"When you're in jail, a good friend will be trying to bail you out. A best friend will be in the cell next to you saying, 'Damn, that was fun'."
— Groucho Marx
How Did You Become a Blogger?
The original post is here. This is one of those questions that I think makes for interesting blog fodder so I thought that I would run it again.
How did you become a blogger? Or if you are not a blogger what made you start reading blogs and why?
Someone sent me a link to a now defunct blog because she thought I would like the way the blog's author wrote. And I did. And was inspired. So I started my own. I've been at it now for about 4 years and seen it through various incarnations. It's getting ready to have a new one, but I'm not quite ready to take the plunge yet.
I was googling my band after a Chicago performance and found a review up on a blog called velvel. I was fascinated by the whole personal soapbox thing, particularly because it was free and I had been spending (and still do) money every month for my band website.
I got involved in a few of the blog wars as an outsider, and I realized that I had things to say that were just as valid. So instead of constantly emailing the blog owners and asking them to quote my messages (these guys didn't have comments), I decided to start one up on my own.
I discovered one blog...then another and another...and so on. After a couple of months, I decided why not try writing a blog myself? And so, in December 2004, Pearlies of Wisdom was born.
In brief: I was an avid journal write for about 20 years, then when we had our second child almost 5 years ago, I sort of stopped writing. Just over a year ago I moved out of of Jewish outreach/communal work and into the 'private sector' and was looking to fill a void and get back to writing. I had been reading blogs for a few years and finally took the plunge.
I somehow ended up reading a friend's blog, which eventually led to the discovery of a friend of that friend's blog, which in turn led to the discovery of some of the major J-Blogs. Just before the start of this Jewish calendar year, I figured I may as well start blogging, what with my year in Israel adventure coming up and all.
I started blogging a few years ago, but it was before I was ready for it. I felt it was stupid and pointless and who cared about ehat I thought. That was before there was such a thing as the jblog world...
Then about 14 months ago I started reading blogs and I got the itch to write again... the rest, as they say, is history...
I don't remember how but I discovered the Little Green Footballs blog. I was amazed at how he and other bloggers exposed the fake Killian memos that Dan Rather broadcast on 60 Minutes and eventually brought about his resignation. "Blogs can take on the mainstream media," I thought. I remembered how the Israeli MSM shoved the Oslo Agreements and the withdrawal from Lebanon down our throats. I started blogging a lot against the "unilateral disengagement" i.e. the expulsion of the Jews from the Gaza Strip. Unfortunately the expulsion took place, and today we all can see the disastrous results. At least I can say, "I told you so."
Blogging was my way to process the perplexing reality of Israel after I found myself living in Jerusalem. I quit my high-status job as a foreign correspondent to make this move because my newspaper already had a senior guy posted here. Becoming a cyberpundit and investigative reporter was a revelation. The basic format was easy and explained step-by-step on Google. I love the instantanaeous interplay with readers through their comments and don't even mind trolls and their vitriol if it's clever. Many people seem to want their own prejudices validated and bristle if facts indicate something else. Divergent narratives/ parallel universes/ right brain, left brain synapses. JBlog central baffles me: the ratings tend to be based on a perception of how pro-Israel the stance and not on presentation or originality. If a blogger simply links to a great piece, I don't see that this deserves five stars. I prefer a weird combo of items that causes a mind-warp. My pet peeve is when bloggers link to outdated posts or pix and do not bother to find out if the situation's changed since then. And the best blogs contain snippets of real lives and add original content to the scans of articles already out there in the cyberwilderness.
I started because of boredom, I had so much spare time that I spent reading blogs all day and I thought I might as well write one while I'm at it. I never regretted it.
I started so I could keep in touch with family member after I moved to Israel. They weren't very interested since I have VOIP, and we talk all the time for free. So, it turned into a place for me to write about anything I wanted to. No excitement in this story... -OC
Almost 20 years ago I was bored in Yeshiva so I started writing a newsletter home to friends and family. A little over 10 years ago I started putting it up on a website along with other rants.
Unfortunately I didn't have the foresight to patent the idea, or trademark (or invent) the name blog.
Last year (or was it the year before?) Jameel told me I should blog anonymously so I can really let it all out.
