Sunday, September 4, 2011

Blogging

Like you, I've been pondering this strange thing called "blogging" a bit recently.  I very nearly called it quits with this blog recently but decided to just leave it and stew for a while instead.  Ultimately I seem to have decided to keep things going, so I suppose that's good for those of you who come here to read this stuff because you enjoy it rather than because you hate me and you're slowly assembler a dossier to clonk me over the head with one day when I'm running for Prime Minister.

Anyway, one I'd stopped writing here frequently I suddenly became unable to figure out how to start again.  I kept thinking of ideas but was unable to develop them in my head into fully-fledged posts ready to leave the nest and soar the information superdooperhighway without me.  It took me about three weeks to realize that that has always been the case.  I don't develop these posts in my head at all. 

What actually happens is that I have an idea or two, or maybe not even that - sometimes just a feeling that I need to discover or explore - and I sit down and let things go.  That's why it's fun.  Planning things is not fun.  Doing things is fun. 

When I succumb to the urge to plan I usually find myself trying to perfectionize things, which results in a clean crisp dull icy ache in my brain and a clean crisp dull icy ache on the page.  Sure, structure is good, and structure is something that is probably a good idea to plan, especially if you're trying to make some kind of point.  Fortunately for me I seldom am in such an unfortunate position.  I have the liberty of just blabbing all this stuff down onto the page.

And why?  Why do I do it?  Mostly just so I don't think so much about it any more.  Once I notice that there's a post welling up inside me I tend to start to overthink it, which, as mentioned above, kills it.  So the more frequently I blab this stuff, the sooner I can launch my unconscious out through my fingertips and onto the screen.

Stand by stomach, here come banana!

3 comments:

Lumpage said...

I ascribe to your system of blogging. Over-thinking ruins posts, or prevents them from being published. However, I have learned that spewing your thoughts on to that screen only works well if you are either
a) a good and organised thinker
b) witty
c) bitter and twisted

You're evidently at least one of these, which is why people keep coming back. Heck, even you can't resist your own unconscious outputs. Keep it up!

PTR said...

I'm pretty sure I'm all three of those things! In fact, I have a schedule:
Monday - good and organized thinking
Tuesday - wit
Wednesday - cynicism
Thursday - bathos
Friday - moral turpitude
Saturday - sarcasm
Sunday - avuncularity

Anonymous said...

Firstly, I love your blog, so don't stop posting.
It is also educational.
For example, I had to Google "avuncularity" and discovered that the root word, "avuncular" means
"suggestive of an uncle especially in kindliness or geniality"...I can't decide whether it's creepy or impressive that your Sundays are characterised by...an uncle.