There was an unsettling moment as I built this blog. I thought back through the past several years of posting on discussion boards and reading various blogs. Most were political, some were hilarious, and a few were simply thought provoking.
I grew tired of discussion boards, mostly due to trolls who would not only counter with lies, but attack and disparage those who disagreed with them. Blogs were definitely kinder and gentler. But they also had a sense of community. I always felt that opining on any of these sites would be tantamount to crashing some random party, walking up to the hostess and french-kissing her. Everyone would be aghast and I would be firmly and quickly shown the exit. I was more like a ninja. Stealthily I would come into a site, gather the information I wanted and skulk to the next site.
OKAY! OKAY! Turn the spotlight off! The truth is, I was a Blog Voyeur! I revelled in the anonymity! But that is the past. No more!
Something unexpected happened that has changed this. John, a life-long friend and conspirator told me he had his own blog. This was liberating to me. It allowed me to feel part of a community. I knew if I said something stupid, he would laugh at/with me. Since then I have gone back to a few of the blogs I kinda always wanted to comment on and did! And some of the hostesses didn't mind being french-kissed! (One likes calling it patriot-kissing; I guess still holding a grudge...)
Now I am putting myself out there. What you are reading now will hopefully get better. I know that I am full of, well, I'll say opinions for now. My sarcasm setting is two levels down from "kill". I will rant. I will try to be thought provoking. And being very right brain, I will be random. From time to time, I might resort to fiction. But no matter what, I invite anyone who wants to comment to do so. Please! And Thank You!
A special invitation goes out to Kelley. Her blog, Blue is a Circle, is what I aspire to when I talk about provoking thought. Your April 19 post is one I still wrestle with in my head. And fair warning, I will be commenting on your posts!
Also, special invitations go out to Michael, Tori, and Christina. I hope you find topics you wish to comment on, and do so.
7 comments:
Well it's about damn time. :)
Hey!
John speaks very highly of you, and I'm tickled pink to be personally invited to participate in your blog! Please know you are more than welcome to comment on my posts, too. (Although I've been caught talking to myself, I really prefer conversations with other, more interesting, people.)
I nearly fell out of my chair laughing at the french-kissing thing. What a great image. I also nearly fell out of my chair when I read the words thought-provoking in such close proximity to my name. You must have missed my "favorite cereal" post.
By the way, I find random-ness and sarcasm to be particularly useful. And fun.
Welcome!
I did read your previous posts. I think the one that made me laugh, and felt HORRIBLE for doing so, was "Nothing Worse." I must say that I would have been hard pressed to rub cream on a dog's "girl parts."
And my not-so-spiritual gift has always been revelling in absurdity. Both others as well as my own. Each and every day I find yet another reason to laugh. And of course, I'm usually the only one who "gets" the humor. But that's OK. It's sort of like peeing yourself when wearing black pants. No one else may notice, but you get a warm feeling from it...
My all time favorite cereal was Super Sugar Crisp. Back in the day, they unabashedly called the cereals by what they were. After three bowls full on a Saturday morning I could set off Richter scales in Calif. due to all the bouncing off the walls. Yes, I am old.
Oh, believe: Jack wasn't especially thrilled with the cream rubbing, and I just flat out refused to do it. Ewwww.
You're full of wacky, wonderful metaphors. What do you do for a living?
I TOTALLY remember Super Sugar Crisp. It seems like there was a husky-voiced cartoon bear in the commercials. Oh. Does this make me "old," too?!
I am a frustrated "art fart", as John would say, and beach comber. The retail general manager gig is what pays the bills. I have decided that 2007 was the year I reinvented myself. But so far, no cool career has crossed my path. I have two very rough novels that I cannot make great. My trains of thoughts always seem to become runaways and jump their tracks.
I know I'm full of something, but you are the first to refer to it as wacky and wonderful. I will have to print that out and hang it on my bulletin board above my desk.
That crispy bear was around until the 80's. That makes you, what, 27?!? You should take care nearly falling out of your chair. You might break a hip...
You've written two whole novels? I haven't managed to finish a short fiction piece, let alone an entire novel. The envy floweth.
Nearly THIRTY-seven, thank you. Oops. Gotta' go. The home health nurse is at the door.
HA! That's Funny!
Just because I've wasted time putting a lot of words down on paper doesn't mean much. I lived on New Orleans for three years before moving to Orlando. During those years and the first year here, we experienced at least seven tropical storms or hurricanes. Well, as a plot device in one of my stories, I had New Orleans hit with a massive hurricane. The wierd thing was how I had Lake Ponchartrain break over the levy very close to where it did. Now, rereading it, it seems like capitalizing on a tragedy. I think it will sit on the shelf for a while...
The other was an attempt at a children's story. I find that I tend to "write down" instead of "writing to" kids. Oh well.
I met a Disney animator way back when. (Little Mermaid to Aladin era) I was a graphic design major in college. His one piece of advice still resonates with me even today, and I still count it as one of the best pieces of advice I've ever been given:
Inside everyone are 1000 bad drawings. If you want to draw (or paint, or write, etc.), you have to get those bad drawings out of your system. Each day draw (or write). If it's bad, put it aside and move on to the next one.
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