I use my blog as a place for my stuff. Every so often I write something. Maybe someday I'll have more time (ha ha) and be more disciplined (bigger ha ha). :)
Last summer while surfing for war news, Jameel was the most up to date and accurate source, so I stuck with him and the rest is history, I became hooked. I read every day.
I don't have a blog, but I'm considering it. A couple years ago, I was googling something and landed on the blog of A Simple Jew. I started reading it regularly to better understand the Chassidic world, then followed links and blogrolls to broaden my experience. Now I have a long list of favorites, which range from personal to inspiring to humorous to topical to heretical (not that these categories are mutually exclusive). It's the best way to wake up before my morning coffee kicks in.
My husband and I fought his brain cancer for three years, during which I lost touch with friends. Then after he died, I went into three years of social and emotional seclusion. When I was ready to come out of it, I had no one to talk to.
I talked to my blog. I didn't care if no one read it
I discovered blogging through an article in the New York Jewish Week that was mainly about AidelMaidel's blog, which is why I consider her my "blogmother." I lurked for a few months at random, then discovered one of the Jewish blog-rings and, being a perpetual misfit, began looking for names of blogs that seemed to be written by other "square pegs." Sadly, my first two favorite blogs, the Out of Step Jew (from Kfar Saba) and Adam Ragil's Baynonim, are no longer active.
Finally, I decided to take the plunge. (Mark/PsychoToddler beat me to the punch by roughly 10 days.) I must have had a few things to say, because I published my introductory post on August 2, 2004, and six more posts the following day! I haven't shut up since. :)
I started blogging because I needed an anonymous forum in which to kvetch (gripe) about my neighborhood synagogue, and because I wanted to discuss Jewish issues in general. (Originally, I intended to post every week about the parsha/weekly Torah reading.) In the process, I've learned much from my commenters and from other people's blogs. I've found blogging not only a good place to air my sometimes controversial views, but also a wonderful educational opportunity. In the process of learning more, I've also become a tab more observant, which I suspect my Orthodox and more traditional Conservative readers are probably happy about. :)
Much to my surprise, I've also found myself publishing more personal posts. In a million years, I never dreamed that I would "out" myself to hundreds of people as the mother of a child with disabilities by writing a ten-part series about my parenting experience. I hope I've been helpful.
My sister kashered her kitchen just after Pesach this year. I begged her to start a blog about the process, and she did.
I started my blog because I wanted to comment on hers. It has been one month since I started.
I post more often than she does now!
I had been reading blogs avidly for years, but never considered delurking. Now that I have a blog, I find myself commenting on all those blogs I used to lurk about.
I've also been using my blog as a "repository" of things my kids say, or weird ideas that pop into my head, or everyday observations that I otherwise would have kept to myself and eventually forgotten about.
I've used it to chronicle trips and vacations, and to measure my feelings during good and bad times.
Also it keeps me honest about a lot of things, because I have people keeping tabs on me.
Re-reading Jack's original post, I realize that I forgot to mention my "online origin": I used to be addicted to science-fiction-television message boards. In addition to wanting a place to kvetch, I decided to try blogging because I enjoyed writing (and the intellectual challenge that went into--my posts usually take me *ages* to write to my satisfaction), but I was tired of writing about the same or related subjects all the time. I figured that Jewish blogging would be just structured enough that I wouldn't feel that I was reinventing the wheel, but would allow me a lot more freedom as to topics. For better or for worse, that's turned out to be the case. It's been quite a ride. :)
Whenever I searched for stuff on the internet I'd end up in the Judeobloggosphere. Eventually I started bookmarking blogs. Then started my own blog, originally merely to warehouse links, but also to join in the conversation. I've been talking ever since.
Haven't explored much beyond the J-blogs. As is kinda clear from my blogroll.
Had a livejournal account for a long while and included a great many personal musings and more than occasional fiskings. Eventually someone sent me a link to DovBear, my blog godfather. I created my blog to spare the people who know me in real life and could give a hoot about Jewish stuff, and also to get the opportunity to reach beyond my real-life audience. It's weird, but in some ways talking to strangers is freer than people you know.
I started the blog after a forum I was a member of -- Second Wives Cafe -- went through a rough time and lost a lot of members. I had been writing there about being a stepmother. I wanted to write down some of my thoughts on Judaism, but I couldn't do so over there, as religion was one of the hot buttons that seemed to cause problems. A blog where I could "write freely" seemed to be the best solution at the time. (Though I later came to question the "write freely" concept.)
