My point of this post though, is anonymity and more definitively - blogging under the radar. I've been blogging now for some 3 years (January 2011 to be precise). My initial feelings were to blog about my decluttering process. Ha. Ha. It hasn't quite worked out that way.
No one in my family knows that I blog. I keep it quiet. I am neither ashamed or overly proud of my blog, it is just a work in progress. I show photos of aspects of my life and our rural lifestyle, and hopefully some decluttering or I will have to change the name!
This was not really intended to be a 'deep and meaningful' post. However I have been thinking about my blog a lot lately and working on the best way to present it and the thoughts I want to put across. Maybe this is a start.
How about you? Do you blog under the radar or are you loud and proud!?
Can I give a shout out too for another blog mummy spits the dummy. She is actually my niece (and of course she doesn't know I'm mentioning her here) and she is new to blogging. With post titles such as I was once a paragon of parenting then I had kids and ruined it she is a witty and creative writer. Just don't tell her that I sent you!
23 comments:
Real life friends and family, as well as my husband, know I have a blog, but I don't really share the name of it or where they can find it. I used to link my blog posts to my Facebook page, mostly to get page views. But now I've been blogging for longer, I'm not concerned with that aspect. I don't even check my page views anymore... I'm happy to just plod along for myself these days.
Uh-oh! Your secret is out now, thanks to some mysterious extra traffic on my page that had to be investigated! Lo and behold, I discovered your lovely blog. Thanks for the shout out and your kind words. I'm really enjoying writing again and it's a kick to find that others enjoy my writing too. As for blogging under the radar, I guess I am and I ain't. Most family and friends know that I blog and they account for the majority of my followers so far. At the same time, because I generally blog about my home life and don't want to compromise my family's privacy, I use nicknames for my kids and don't reveal too much about where we live etc. My husband has no online presence whatsoever, as is his preference, so I respect this and don't post any photos of him (although I reserve the right to write snarky blog entries about him if I think they're funny enough!).
The joys of anonymity, i dont do fashion mainly because i always look as i got dressed in the dark , my cooking isnt going to win awards but its cheap,i can craft and sew to please myself and i have a bad shopping habit that costs me pennies . The one true horror would be going to a blog event , i'm curently struggling to get my head round my daughters graduation...lol
I figure that im just not competitive in any form
Yep I get it . I think perhaps the best word for it might be just being 'humble' and wanting to live your life quietly. I actually do feel exactly the same,but the strange thing is I run a farm stay and get people to come to the house.I think I am 3 people sometimes ...a blogger , a farm stay lady and just me.
I love reading your blog, Wendy. I started blogging with no real goals...but it has become a wonderful journal of my everyday life and I'm always thrilled when people take the time to comment about what I write. Through blogging I now belong to a group called the Sunday Stitchers...all bloggers from SE Qld and we meet in person most months...I've also met up with fellow bloggers when I've travelled and my house is full of beautifully made craft items that I have received in swaps through blogs! So I guess blogging has added a extra dimension to my life.
Blogging is such a personal thing and done for many reasons whether it be for your own record and enjoyment, to share crafty things and baking and cooking recipes, sharing stories or for some as a means of income. I was inspired to blog after seeing so many lovely blogs out there but was apprehensive, who would be interested in my stuff. I do quite a bit of craft but only show a little of it because I don't want to be seen as looking for compliments. My family knows I blog, my Mum is probably my biggest fan and she likes seeing what I get up to. I share on FB too but that is a whole different community to blogland. I like the way blogging encourages friendships and the opportunity to meet new people. I always enjoy reading your posts Wendy so thanks for taking the time to blog.
Anne xx
I'm a bit like you, Wendy. My sisters read my blog from time to time and there is one other woman in our small country town who reads my blog (One Mother Hen - Alicia, in my blog list). I am quite happy to blog under the radar. I wouldn't want people stopping me in the street saying how they loved my biscuit recipe. I dont want fame. I post a bit of my cooking and stuff on Facebook but that is for friends only to see.
The beauty of blogging is that it gives you such a wealth of knowledge and experience at your fingertips and if you have something handy to share with others, that's a beautiful thing.
I'd like to hope someone has made my biscuits or tried a curry or made my baked rice. When I started blogging back in 2008, it was Rhonda Jean from Down-to-Earth who got me going. Here was this woman of about 56 years old, eating fresh laid eggs, harvesting all their veggies from the back yard, cooking meals from scratch, making soap, rosella cordial, sipping on gentle cups of tea while knitting or mending something. What an idyllic lifestyle!
