s Quarterly and newspapers. I read at the bar. I don’t, however, read in my leisure time. I watch bad TV.
But I do find it necessary to take breaks. There will be weeks at a time when I don’t pick up a periodical or my ipod, but instead listen to things. I find them both necessary. Sometimes I feel like I’m wasting my time either way – wasting the sounds and colors I would notice when I have my ipod plugged in and a book in my hands, and sometimes I am wasting valuable time to acquire knowledge when I sit and stare around. Perhaps it is another element of being present – either way works as long as you are taking advantage of what you are doing.

This pertains also to my blog. I have gone back and forth over whether I share too much here (which doesn’t really matter in the long run since none of it is information I would ever keep secret anyway). Comparing mine to others, as an experiment, since it is relatively pointless, I share a whole darn lot about myself. Many other people make a point to keep the information they share about themselves on their blogs to a minimum; one friend shares only pictures, another anecdotes, and others have completely erased their blogs due to fear of sharing too much. I, however, put it all out there. I tell you what I’m stressed about, what I’m elated about – all of my pet peeves and small joys are out there for people to read. I try not to share things like the details of my running routes, or where I will be at a particular moment due to the fact that this would leave me very vulnerable to attackers and/or stalkers (sad truth), but the deep parts of me are right here. My mother has even praised me for the depth to which I reveal myself on this space.

Is this too much? I love this part of me- that I have grown strong enough to be open about pretty much anything. I pride myself on the fact that I will answer any question you ask as long as it does not violate my trust with other people. I want to be known because I want to know all of you like this. I love the details about people – it makes the world fascinating. The more human you are to me, the more I love you. When I feel my friends are too distant in their lifestyles, I begin to resent them. But when I hear their quiet quirks I love their friendships even more. So I treat you the way I want you to treat me, by sharing.

And I guess some people would find me at a particularly vulnerable spot by my methods. However, I feel that this gives me my strength, as I have nothing to be maliciously revealed about myself, few ways for people to misunderstand me and take it back out at me, no way for anybody to think I am threatening them. Never underestimate the power of humility.