Blogging is addictive. I don’t know how I ever survived without it. I started in October of 2006 with frogblog and now I have four blogs and am a contributor to one two three others.
It’s an outlet for “that ever-bubbling spring of emotion which, without some conduit into space, will surge upwards and ruin all but the greatest men.” Read that in a Thomas Hardy novel last week (The Well Beloved). I wish my Former Life friends would figure it out. Lots of them could use it.
Up till yesterday, I had Vincent beat by one blog, but he’s caught up to me now.
He’s been annoyed with himself lately because he hasn’t been writing as much music as he used to. (I haven’t been writing any poetry either, for that matter, and I’m also annoyed. I figure it’s because we’re too happy.) He was very prolific for a while during his mad-at-America phase, but he’s over it. He’s given up hope and says I do a much better job of America bashing anyway. I don’t agree. The lyrics to his Bye-Bye Murka series of songs are brilliant.
One of the many things we have in common is that we both like it when there are constraints on our creative projects. I like writing sonnets and villanelles because of the strict rules. I like writing poems with fridge magnets. For some reason, it stimulates my brain when I have to work within a prescribed framework.
Vincent’s the same way. So he decided to try to force the muse to put out by imposing a constraint on himself. He picked the first word from the beginning of a random news story on Libération just to see if he could make a song out of it.
It worked. And he had so much fun with the process that he decided he’ll probably keep doing it from time to time. And so, of course, he made a blog dedicated to his project: 1 mot, 1 chanson.
He picked a gorgeous WordPress theme (if you like that spare, Swiss style) that he discovered through his favorite design blog, Smashing Magazine. He spent a couple of days tweaking it and building an adorable little Flash player. (I was so jealous that he got a new site to play with that I decided to give my personal website a makeover, or relooking, as they say in French.)
The random word for the first song on 1 mot, 1 chanson was “acteur.” You can hear the song and read the (French) lyrics on the site. He’s already got another one in the pipeline. The word is “minute.” Rumor has it I may be singing on that one. If I don’t suck too bad. I’m not making any promises.
I don’t know what I would do with out my blog. I’m addicted to it, I’ll confess. It’s my diary and my guide. My creative and spiritual outlet. And it’s where I get to meet and ‘talk’ with really special folk like YOU! :)
Hello Pamela
Just hopped by to check on your life and times. I’ve been doing that from time to time but never bothered to comment. I, too, find it irresistible to blog whenever possible. It’s that Thomas Hardy thing, I’m sure. The difference is I have to stay political. Hop on over when you get the urge. I’m sure there will be a rant to your liking…
Hi Claudia. It’s amazing to me that such a small percentage of people blog, even though I know writing is a chore for most people.
But I know several English and French profs, a former journalism major and a tech writer/poet who don’t blog. Smart people with things to say. You’d think verbal expression would come naturally to them…
I read the other day that more democrats than republicans blog. Surprise, surprise. This article has interesting stats, although some are a couple of years old and things change so quickly on the Web that they may no longer be relevant.
http://www.caslon.com.au/weblogprofile1.htm
It never occurred to me when I started blogging that I’d meet so many cool people! That makes it so many times more gratifying than just ranting and blabbing alone.
Hello frog! Nice of you to stop by and introduce yourself. I’ve been over to (your) frogblog before, as you can imagine! I was there again just a couple of weeks ago in fact, and yes, there are many rants to my liking. The Green Party of New Zealand (or anywhere) is right up my alley.
You say you have to stay political. I can see that for (your) frogblog since it’s affiliated with the Green Party, but what’s stopping you from creating a personal blog for those non-political rants? They feel really good too. If you ever do go that route, please let me know!
I’ll add your frogblog to my Environment category.
Nice to meet you!
I’ve got a love/hate thing going with the blog. I suppose I’m compulsive about blogging because I write every day and it seems silly just to file all those words on a personal hard drive where no one can see them. But I worry the blogging takes away from real life activities. I guess it’s a matter of finding balance. Blogging has led me to meet new real life friends, people that I would have never known about had I been silent in the blogosphere.
I can see your point, Donavan. In my lifestyle, blogging IS a real-life activity. It’s a healthy outlet for creativity and frustration, it’s stimulating and gratifying (feels good to do some good for someone, either by providing them with food for thought, a laugh, a little beauty, or whatever). I think all of that makes me a better-balanced, healthier, and happier person, which carries into my real-world relationships and interactions! You’re right about that side benefit of new real-life friends. I never expected that! It’s an amazing thing to find a circle of real people you click with (no pun intended!) all over the world.