Mark/PT said, "Also it keeps me honest about a lot of things, because I have people keeping tabs on me." As I posted once on his blog, I've had a similar experience. I could only kvetch just so many times about there being no good reason why a woman beyond her child-bearing years should be excused from observing most positive time-bound mitzvot (commandments) before I was forced to face my own hypocrisy, not to mention laziness, and start praying three times a day.
I started a professional blog on the advice of a peer in my field. I never realized there was so much going on in the jblog side of things, but a friend sent me a link and I was intrigued. As a writer, I enjoy sharing stories and thought that starting a personal blog would help me document the seemingly unimportant things that happen every day -- but that might serve as enjoyable reading for others and for myself over time.
After a while though, I found myself spending too much time, and have relegated instead to hijacking Jameel's blog every so often...
I was off for two weeks last summer before my camp job began, and I said to my brother: why don't we start writing on the daily Daf, and give everyone a chance to contribute a little? Daf Yomi was always about a "togetherness among Klal Yisroel." Having a Daf Yomi site where people can "chap" a bite of learning during lunch or by a break, thus inspiring them throughout the day was something special that we wanted to be a part of. We have regular Daf Yomi learners who visit daily and we have those that are interested in certain specific topics. We even have people that drop by who are not currently studying, but enjoy and are interested in the issues discussed. The blogger community (including Jameel) is extremely helpful for us amateurs, who were not trained in html codes, widgets and trackbacks. We thank everyone and we hope you all enjoy the Daf Notes. Thank you.
Someone showed me that Mis-nagid was writing apikorsus on the internet, so I started commenting on his blog to debate him and eventually I started my own blog.
I was always interested in diaries. I started keeping written journals when I was 12. Then when I was 13 or so, I found online journaling sites. I've been hooked ever since.
I came to know about blogs only after the petition files against the blogs in the local court to ban some of the blogs,luckily it doesn't happen.Curiosity led me to read blogs,after that I find it interesting,informative and time-passing,so then on I continuously blogging... breakdown insurance
I began reading blogs through the links on an online forum I frequent.
As to how I ended up reading J-blogs (I'm not Jewish), that's a whole 'nuther story.
Back in May of 2006, I took a vacation in Israel. I work in law enforcement and was curious about the Israel Police. So when I returned home, I Googled 'Israel Police.' One of the links was to Jerusalemcop, a J-blog. I began a correspondence with the author of that blog and out of curiosity, began reading other blogs on his blogroll. One thing led to another and here I am.
I read and lurked for a long time, then thought I'd try my hand at it when I noticed that 87 people had actually visited my blog before I had even posted anything! I loved writing and receiving comments...and then one day, I stopped. I miss it immensely...but that's a post in and of itself.
B"H In 1998 I had to write an article for the [very liberal] Los Angeles Jewish Voice (Long story). I put it up on a geocities site to accompany my resume as a writing sample. When I sent out e-mails to the US attempting to tell Jews what was really going on here (Read: much different than what CNN broadcasts), I added them to my site. I didn't even know what a blog was until 5765. When I did, http://shilohmusings.blogspot.com influenced to get into the act.
Is it too late to respond to this question? I began blogging by "accident," after registering in order to leave a comment on a friend's blog; I had no idea what a blog was, actually; but after registering, I had this urge to express myself, and the words just tumbled out, one on top of the other...
43 comments:
Someone sent me a link to a now defunct blog because she thought I would like the way the blog's author wrote. And I did. And was inspired. So I started my own. I've been at it now for about 4 years and seen it through various incarnations. It's getting ready to have a new one, but I'm not quite ready to take the plunge yet.
I was googling my band after a Chicago performance and found a review up on a blog called velvel. I was fascinated by the whole personal soapbox thing, particularly because it was free and I had been spending (and still do) money every month for my band website.
I got involved in a few of the blog wars as an outsider, and I realized that I had things to say that were just as valid. So instead of constantly emailing the blog owners and asking them to quote my messages (these guys didn't have comments), I decided to start one up on my own.
