So part of my blog’s heading is that this is a “personal blog.” I’ve been wondering about that of late, and I think this is somewhat untrue. Fact is, I don’t say a lot of my personal opinions and feelings about things on this blog. This is because too many people from my daily existence has access to this page, and I might have some serious ‘splainin’ to do if I let out my inner skeletons out for display here. That’s part and parcel of having an honest identity on the Web these days. True, I could’ve just adopted a pseudonym, and nobody would’ve been the wiser. But the deed’s been done, and I actually rather like using my “real name” – it feels more honest, in a weird way.
And therein lies the rub. I pride myself on being honest and truthful in almost all aspects of my life. It’s probably one of my top 5 most desired qualities in a human being. True, sometimes I fib a little in order to not get myself in trouble (I avoid conflict like the plague), but when it really matters, I try not to. So is it really honest to say this blog represents my personality and my ideas when I sometimes don’t present all of myself to you, the public?
You will notice I don’t talk about politics much here, if at all. I don’t talk about my family or my lovelife all that much, and neither do I talk much about what goes on at work. I also avoid conversations about religion as much as possible. All these are aspects of my life that are either too private to share, or too controversial to bring up. This is not to say that I don’t share this sort of information outside of this blog however – I often talk about these things with my friends, both in real life and online. On the CBR forums, for example, I sometimes let go of all inhibitions and just let loose my secrets to the world. Of course, I’m hoping that no one will ever read them as the post gets buried under a dozen other threads.
As a final note, I think I’m being as honest as I possibly can on this blog, given the self-imposed restraints I put on myself. The fact that I’m private about certain things doesn’t mean I’m not honest here, and the fact that I avoid conflict like the plague shouldn’t limit me from voicing my opinions on things that matter. The very fact that I’m juggling with these notions of truth, personality, honesty, and the ideas of the public and private self, is indicative (I think) of my personality and my way of thinking.
So, yeah, I think “personal blog” is okay.
That was a long post just to say that, wasn’t it?
On my blog and past incarnations of my blog, everything is pretty much up for grabs.
There are a few personal things I won’t discuss and prefer to keep between Da Goddess and myself.
I have written about things that created a firestorm and my dad even stopped reading my site because of some things I said.
Over all, my blog is my sounding board, my soap box and I don’t care who reads it, or what they think
I agree with Greg. My blog is exactly that. It’s mine. My place on the internet to say/do/be whatever I want. I do place a few restraints on myself. Such as I don’t discuss my sex life, or REALLY personal matters on my blog. But for the most part, like if you go back through my archives, you’ll see deep, raw emotion, and sometimes even anguish. Which is why I don’t suggest going through them. Most people can’t handle it.
As for your blog, I think you have a right to say (or not say) whatever you choose. It’s your space. Don’t fret over it.
I’ll chime in again…Tina’s right…it’s YOUR blog..do and say what you are comfortable with putting out there for the interaolwebnet to see.
Thing is, in past incarnations of my blog (as hosted on blogspot and so forth), I’ve been pretty darn open about aspects of my personal life not spoken of here, basically because those blogs weren’t as accessible by certain people in my life. Fact of the matter is, I *do* care what other people think, especially if whatever I say might upset someone. I was told, for example, that something I said in a previous blog was “too personal” to be displayed. And my initial reaction was anger – who the hell was anyone to censor me? But because that particular person is someone I really respect, I ended up deleting that entry. And I’ll be honest with you; I still resent this huge chip on my shoulder that obligates me to be this way.
‘Course, the irony is that this very comment might be read by those that I’m referring to.