Have I told you how much I love blogging? There's nothing quite like getting (what's hopefully) a good post out of your system!
But the longer I blog, I'm more aware that I don't really fit in. There are mummy blogs, baby blogs, craft blogs, knitting blogs, pastors' blogs, pastors' wives' blogs..... And in the blogosphere, birds of a feather tend to flock together. Bloggers get so excited at meeting like-minded souls who are in the same stage of life. It's nice for them....but kind of alienating for me.
You see, I've tried to define what my blog is about, and I can't. I just blog about life, and I enjoy 'meeting' bloggers in different stages of life. Recently I'm enjoying reading the blogs of women who are about 10 or so years older than me. I find what they say fascinating and I'm learning so much from them.
But here's the problem....I don't want to just take from the blogosphere. I want to give, but I'm realising I have very little to offer that would interest most bloggers or blog readers. For those who are ahead of me on life's journey, my blog is probably a bit 'been there, done that'. I don't fit into any of the cliques, and while I enjoy hearing from bloggers who are unlike me, others probably have different reasons for blogging; maybe they do want to meet others like them?!? Also, I'm realising that my life is considered so very different and almost weird for some city bloggers. They have crazy schedules and dodge peak hour traffic. I drive home and dodge sheep, kangaroos, bobtails, galahs, eagles, owls...and even echidnas. I don't know any Christian, farm-dwelling, female, married DINK former librarians in their late twenties who are editing their first novel and happen to blog.
This isn't meant to be a sad-sack post, even though it probably sounds like it is. It's just me coming to a realisation about myself and my blog. My blog and I don't quite fit in....and the older we both get, the more I am ok with that.
7 comments:
"Christian, farm-dwelling, female, married DINK former librarians in their late twenties who are editing their first novel and happen to blog" would be a fairly specific category!!! :-)
But there is the joy of blogging - you don't actually need to fit into a group, write in a particular way - you can do it as you like. So you just enjoy doing what you do on your blog...and we will enjoy reading it.
Same here... don´t fit in anyplace.
But that´s ok. It´s my diary.
That I don´t have kids or some other "common" thing to share doesn´t mean my life is completedly boring. I like my life none-the-less. Obviously, otherwise I´d tried to change that, huh?
Sitting in Germany makes it more weird even, but I don´t care.
Guess that you live in the Country is rather special in the sense of beautiful. We traveled the Outback for quite some months, slept in the car, enjoyed those beautiful stars in the clear nights, never took that for granted.
Had the life just driving around, no hectic, just taking in landscape and freedom.
Dunno if I could actually make a living there, but I love to be reminded of it through your blog.
Plus, you have many different subjects to share.
Coming to "age"... guess from... mid-20´s to mid 40´s it´s kinda one age anyway, the differences aren´t that big (if you don´t count parenthood, I guess).
So, Lone Ranger Blogger... maybe you aren´t that lone ;-)
Yes, a little too specific lol!
Iris, I enjoy seeing pics of Germany on your blog :)
I think the whole kids thing is big on Facebook as well as blogs. A friend of mine has suddenly had girls she went to school with speaking to her a lot more often via Facebook because their babies are almost the same age! The thing is they never really bothered to talk to her much before any of them had kids. That's what I meant by the birds of a feather flock together thing. I also found some married women I know only took an interest in me when I got engaged. It felt like, "Oh you're one of us now so we'll talk to you." Maybe that's not how they meant it to come across, but it feel that way. Sometimes you can feel on the outer if everyone is talking about one topic, and you can't contribute because it's not in your life experience.
I don't think my life is boring (and yours certainly isn't either, Iris) :) I don't want to blog for comments either because that will take away the joy of blogging, but sometimes it's just nice knowing that what you write is read and enjoyed by others.
You are spot on there Sarah. It is one of the paradoxes of the blogging world...we don't do it for the comments but when they come it is nice, and when they don't it can seem pretty lonely floating around in cyberspace! Silence doesn't necessarily mean that people don't like what we (I'll throw myself in there) write. It makes me think of the fact that if a company sends out a survey and gets a 10% response rate they feel that is a success. For every letter sent to the paper or to a business, there are apparently 20 other people who thought it would be good to write but didn't. I try to comment quite frequently on the blogs I read to keep their writers encouraged...just as I am encouraged when I receive comments. But there are patches when I don't even read anything because I am too busy to turn on the computer - and now that I do most of my reading via Google reader, I comment far less because I am not in situ. And there is a vast group of readers who don't comment ever. These are some of the vagaries of blogging. But ultimately, as Iris has so well said, "It's my diary" - and it is very generous of you have yours out in blogosphere.
Hi ho Tonto!!
I think you're right re. Google Reader hindering the number of comments. I used to use Bloglines until it closed down, and now I use Google. It's easy just to read and then log out cos you can't automatically see the number of comments on each post. But now I'm trying to make a conscious effort to click through to posts that really grab me, see if there are any comments already, and add mine.
It's funny - I know quite a few people in 'real life' who are not bloggers themselves, but read my blog all the time. Some of them come up to me in person and want to discuss posts I've written, which I find quite strange. When I ask them why they didn't leave a comment, they just reply, "Oh I never leave comments." I would have thought it would take less effort to leave a comment (can even be anonymous) than to approach me in person.
Some blogging friends really encouraged me when I considered closing my blog due to a lack of comments nearly two years ago (see here http://sedshed.blogspot.com/2009/01/why-am-i-doing-this.html)
One said to blog for myself and see comments as a bonus. Another said you never know who is reading and what they are taking away from it. That really encourages me when I stare at '0 comments' for several consecutive posts. I hope it encourages you both too :)
I see comments as a bonus, too. They´re not essential, but make one feel less lonely :-)
And sometimes, they´re great helpers for soul&heart, too!
There are times bloggy-friends sit down, take their time to think it through and help with wise, encouraging words - I so appreciate this!
There were some times, too, where Spouse and I "fought" about how certain things were. I mostly win - just go back in time in the blog and you know for sure. Sometimes I also loose this way! ;-)
Blogging is a great way to keep memories - I wish my Bro´d do that, too (yep, the Baby-thing again!).
Blogging is a great way to keep memories
Definitely! I wouldn't remember half of what I've done over the past 4.5 years if it wasn't for my blog. My blog reminds me where I've come from, my 'journey'.
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