It's a long story:
http://www.jewishpress.com/page.do/16246/Truth,_Terrorism_and_the_Times_--_My_First_Year_As_a_Blogger.html
Our son, Ariel Chaim ZT'L passed away. There was no comfort, no release. A close friend suggested blogging. Thus Seraphic Secret was born.
I was trolling porn sites for available women and figured a blog would be a great way to meet lots of horny women I could...
Hey, is this thing on???
I discovered one blog...then another and another...and so on. After a couple of months, I decided why not try writing a blog myself?
And so, in December 2004, Pearlies of Wisdom was born.
In brief:
I was an avid journal write for about 20 years, then when we had our second child almost 5 years ago, I sort of stopped writing. Just over a year ago I moved out of of Jewish outreach/communal work and into the 'private sector' and was looking to fill a void and get back to writing. I had been reading blogs for a few years and finally took the plunge.
I started reading blogs and didn't find anybody saying the things I wanted to say. So I had to say them.
I somehow ended up reading a friend's blog, which eventually led to the discovery of a friend of that friend's blog, which in turn led to the discovery of some of the major J-Blogs. Just before the start of this Jewish calendar year, I figured I may as well start blogging, what with my year in Israel adventure coming up and all.
I started blogging a few years ago, but it was before I was ready for it. I felt it was stupid and pointless and who cared about ehat I thought. That was before there was such a thing as the jblog world...
Then about 14 months ago I started reading blogs and I got the itch to write again... the rest, as they say, is history...
I don't remember how but I discovered the Little Green Footballs blog. I was amazed at how he and other bloggers exposed the fake Killian memos that Dan Rather broadcast on 60 Minutes and eventually brought about his resignation. "Blogs can take on the mainstream media," I thought. I remembered how the Israeli MSM shoved the Oslo Agreements and the withdrawal from Lebanon down our throats. I started blogging a lot against the "unilateral disengagement" i.e. the expulsion of the Jews from the Gaza Strip. Unfortunately the expulsion took place, and today we all can see the disastrous results. At least I can say, "I told you so."
Blogging was my way to process the perplexing reality of Israel after I found myself living in Jerusalem. I quit my high-status job as a foreign correspondent to make this move because my newspaper already had a senior guy posted here. Becoming a cyberpundit and investigative reporter was a revelation.
The basic format was easy and explained step-by-step on Google. I love the instantanaeous interplay with readers through their comments and don't even mind trolls and their vitriol if it's clever.
Many people seem to want their own prejudices validated and bristle if facts indicate something else. Divergent narratives/ parallel universes/ right brain, left brain synapses.
JBlog central baffles me: the ratings tend to be based on a perception of how pro-Israel the stance and not on presentation or originality. If a blogger simply links to a great piece, I don't see that this deserves five stars. I prefer a weird combo of items that causes a mind-warp. My pet peeve is when bloggers link to outdated posts or pix and do not bother to find out if the situation's changed since then. And the best blogs contain snippets of real lives and add original content to the scans of articles already out there in the cyberwilderness.
I started because of boredom, I had so much spare time that I spent reading blogs all day and I thought I might as well write one while I'm at it.
I never regretted it.
I started so I could keep in touch with family member after I moved to Israel. They weren't very interested since I have VOIP, and we talk all the time for free. So, it turned into a place for me to write about anything I wanted to. No excitement in this story...
-OC
Almost 20 years ago I was bored in Yeshiva so I started writing a newsletter home to friends and family. A little over 10 years ago I started putting it up on a website along with other rants.
Unfortunately I didn't have the foresight to patent the idea, or trademark (or invent) the name blog.
Last year (or was it the year before?) Jameel told me I should blog anonymously so I can really let it all out.
I use my blog as a place for my stuff. Every so often I write something. Maybe someday I'll have more time (ha ha) and be more disciplined (bigger ha ha). :)
Last summer while surfing for war news, Jameel was the most up to date and accurate source, so I stuck with him and the rest is history, I became hooked. I read every day.
The Disengagement was looming in July 2005...and I found that so many bloggers were either disinterested or pro-Disengagement.
I started blogging to make a difference -- to foster more feeling for the Land of Israel among the Jewish people everywhere.
The waffle maker appeared only this past October, but has changed my blog forever...
