Blogjune: CHECK

I don’t mean to brag but I’ve completed blogjune with eleven posts.

In all seriousness, I’ve enjoyed not blogging as much as I’ve enjoyed writing for two particular reasons. The first is that I’ve been having fun doing other things, particularly working on an embroidery in which I’m stitching out the lyrics to Queen’s ‘Princes of the Universe’ onto a length of ribbon (it’s as tedious as it sounds but I’ve made good progress). The second reason is that I’ve both made a start by posting sporadically but have avoided the 9-day wonder trap I have been known to fall into on occasions (“I have decided I am now A Blogger and will publish something everyday…oh, I missed a day; screw the whole thing”).

While I haven’t been the most active contributor, the less-is-more approach has given me the time for a lot of self-reflection. I was going to write this as a great big list^ and blog about them later^. But as I write each one, I end up cutting it out and saving it as a draft so I know I will go back and blog about them later. So here are just three.

• I’m really glad I ended up taking the ‘easy option’ by turning to svbtle. I like how the blank page feels: like typing onto a cloud. It reflects nicely how I feel about blogging. I learnt early on to embrace the idea that the internet is big enough for my little text inscribed clouds, and that people can enjoy seeing them waft across their horizons.
• It’s been a lot more soulful than I imagined it would be. I’ve got to know people better, made new connections, had my mind expanded and been genuinely touched by being invited into other people’s lives, both professionally and personally. And likewise, it’s such an encouragement to open up my dashboard and see people have given Kudos to what I’ve written (it was a thrilling day when I realised the numbers didn’t just mean the number of people who had read them; svbtle was a little subtle for me).
• Starting a blog of my own has reminded me of the symbiotic relationship between writing and reading. If I am to write, then I need to also be reading. There was a time when these things were difficult for me and I’m relearning the skill through discovering what floats my new boat. If I am to read, then I also need to be writing. One reason why it takes me so long to read anything is my habit of grabbing a pen and jotting something down, and this blogging business has helped me learn to value my jottings as drafts rather than chucking them out as use-less scraps of paper. And finally, if I am to blog, then I need to remind myself that I am not just blogging but am part of a community of chroniclers.

If you’re reading this, thank you for stopping by. There’s been a hell of a lot of stuff to read this month, and I wish I could have sat there all day reading posts. Thank you also to Constance Wiebrands for inspiring so many of us to start or revive our blogs. I’m looking forwarding to continuing the adventures of what has become the Confessions of an Enthusiastic (If Somewhat Sporadic) Blogger.

Footnotes

^ My love of creative lists; another thing I’ve found I have in common with Wendy Davis

^{^} And gratuitiously playing around with footnotes.