“I hate people that blog. Why do they think anyone cares?” – Me
Yes, I said that. And yes, I even meant it, at the time. I resisted the web 2.0 fad of starting your own blog, for a long, long time. Yeah so it’s free, and easy, and everyone’s doing it, but who am I? I’m not powerful, insightful or particularly interesting. I don’t work for Google, I’m not running for Senate, and I’m not even in a cool place. So why on earth would I bother? And there you have step 1: Don’t do it.
But then, I had a realization while in Peru. I was blogging then, although it fell under the above ‘cool place’ category. About halfway through the trip, I realized that I truly enjoyed writing down about my trip. I thought (not actively, luckily) that I liked being able to tell people what I was doing so easily, and in such circumstances. Towns that had people who only spoke Quechua had internet, and globalization and I met face to face. I hadn’t been faced with it so starkly before and I suppose(d) I was so thrilled that I wanted to blog. When Berry was looking for a diary journal, she and I debated the desire of keeping a diary. In debating, I realized that a blog is a diary, albeit public (if you’d like). I then figured that it was neither globalization nor ease of informing friends that powered my need to blog; instead I like writing down for the sake of writing down. My brain is too jumpy and confused, over-focused on day-to-day issues. Even if I never read this blog again (which I probably won’t), in writing it I will organize my brain. And thus I reached step 2: write but hide, since writing serves all my purposes.
But wait Sam, I’m reading this. Fair point, and it seems either I lacked the technological skills to hide it from you (possible but unlikely) or I somehow I changed my mind. It’s true, I did change my mind. To spoil the ending (which as you already pointed out, I have spoiled), I came to the conclusion that people should be able to read my blog. Several factors brought me here. First, it takes no extra effort to make my blog public or private or switch it later, thanks to beta blogging. Second, I’m not forcing anyone to read anything they don’t want to, I only provide the information. Third, and here you may finally disagree, I do say interesting things. I may not have the concrete info that the three categories above have, but I am here at a well-known institution with friends of all shapes and sizes and things to say. How can I be sure of this?, you might ask. Well, you’re reading it aren’t you? So finally, step 3: write it, let it be read, and don’t pay any attention to how/who reads it.
So in conclusion, read or don’t read. I have no subject matter or timeframe. I live in a very busy place called college and I barely (read: don’t) have time to sleep, eat or shower regularly. Expect nothing and everything.
* – No, I don’t really consider myself a ‘blogger’. That is silly. But it is what people get I suppose, or maybe it just makes sense in the title.
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