I don't have a blog, but I'm considering it. A couple years ago, I was googling something and landed on the blog of A Simple Jew. I started reading it regularly to better understand the Chassidic world, then followed links and blogrolls to broaden my experience. Now I have a long list of favorites, which range from personal to inspiring to humorous to topical to heretical (not that these categories are mutually exclusive). It's the best way to wake up before my morning coffee kicks in.
My husband and I fought his brain cancer for three years, during which I lost touch with friends. Then after he died, I went into three years of social and emotional seclusion. When I was ready to come out of it, I had no one to talk to.
I talked to my blog. I didn't care if no one read it
Dear Jack,
On November 22, 2000 my son Ben died. A friend suggested I read Seraphic Secret. I did and still do, was inspired and thus The Book of Ben was born.
I remain,
Very Sincerely yours,
Alan D. Busch
I discovered blogging through an article in the New York Jewish Week that was mainly about AidelMaidel's blog, which is why I consider her my "blogmother." I lurked for a few months at random, then discovered one of the Jewish blog-rings and, being a perpetual misfit, began looking for names of blogs that seemed to be written by other "square pegs." Sadly, my first two favorite blogs, the Out of Step Jew (from Kfar Saba) and Adam Ragil's Baynonim, are no longer active.
Finally, I decided to take the plunge. (Mark/PsychoToddler beat me to the punch by roughly 10 days.) I must have had a few things to say, because I published my introductory post on August 2, 2004, and six more posts the following day! I haven't shut up since. :)
I started blogging because I needed an anonymous forum in which to kvetch (gripe) about my neighborhood synagogue, and because I wanted to discuss Jewish issues in general. (Originally, I intended to post every week about the parsha/weekly Torah reading.) In the process, I've learned much from my commenters and from other people's blogs. I've found blogging not only a good place to air my sometimes controversial views, but also a wonderful educational opportunity. In the process of learning more, I've also become a tab more observant, which I suspect my Orthodox and more traditional Conservative readers are probably happy about. :)
Much to my surprise, I've also found myself publishing more personal posts. In a million years, I never dreamed that I would "out" myself to hundreds of people as the mother of a child with disabilities by writing a ten-part series about my parenting experience. I hope I've been helpful.
My sister kashered her kitchen just after Pesach this year. I begged her to start a blog about the process, and she did.
I started my blog because I wanted to comment on hers. It has been one month since I started.
I post more often than she does now!
I had been reading blogs avidly for years, but never considered delurking. Now that I have a blog, I find myself commenting on all those blogs I used to lurk about.
I've also been using my blog as a "repository" of things my kids say, or weird ideas that pop into my head, or everyday observations that I otherwise would have kept to myself and eventually forgotten about.
I've used it to chronicle trips and vacations, and to measure my feelings during good and bad times.
Also it keeps me honest about a lot of things, because I have people keeping tabs on me.
Re-reading Jack's original post, I realize that I forgot to mention my "online origin": I used to be addicted to science-fiction-television message boards. In addition to wanting a place to kvetch, I decided to try blogging because I enjoyed writing (and the intellectual challenge that went into--my posts usually take me *ages* to write to my satisfaction), but I was tired of writing about the same or related subjects all the time. I figured that Jewish blogging would be just structured enough that I wouldn't feel that I was reinventing the wheel, but would allow me a lot more freedom as to topics. For better or for worse, that's turned out to be the case. It's been quite a ride. :)
Whenever I searched for stuff on the internet I'd end up in the Judeobloggosphere. Eventually I started bookmarking blogs.
Then started my own blog, originally merely to warehouse links, but also to join in the conversation. I've been talking ever since.
Haven't explored much beyond the J-blogs. As is kinda clear from my blogroll.
Had a livejournal account for a long while and included a great many personal musings and more than occasional fiskings. Eventually someone sent me a link to DovBear, my blog godfather. I created my blog to spare the people who know me in real life and could give a hoot about Jewish stuff, and also to get the opportunity to reach beyond my real-life audience. It's weird, but in some ways talking to strangers is freer than people you know.
I started the blog after a forum I was a member of -- Second Wives Cafe -- went through a rough time and lost a lot of members. I had been writing there about being a stepmother. I wanted to write down some of my thoughts on Judaism, but I couldn't do so over there, as religion was one of the hot buttons that seemed to cause problems. A blog where I could "write freely" seemed to be the best solution at the time. (Though I later came to question the "write freely" concept.)
