Blogging

An Inconvenient Blogging Truth

/ Ally Bean / 16 Comments

When I started keeping a personal blog I realized that I’d have to find the time to write.  Mornings work best for me.

And I also knew that I’d have to have the ability to express myself in this medium.   Stories, photos [not of people] and links work best for me.

But what did not occur to me was that I’d also have to have something to write about all the time.  That is, something would have to happen in my life that I’d want to tell you about.  Something interesting, or insightful, or entertaining.

And it is at this point in the process that I find myself today.  At a point where there is nothing to talk about.

It’s not as if I’m not doing things.  I am.  It’s just that I cannot fathom why anyone would care to read about the ho-humness of my daily life.  A ho-humness, I hasten to add, that makes me happy.

So, having explained myself thusly, I’ll end this post by leaving you, my gentle readers, with a guarantee that when something of note happens in my life, I’ll share it here.

And I’ll leave you with one of my favorite quotes that succinctly explains my attitude toward blogging– and life, too, for that matter.

“Give me your heart, Make it real, Or else forget about it.”

# # #

In Which I Manage To Disappoint By Merely Existing

/ Ally Bean / 24 Comments

I have hit a new low in blogging.

Putting aside the fact that I’ve never written a word about wind chimes until today, I think that it is fair to say that this spammer took a very dim view of one of my blog posts.  I’ve never received such a sad piece of spam before.  Most of my spam is of the “great job” variety, so the unhappiness described in this piece of spam is almost too much for me.

I feel the angst.

But here’s what confuses me: why is this piece of spam telling me about some clunky, un-melodic wind chimes?  I had nothing to do with the wind chimes.  It’s almost as if this piece of spam was written without anyone actually reading what I wrote… as if there is no correlation between my content and the spam comment… as if this spammer doesn’t care about me at all.

Oh dear!  That couldn’t be it, could it?  😉

NaBloPoMo: 10 Things About It For Which I’m Grateful + 3 Other Points

/ Ally Bean / 18 Comments
  • It reminded me of why I don’t do a daily blog anymore. Too. Much. Sitting. Still.
  • It allowed me to meet some new-to-me bloggers who were doing this challenge, too.
  • It made me realize how small my world was before the internet– back when geography and genetics were my only links to people.
  • It encouraged some of my lurkers to reveal themselves with a like or a comment.
  • It got me laughing at myself & others as we struggled to do this challenge.
  • It confirmed that posting on Sunday is never worth it for me.  I hate doing it & my readers don’t do Sunday blogging.
  • It gave me the opportunity to write some new types of posts.  For better or for worse.
  • It showed me that despite my disinclination to use YouTube videos in my posts, doing so was well-received.
  • It provided me with a space to share some of my photos that I’d have never posted otherwise.
  • It forced me to re-evaluate whether blogging is worth the bother.  My conclusion?  It is… when done no more than three days per week.

# # # 

1. I have to wonder if November is the best time of year for NaBloPoMo.  I understand the history of this challenge so I get why it’s in November.  But honestly, November is filled with lots of other things to do, often involving travel, that make it extra difficult to finish NaBloPoMo.

Instead, I’d like to nominate February as the official NaBloPoMo month.  It’s a short month– with a good heart— typically filled with fewer distractions than November.

2.  I found this year’s NaBloPoMo blogroll to be frustrating.  As I have done in past years, I intended to use it to find new bloggers.  However, when I clicked on many of the links, I discovered the blogger had done nothing– or only posted a couple of days.

I realize that NaBloPoMo uses the honor system, but couldn’t someone at Blogher go through the blogroll at least once and weed out the faux participants?  I, for one, would appreciate it.

3.  I saw quite a few bloggers just do this challenge without signing up.  I joined NaBloPoMo officially because I had hoped that by signing up on Blogher I’d get encouragement from & interaction with lots of other bloggers within that forum.  But that didn’t happen [see points 1 & 2 above] which left me feeling somewhat alone while doing NaBloPoMo.

If I ever do this challenge again, I’m going to embrace my natural inclination to not conform just because I’m supposed to and follow the lead of those who refuse to belong– where ironically this year I found bloggers who were the most supportive of my efforts.

The “Reader Appreciation Award” Meme

/ Ally Bean / 20 Comments

:: The Introduction ::

Gemma at helloitsgemma tagged me with this award.  Isn’t that kind of her?  The deal is that I answer the following questions.  Then I tag some other bloggers who I appreciate for leaving comments on my blog.  They then answer the questions on their blogs & tag some more bloggers.  And the award goes on ad infinitum…

:: The Questions ::

Where do you do most of your writing/blogging?
In our home study using my desktop computer, Coraline.

What books were your childhood favourites?
From my mother: The Complete Tales of Winnie the Pooh + Charlotte’s Web + the Little House on the Prairie series.  From my father: The Adventures of Tom Sawyer + Adventures of Huckleberry Finn.

Who is your favourite fictional character?
Tricky question.  I’m going to stick with childhood books and say Cassandra Mortmain, the narrator in I Capture the Castle by Dodie Smith.  Cassandra, a teenage girl, starts the novel as a detached observer who records events + her impressions of people in her journal.  But eventually Cassandra becomes a participant in her own life and learns a few adult truths.  She is, I believe, one of the most charming narrators ever.

What is your favourite time of day and why?
Morning, when it is quiet, is my favorite time of day because my mind isn’t overtaxed with the daily minutiae yet.

Have you ever Googled yourself and been surprised at what you’ve found?
Yes, I’ve Googled myself.  No, I wasn’t surprised.  This blog is all there is about me out there on the interwebs.

Who would play me in a movie of my life?
Let’s ask Christina Applegate first, shall we?  I think she’d be a good choice.

One material possession I could not live without?
Our electric Cuisinart coffee maker with a timer.

Have you ever been naked in public?
Does skinny dipping, while in college, with friends, in a friend’s grandma’s pool count?  If so, yes.  If not, no.

What is your dream car?
Any car that I own.  Right now it’s a 9-year-old Honda Accord coupe, Olivia.

What/who/where was your first proper kiss?
I’m going to interpret proper kiss to mean the first one with the man who I married.  So the answer would be: long smooch/Zen-Den/college dorm room.

:: The Next Step ::

Here is a list of some wonderful bloggers who frequently comment on The Spectacled Bean.  I’m choosing these bloggers for this meme because, like me, they are doing NaBloPoMo– and I figure that they might be looking for something to write about.  

J at Thinking About…

Cheri at Naples Girl Blog

alejna at collecting tokens

Melisa at Suburban Scrawl

Relyn at Come Sit by My Fire

[There is, as always, no obligation to do this meme.  You won’t hurt my feelings if you choose to ignore all of this.  I realize that memes aren’t for everyone.]