i've been blogging since i was 11 or so. i started out on livejournal, writing my private, emotional and tumultuous fifth grade thoughts (lol lyfe is so hard guyz) into my online diary that not a soul cared about or read.
and then my friends and peers joined livejournal. and looked at my journal. i started to make 'friends only' and 'private' posts. i mean, i can't have the entire world knowing about my middle school drama, can i? certainly not.
over the years, blogging intention has changed. blogging has changed. to talk about sharing yourself online in the way it existed 10 years ago in comparison to today is largely unfair - the entire premise of blogging, sharing, etc. has evolved to be something else. for many, a blog is no longer a place of musings, sordid life details, conversational tidbits and woes. internet presence has become about community, connecting and offering bits of your world that build friendships.
i haven't written a diary in years. the internet was my diary. and now, the internet is an outward facing, primped, styled and polished reflection of my life. no qualms about that - we all do it. but the carefully arranged photos and instagram shots are not my life. and they're not yours either.
i appreciate beautifully crafted food photography, glamorous product reviews, carefully photoshopped photoshoots styling valentino shoes... it's all gorgeous and dreamy to look at, and i am all about the visuals (i mean really, look at my photo that goes with this post...) but will blogging ever just be about the raw stuff again? will the diaries ever come back in full swing? more importantly, should they?
i can think of many reasons why not. in 2001, we weren't worried much about what our internet presence said about us if it was pulled up on a a job interview. i don't want an employer to google my name and have my relationship drama come up. everyone is more guarded now, crafting their words and images. i think it's smart, but i suppose i miss the internet of old. livejournal, xanga and diaryland anyone?
what do you think about how blogging has changed? how long have you been blogging?
I think I would appreciate reading a more raw and candid blog about someone's life. There are so many things that we all do that aren't that different from everyone else. It would be nice to know there are people out there that can share the same sort of "crazy" and be able to relate to it. The problem today I believe is if you aren't careful about what you say or post and it got into the hands of the right person it could go viral and it could be bad. (I've read stories where people were harassed and received death threats.) People aren't afraid to tell you what they really think when they're sitting behind a computer. The online world is a scary place and while I myself put a lot out there I do try to be objective and keep and open mind on everything as not to terribly offend anyone.
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