Mark/PT said, "Also it keeps me honest about a lot of things, because I have people keeping tabs on me." As I posted once on his blog, I've had a similar experience. I could only kvetch just so many times about there being no good reason why a woman beyond her child-bearing years should be excused from observing most positive time-bound mitzvot (commandments) before I was forced to face my own hypocrisy, not to mention laziness, and start praying three times a day.
I started a professional blog on the advice of a peer in my field. I never realized there was so much going on in the jblog side of things, but a friend sent me a link and I was intrigued. As a writer, I enjoy sharing stories and thought that starting a personal blog would help me document the seemingly unimportant things that happen every day -- but that might serve as enjoyable reading for others and for myself over time.
After a while though, I found myself spending too much time, and have relegated instead to hijacking Jameel's blog every so often...
I was off for two weeks last summer before my camp job began, and I said to my brother: why don't we start writing on the daily Daf, and give everyone a chance to contribute a little? Daf Yomi was always about a "togetherness among Klal Yisroel." Having a Daf Yomi site where people can "chap" a bite of learning during lunch or by a break, thus inspiring them throughout the day was something special that we wanted to be a part of. We have regular Daf Yomi learners who visit daily and we have those that are interested in certain specific topics. We even have people that drop by who are not currently studying, but enjoy and are interested in the issues discussed. The blogger community (including Jameel) is extremely helpful for us amateurs, who were not trained in html codes, widgets and trackbacks. We thank everyone and we hope you all enjoy the Daf Notes. Thank you.
Someone showed me that Mis-nagid was writing apikorsus on the internet, so I started commenting on his blog to debate him and eventually I started my own blog.
I was always interested in diaries. I started keeping written journals when I was 12. Then when I was 13 or so, I found online journaling sites. I've been hooked ever since.
I came to know about blogs only after the petition files against the blogs in the local court to ban some of the blogs,luckily it doesn't happen.Curiosity led me to read blogs,after that I find it interesting,informative and time-passing,so then on I continuously blogging...
breakdown insurance
I began reading blogs through the links on an online forum I frequent.
As to how I ended up reading J-blogs (I'm not Jewish), that's a whole 'nuther story.
Back in May of 2006, I took a vacation in Israel. I work in law enforcement and was curious about the Israel Police. So when I returned home, I Googled 'Israel Police.' One of the links was to Jerusalemcop, a J-blog. I began a correspondence with the author of that blog and out of curiosity, began reading other blogs on his blogroll. One thing led to another and here I am.
I kept a paper journal for years. It was filled with collages, articles, thoughts, poetry, etc.
I shared it with my housemates and boyfriend du jour
then i had a long distance relationship that had me checking email everyday
and instant messaging
I am in Cali
I read a friends blog in NOLA
and then another dear friend of 22 years who lived
in texas
and another from mich...
it became a way to jouranl and keep freindships alive
a way to express myself
as an artist
poet
mom
etc.
grace,
T
I read and lurked for a long time, then thought I'd try my hand at it when I noticed that 87 people had actually visited my blog before I had even posted anything! I loved writing and receiving comments...and then one day, I stopped. I miss it immensely...but that's a post in and of itself.
I retired from my job and said to myself: "What now?" So I started reading blogs. When I discovered I could get my own blog free, I was on my way.
Thankfully, no one in my family reads my blog. Just to be sure, I change all the names to protect the innocent.
I know why I write it. Now tell me why anyone would read it.
I started my blog because I was bored and miserable one summer and needed a fun project to do that would cheer me up. And at the time, it did!
I want to say thank you to everyone who has participated thus far. I have enjoyed reading your responses and learning more about you and your blogs.
B"H In 1998 I had to write an article for the [very liberal] Los Angeles Jewish Voice (Long story). I put it up on a geocities site to accompany my resume as a writing sample. When I sent out e-mails to the US attempting to tell Jews what was really going on here (Read: much different than what CNN broadcasts), I added them to my site. I didn't even know what a blog was until 5765. When I did, http://shilohmusings.blogspot.com influenced to get into the act.
Is it too late to respond to this question?
I began blogging by "accident," after registering in order to leave a comment on a friend's blog; I had no idea what a blog was, actually; but after registering, I had this urge to express myself, and the words just tumbled out, one on top of the other...
Nope, not too late at all.
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