Welcome Strangers
A few weeks ago, Bart and I were at school, chatting with some friends of his from the business school. One of them had just started a blog, and we got talking about blogging in general. The topic of private blogs came up, to which Bart and I immediately expressed our vehement disinterest in having private blogs (although, of course, I see the appeal if you’re going to post pictures of your children).
They asked why I wouldn’t want my blog private, because, after all, you can invite all your friends to read, and when I said I liked having random people stumble across my blog, they both stared at me blankly.
“Why would you want people you don’t know to read your blog?” they asked. “Why would you read blogs of people you don’t know?!”
It’s hard to explain to someone who isn’t assimilated into the world of blogging why I would care about Britt’s favorite TV shows or Isabel‘s parents vacation or RA’s new kitchen.
It’s even harder to make someone understand why you would go out of your way to meet people you don’t know in real life. Why in the world would Kayla fly out to Vegas to meet me or why would I make plans to join Heidikins at the Salt Lake public library?
How DO you help someone who has no blogging experience understand that it’s not some weird or creepy thing to make friends with people you don’t know? I clearly failed miserably at it, since these two people obviously think I’m insane and probably going to be murdered in my bed when I go to visit Kayla, my creepy Internet friend.
I have a friend that I like to travel with, but whenever we talk about foreign countries she speaks about the people as if they’re all out to mug and kidnap her.
I think it’s kind of the same with blogging. Yes, there are weirdos out there, but most people are just good people trying to do the best they can.
I love the opportunity that blogging gives to “meet” new people and make new friends. My favorite blogs tend to be those of people I know, but not well – it’s fun to get more of a glimpse into their lives.
I can understand the need for private blogs for some people, but I love meeting new people through my blog. It’s nice to “meet” other people with whom I share the same interests. I’m a social person in real life and get to be social online as well. It’s a win-win.
I too am annoyed with the private blogs. What’s the point? I am careful about internet friends. But I can get a good read on who is creepy or not. (I haven’t been killed in my bed yet!)
Plus the private blogs make it hard to connect with people you know, but have lost track of!
Yeah, I totally thought you and Kayla knew each other. You have a surprisingly large amount of mutual friends to have not met in 4 years.
I never have this conversation because hardly anyone in my real life knows about my blog, which is how it is going to stay, if I have anything to do about it. That said, if my parents got wind of it, they would be in fits about how I am putting myself at risk at the hands of evil web prowlers.
I got a little thrill to see that shout-out to our new (almost) kitchen! We finished the first part of it today, and I’m working on posting the pictures now!
You know, it really is a difficult question, because I just so totally grok blogging. How could you *not* find people’s blogs interesting??? 🙂
I have tons of real-life friends that I met online. We regularly go out to dinner to meet internet friends when they are in town. I think it’s perfectly normal!
A lot of my “real life” friends have started blogs over the past year, you know, now that it’s the cool thing. When I started mine four years ago, my friends and family thought it was the dumbest thing they’d ever heard. None of them would read it because they didn’t “get it.” I HAD to rely on random strangers as readers, and I’ve made a lot of great friends that way. Of course there are creeps out there who google “teenage boys in underwear” and find MY blog, but I’m assuming that when they don’t find what they want, they move on. We just have to be careful, obviously.
Wait….you’d actually meet someone from the internet IN REAL LIFE? You are brave. I stay away from creepy interweb stalkers.
Whatever. I LOVE THE INTERWEB.
Great post.
some of the funniest writing in the world is out in blog-land, and i’m all about laughing hysterically when i’m all alone, so as to make the neighbors wonder what’s going on in my apartment 🙂
Well, you didn’t get murdered in your bed when you went to visit that creepy Kayla person. Shows them.
I feel so special!!!