Keep on blogging

I’ve just realised that I've been doing this blogging lark for just over 10 years now, since January 2010, to be exact. Gosh - how time flies. One of the fun things about it is rereading old posts. I see posts from years gone by and I don’t remember what I said or why I said it (Iris Robinson's knickers back in January 2010 - who remembers that now? I certainly didn't.)  But I do enjoy going back and reading what I've written.  Some of it still makes me laugh. Some of it makes me think.  Some of it makes me think…what on earth was I thinking?

I often say to myself “I said what?”. I have admittedly said things that would really p**s off a lot of people today. But my thoughts have not changed that much over the years, although I have developed a little bit of a filter. Commenters kicking your arse for things you say helps you develop one.

I have learned to filter out “bad words.”  I don’t really think there are bad words as such, only bad intentions, but since many people react negatively to some words, regardless of the context, I have learned to just stay away from their usage.…..most of the time.

I try, despite ample evidence to the contrary, to stay away from politics. This has been hard as I have always enjoyed the cut and thrust of political discussions. I'm so old that I can even remember a time when people could share different political positions and still remain good friends. Sadly, that is no longer the case.

There are many subjects I've learnt to avoid. Don’t make fun of someone’s religion. Don’t joke about sexual orientation. Be careful when discussing someone’s intelligence and do not post anything about anything to do with race.

There are so many topics that are just best avoided. I get that but what does continually surprise me is the seemingly innocuous topics that will manage to be provocative to someone. I can make a comment about biscuits, wasting water, using a sponge, almost any subject will make someone angry. And this is amongst the rather limited audience of my blog.  If I make a satirical or obviously tongue-in-cheek comment about any of life’s problems, someone will offer me a solution. I've often wondered why there are many would-be problem solvers reading my posts. What does that say about me?

Ten years! That is a long time, for someone with my limited aspirations. Lately  though I've noticed that my readership is decreasing. I don’t know if it is because my posts are rubbish or that this blog thing is losing steam. I’ll go with the latter, because, well because, I know I am fabulous so it can’t be the former.

I often think about quitting. Then some reader drops me an email telling me that they enjoy my posts or I get a really nice comment from someone I really respect. Or I get a really vitriolic response from someone who has taken exception to one of my more political efforts. That’s all it takes for me to continue. I don’t think I can quit, but I just may not post as often. 

Many great painters, writers, musicians and other artists were abject failures until they kicked the bucket. Then others discovered their genius. Who knows, maybe I am an undiscovered genius.  So, I will continue to post occasionally, because someday these posts will be recognized for their brilliance and importance.

Nah, probably not…who cares,  even if only a few people read these posts, I do enjoy the process. It's a bit like singing in the shower, really. Essentially a solitary task, with spin-off benefits for others within range - or not!