Monday, January 4, 2010

I Blog for the Compliments

There are myriad reasons why people blog.

Personally, I started because it was something I'd been required to do at my last job and I discovered I missed it once I got laid off.

I've always been an enthusiastic writer (I've written tomes to past loves via e-mail) and, as my profile indicates, I have an opinion on just about everything.

Given how effortless writing is for me, blogging was a no-brainer.

The longer I do it though, the more often I am reminded of its far-reaching effects.

One of those is that when I'm out with people who know I blog, they'll say something off-color or not for public knowledge and then quickly tell me, "Don't put that in the blog!"

99% of the time, what they've said wasn't blog-worthy anyway.

Not long ago, I was at a live music show and someone I knew only by sight came up and asked me if I was the ICGOAO blogger.

Yes, I told her, but how the hell did you know that?

Apparently she was already a regular reader and had recently been at a restaurant the same night as I had and noticed me.

When she saw my post the next day, she put two and two together.

She'd even tried new restaurants based solely on some of my posts and loved them.

Best of all, she'd recommended my blog to many of her friends as a must-read.

A former neighbor with whom I hadn't spoken in years and recently saw told me that I was one of two blogs he reads regularly and had somehow figured out that it was mine.

He complimented my enthusiasm for and knowledge about all the great stuff that goes on in RVA.

Walking into Gallery 5 one evening, a photographer I know said hi and asked why he wasn't following me on Twitter.

Well, because I don't tweet I told him, I only blog.

But the fact was he thought I'd be interesting enough to want to follow and I don't even know what I'd said or done to give him that impression.

I've heard from out-of-town bands I've written up and authors whose readings I've attended.

No less than three winemakers I've met at wine dinners have contacted me after reading my blog.

And now Richmond.com has gone and put me on their "Favorite Stuff of 2009" along with only two other blogs.

It seems my "very active lifestyle" and "witty commentary of the people and places in our fair city" caught their collective eye.

Of course, the humor there is that they are my former employer, so essentially I was laid off and lauded, which I see as way better than laid off and ignored.

I've always been one of those people to whom surprising things are said and interesting things happen.

In the past, I had a significant other to share these great stories with.

Since that's no longer the case, I now share them with the online world but who knew how interested they'd be in my odd little life? I certainly can't say I did.

On the other hand, I'll take the compliments wherever I can get them.

6 comments:

  1. I laughed out loud seeing the richmond.com favorites. How ironic and funny... living proof of karma?
    Here's to an amazing, loving, healthy 2010!

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  2. Ha! You're famous!
    'Course, of the five people who still read the Times Dispatch, only 2 of them read it on the web, so maybe your readership won't jump too much.

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  3. And they even provided a link. I'm speechless. Do you think somewhere in the bowels of the RTD someone is asking the question, did we make a mistake?

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  4. The irony is quite delicious. Congrats!

    The Lone Wolf@cafedarkness

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  5. I think it's fair to say they know they lost something good :) and rest-assured, the richmond.com folks who picked your blog as one of their favorites never wanted to see you go!

    and, hey, scott, be nice. i know at LEAST 6 people who still read the RTD. ;)

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  6. If only the change in karma would apply to my love life, LAVCU!
    Famous for sharing my pathetic life, scott?
    Some people never acknowledge their mistakes, gabake01.
    Back at you Lone Wolf.
    You flatter me, Christina.But thanks for that.

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