Genesis
I spent an unreasonable amount of time debating what to write for my first post. Naturally, this spiraled into pondering about blogging as a concept. And that got me reminiscing about my secondary school days when I was utterly obsessed with The Bloggess. I was so hooked on what this white, middle-aged Texan lady had to say (usually about her taxidermy adventures) so much so that I’d ditch my friends during recess to hide away in a dimly-lit, stuffy computer room on the top floor of the forgotten science block and binge-read her very important, life-changing posts.
While I’ve lost track of how many blogs I have birthed and left crying in digital dumpsters, I do know that my voice has remained fairly consistent and heavily influenced by The (almighty) Bloggess. Something about her unapologetic kookiness resonated with me as a brooding teenager, and galvanised me to be as unabashed as my cautiously lowered inhibitions would allow on the internet. That’s the key difference, I think, between a blog and a diary. Unapologetic kookiness in private is like sharing inside jokes with yourself, but unapologetic kookiness on a public blog - shared with some undefined audience - feels like inviting others to join you in your wild, mad jig on the dance floor. Whether anyone takes your outstretched hand or not, the invitation is its own kind of charm.
That’s the reason why The Bloggess is so successful, or rather, so beloved, right? Though, it’s bittersweet, perusing her recent posts. Her daughter, Hailey, is all grown up (and has a girlfriend?? They. Are. ADORABLE), her hair is greying into distinguished streaks, and she radiates a stronger sense of self than ever. She's been blogging for a whopping 17 years, shimmying on down with an ever-growing community for nearly two decades. From what I remember, The Bloggess rarely shied away from being brutally open about her vulnerabilities, amidst the less serious, all the more insane things. It seems she’s stayed true to that even after I stopped obsessing over her blog when I started high school. And isn’t that just what life is all about? She’s aged gracefully and honestly – and so has her blog.
My past blogs tried to emulate what The Bloggess had mastered, but their fleeting existence kept them from ever achieving what I didn’t even realise I was striving towards all those years ago in that dimly lit, stuffy computer room. I don’t plan to build an audience with fresh from the bog, but I do have lofty ambitions of honing my prose, exploring poetry, and untangling the mess of my own thoughts. And so, for the umpteenth time, I christen my blog. Long may it last – may it last as long as I do.