The topic of 'why do you blog' has come up a few times recently.
It's an intriguing one.
Here's my reasons.
- Memory. I have a crap one so need to write things down so I can look back and see what I've done. This blog was created so i could record Torby growing up and milestones and feelings. It's since expanded to include a lot of what I'm doing and feeling.
Sharing of info. Given that I have friends who read this that I don't see very often, I like to let them know what i've been up to. I fail at writing letters or emails of any length. So much of my life is dull and so I never know what to tell people in them. It's nice to still feel connected to people who are too far away.
It's useful as a back-up way to invite people to things..email/phone calls/letters are the amin tool but there are people who slip through the cracks (I have an address book at work and one at home, people are missing off both) This way, te infor is out there and out there and can be considered a general invite.
Sharing links, recipes, amusing things. So I can remember them and so others can be amused/informed/whatever.
Brain dump - I often have too much running through my brain and need to put my thoughts somewhere. The act of writing things down helps me to think through what's happened and figure out why I react the way I do. It's also useful to get advice on things. I don't write it on paper because I tend to lose paper. Because I know a variety of people read this, it also forces me to censor what I say and therefore not let myself get too wrapped up in negative emotions. I have my other blog that I sue to vent when i'm really upset or annoyed. It's not written on paper so it can't be found and used against me or hurt people. It's useful to truly get things off my chest thatt are too close or too ugly or too whatever. I explode and then feel a smidge better. No-one knows who or what I'm talking about so it's (relatively) safe. Codenames are still used.
I like blogging. it lets me say things without an immediate reaction from people. It's sharing info with a buffer. I get to let people know how I feel without having to deal without dealing with their sympathy/outrage/pity/gleeful delight/schadenfreude face-to-face.
I can't be accused of playing favourites or being secretive if I post it here.
It's a learning process in how to walk the fine line between sharing too much (really? my blog is public? people can read it and get upset by what I've written? whoulda thunk??). It's a learning process to not let my passive-aggresive tendencies get the better of me. It's a learning process to use the power of the internets for good and not for evil. It's all a learning process but I think I'm getting there.
How about you? Why do you blog? Why do you not blog?
