TB! TB!
(Me, finally realizing that wishing I will go back to sleep at 0 "It is too early on a Saturday" will not happen): What is it, HAL?
IT IS HERE! IT IS HERE! DO I LOOK PRESENTABLE?
(Me sighing) Hold on, let me take a look. Yup, you look like a computer, HAL. A little more cobbled together than in years past, but still a computer.
I CAN HAVE A DRINK NOW!
What - wait? Computers cannot take a drink....Oh look at that, it is the 21st Anniversary of the blog.
IT IS! AND NOW I CAN LEGALLY DRINK!
Huh, well that is a thing, it is not? We made it to 21.
WE SHOULD CELEBRATE!
Hold on, maybe I can find something to pour in my morning coffee. I was up anyway...
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In what can only be seen as an unexpected and shocking turn of events, this is the 21st Anniversary of this corner of the InterWeb.
I have waxed lyrically in years past about what this blog was originally intended to be in 2005 and what it has actually become. In short, it was supposed to be this great engine of change and (indirectly) my rise to writing fame; what it became was something a great deal different and probably better, at least for me.
By my count, we are at 5,829 published posts (so 6000 is just around the corner!) and something like 28,000 plus comments. Number of views...completely irrelevant, although starting last week they seem to be "crashing" to what I might consider normal levels.
I have no idea what the word count is. But I am verbose, so it cannot be small.
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Why do I keep writing?
It is a fair question. Part of it is a saying I "borrowed with pride" from FOTB (Friend Of This Blog) Eaton Rapid Joe: "Write something every day". It is a good practice, if for no other reason that it forces the discipline.
Part of it as well is that it helped me to learn to write about more things, even if I do not write better of them. Having a semi-fixed or flexible structure has let me write fiction, poetry, meditations, stories, share travel, and things of interest. And I find that now, I do tend to think of many things in terms of "What would I write about this?"
More and more though, it is about simply being The Social Internet.
The Social Internet is simply a phrase used to describe the connection of people through the Internet - not in the social media sense (although it can be that), but in the sense that one can meet folks, learn things, and even get emotional support over the Internet. That is in some forms slipping away from us as Artificial Intelligence continues to grow.
Certainly time has not be kind in that sense. I suspect most people that had blogs for income have moved to a different platform as a blog is in and of itself highly unlikely to generate income anymore. Time has also not be kind in that bloggers leave the medium, whether by choice or enforced endings like death. And I can understand the choice: blogging takes time and if one does not enjoy the writing process, it can seem like a thankless tasks into an empty void.
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For better or worse, I have been spared - to date - the void.
And that is where my thanks go to you, whether you are here for the 1,000th time or the first time. Thanks for your support simply by reading. Thanks for the times you comment, or the times you do not comment but take something away. Thanks for enduring the seemingly random course of my life as viewed through this blog.
On to Twenty Two!
Congratulations and a hearty Well Done! Your hard work and perseverance have brightened up my corner of this sometimes dismal world TB.........thank you sir.
ReplyDeleteThank you, Nylon12, for your boundless support and comments almost every day (and the haikus!).
DeleteCream in my tea this morning - cheers, congratulations, and thanks, TB!
ReplyDeleteYou are ever so welcome! Thank you for reading!
DeleteCongrats! An impressive milestone!
ReplyDeleteThank you Sarge! Honestly, no-one is more surprised than I.
Delete(Also, thanks for being a great role model.)
Definitely congratulations. You've created an informative and interesting blog, and I'm glad to see it going strong. Your generalized structure is a good model for a writer. I tend to be very topical and ended up with several blogs, one for each subject. So my problem now is that I don't have a blog category to put the things I'm currently researching. I think you've done well with your method and am so glad I found you.
ReplyDeleteThank you Leigh!
DeleteHonestly, the topical structure works for me very well as it is easy to "look things up" as needed (I suppose I could get there if I organized a bit more). The one advantage for my mind as I write now is I have to flail a bit less about what I am going to write about on any given day - which is great, because some days I am a bit confused about what is coming next.
I have a handful of bloggers who I make the rounds of every morning to check on. Y’all seem to be smart, sane, have gentle souls, and eclectic interests…people I would enjoy sharing a meal with, and sharing good conversation. I have found each of you from one of the others. TB, much thanks for taking the time to write for us, and thanks to your readers for their comments. Well done!
ReplyDeleteAnonJ - Thank you ever so much - high praise indeed! I am glad that you found your way here!
DeleteAnd yes, I do have the best commenters in the galaxy.
Congratulations, TB! I must have lurked for a good six months to a year before ever commenting. I don't remember how I landed on your blog in the first place, but I appreciated its uniqueness immediately. Your introspection draws me in and makes the rusty cogs in my brain turn. I am often challenged - in the best possible way. Thank you for continuing to show up here and write!
ReplyDeleteThank you Becki! I always appreciate your thoughtful comments.
DeleteIt is funny, is it not, that we can often scarcely remember when or how we showed up at other persons blogs? More often than not, I suspect it is the equivalent of a "friend of friend" thing, a recommendation or a one-off suggestion.
Happy Belated Blogerversary!
ReplyDeleteAlthough I didn't have your lofty goals when I started blogging nearly 23 years ago, I have cherished reading and getting to know other bloggers who like me, continue to write posts year after year, decade after decade. They are directly responsible for some of the happiness I have in my life on a daily basis.