It was then that I realised that blogs could give me lots of knowledge to be a better homemaker, wife and mother. You'll find most of my favourites are homey type blogs.
Something that my blog has given me is a record of my life. I quite often go back over it, looking for what we did at a certain time. I hope I never lose it!
Sorry for the novel I've just written, I'll finish off now. Keep on blogging!
Cheers - Joolz xx
What? No one in your family knows? No one? My family knows I blog but they don't bother to read it. They get to live the hum drum with me, why would they read about the bits I am musing over. They see and hear it anyway.
I rarely check stats either Shara. Just happy to plog along sounds like me too, though I possibly could push myself a little more.
Uh-oh indeed! Do you mean to say there is no radar to fly under on the www?
Hope you get a few more readers flying by your blog - and staying for the show.
That's me in a nutshell Kate - I'm just not competitive! Thanks for your comment.
HI Kim, yes your situation is a bit different. I have been following your blog since back in the early days and have seen it evolve as it is today. Well done with the farmstay btw it looks great.
Thanks for your kind words Maria. I am always astounded at how busy you are in retirement. It's great that blogging has worked out so well for you!
Hi Anne, thanks for your comment too. I think it is always amazing just to look at different aspects of others' lives. I know we have both been in touch for quite a few years now through our blogs. Hope your garden keeps producing!
Thanks for your comment Jooz - not quite a novel btw! I love your activities you document on your blog. You are always up to something new. I didn't know till recently that you can actually have your blog made into a book. Maybe that would create a really lasting memory.
Well now, I don't think so........ It's not that I hide it, but I just don't shout out about it. I don't take photos thinking that they will go in a blog post. Basically too, I probably don't blog as regularly as others, so its not about everyday events. Love your blog, and thanks for commenting Katie.
My boyfriend knows - perforce, as blogging time comes out of our shared leisure time. Plus it's kind of hard not to spot me taking photos of everything. My family knows but don't read or follow my blog, and most of my friends don't know. Like you, I don't hide it if asked but just don't advertise it. How often do you ask anyone if they have a blog? My blog is a safe space to share my thoughts with people who don't think I'm crazy. When people, even my friends, find out I am experimenting with alternatives to shampoo they look at me like I've just grown an extra head.
My blog is sort of under the radar but not if you know what I mean. I link to my facebook page and that is it really. My blog is selfish because it is for me firstly and if peeps want to read and follow then that is great. It is my photo album in a way as I no longer print and make albums of photos I take. My family know I blog but being a houseful of blokes they aren't that interested and probably don't even understand what a blog is. I just write how I talk so in a way it is also like a diary and I often think of other bloggers as my modern day pen pals.
HI Nickie, thanks for dropping by - and for your comment! I have always taken photos around the place, as seasons change etc. so the photo taking is no different. So - like you, just don't advertise it. I like that.
Hi Sue - thanks for your comment. I don't think a blog can be labelled selfish, especially such a fun one like yours! You are obviously bubbly and this flows over into your blog. Love all your photos - and there are so many. I don't print photos anymore either, or rarely.
Interesting post and comments. I blog anonymously, for myself because I wanted to keep a diary again and I knew putting it on-line would make me accountable. I started because I read a few other blogs and by commenting on them I built on-line relationships, and now I have built my own. Because I have a paid job and not running my own businessI don't want my name or face all over the Internet. I rarely look at stats anymore and write twice a week which is all I can manage at the moment. As you know Wendy we've had a fairly torrid year or more with the mental and physical health of one of the kids, I've delved into this a little but am also ver mindful of the privacy of the kids and my husband. I love my blog and I love that I've "met" people like you that I have so much in common with!
Hi LG - yes parts of your comment pretty well sum up how I feel too. I am grateful for the online friendships created over the years - including yours of course. We go way back it seems! Hopefully this year things will continue to improve on the homefront for you and yours. cheers Wendy
Pssst Secret squirrel here! Thought I'd pop by and say hello and thank you for reading and commenting on my blog. It;s always nice to see you there. I do my blog because initially it was to keep the family and friends in the UK up to date on what we are up to here in NZ. However somewhere along the way I ended up with people from everywhere reading it and following it; Like you I'm blown away by that and very happy and grateful that they do, in fact there are probably online strangers turned cyber buddies that are more interested in my life that some of my family. It bothered me at first, now I don't give a doggy do's !! xx PS you need to do a post, c'mon it's 2015 now :D
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