We don't live in a partially warm and fuzzy neighborhood. We wave when we drive past each other and make brief acknowlegements as we trip over one another at larger social funtions.
Yet, Smokie was quite excited about the community garage sale this morning and demanded a walk. One perpetually perky type, cornered me at the second stop. "I heard about your G8 website. Your husband certainly gives you a long leash."
She was smiling. I was smiling. She likely doesn't realize how close she came from having Smokie's leash around her neck. Tightly.
Heading around the turn another nameless neighbor whispered conspiratorily, "I just heard about your G8 blog. You go girl." Just before we got home, the lady across the street mentioned "that G8 thing" too.
The last entry in that separate blog, written in the months leading up to Bush's summit here, is almost two months old -- yet it lives large in Garage Sale Land.
Through the G8 blog, I met some amazing people online, received some fascinating invitations, and even enjoyed a couple of them immensely. It also brought me a bit of government attention and allegedly annoyed some folks who read it religiously, but had neither the courage or confidence to engage me in any type of discussion online or otherwise.
That's politics. It's fun. I'm perversely proud of the fact that I'm still scandalizing the neighborhood with stale news and views.
But this blog is personal. I use it to stretch my writing muscles, stress or express depending on the day, and take a break from the projects in front of me. I love the fact there are a core of subscribers who either care about what I have to say or how I say it. I haven't seen many of them in many years, but it's nice to stay in touch and to know they care enough to follow my life this way.
Regardless of the content, it's always fascinating to get email from blog readers I've never met. I've had some amazing discussions with strangers on both craft and content. It's why I keep doing it.
It's the "anonymous" readers I have met long ago, who have no role in my life today whatsoever, who read this space religiously and discuss it at length with similarly disenfranchised folk, that are starting to get on my nerves.
They have huge opinions about things I write and often get quite upset... but will never email or speak to to me. They stand behind a cyberhedge stalking a person and a world they think they once knew. They have no context. They have no clue. But they feed off each other and can work themselves into quite the little snit.
If you feel like this might be written for you, it is. Go on ahead and bookmark another page that may actually have something to do with your own life. Take this one off your Favorites. I wasn't your favorite then and I'm obviously not going to be now.



Copyright 2004 Judi Griggs