Why Blog?
It’s been a long time since I’ve added an entry to the site. This is partly due to a conversation I had that questioned the use of a weblog. Who reads it? Who cares what I do from day to day, or what I am thinking? Of course my friends and family do, but shouldn’t I be talking directly to them, instead of making them come to my website to find out about me? It seems my friend Jim was posing similar questions, and now his site is gone. After much thought, I have decided to continue writing here. This is why.
It seems to me that publishing my writings on my website is little different than those that publish on paper, except that it is much cheaper and faster. Surely, I am not writing a novel, poetry, or work of history here. However, I am not alone in publishing material of a personal nature. Many people have published journals or autobiographies in book form. I suppose it’s possible for someone to be interested in my life. More likely, I think, is for someone else to be interested in some of the thoughts I have and write about here, concerning society, things I’ve experienced, or life in general. They seem interesting to me, so maybe they will also be to someone else.
There are certain things that are hard to bring up in conversation and talk about, but are easier to write about, especially if a high level of precision is desired. For example, my thoughts on science in education. I spent a long time thinking about that, and wanted to express it to someone else, but it doesn’t seem appropriate to randomly say something like, “Hey, how’s it going? Do you want to hear about my thoughts on science in education?” to anyone but my very closest friends. It seems more appropriate for me to write about things like this, and my website seems a good place to do that.
I write this for myself. Yes, I could write my thoughts down in a personal journal, but that would exclude the other reasons for writing here.
Finally, I like to read the weblogs of my aquaintances that I don’t see very often. There are people with whom I spend little time these days, but in the past I had more contact with them, and I’m still interested in what they’re doing. It’s not too far fetched that others think the same way about me.
For the above reasons, I’ll keep writing my thoughts and experiences on this web site from time to time. Hopefully someone will like it.
Comment by Andy
Word, Adam. Word.
Posted on December 14, 2003 at 4:58 pm
Comment by Luke Skywalker
I care
Posted on January 12, 2004 at 8:57 pm
Comment by jdawe
dude, i’m reading this–proof that blogs are worthwhile. while your blog sucks ass, at least it gets a couple of hits. mine is still offline with a “first post” entry sitting there from last summer.
the only thing blogs for obscure dorks like you and me are good for is writing up stories for all those people who ask “what was this-and-such experience like?”–or–”why did you do thus-and-such?” (saves you the hassle of repeating yourself). just point ‘em to the URL, baby. it also provides the benefit of content management–i.e. you can be sure everyone has read the same story and that you’re at least being consistent.
Posted on January 14, 2004 at 7:47 pm