theskinnyonbenny.com: One Year In

When I decided that I wanted to write a web log, it was just the because I wanted to write. Sure, I could have kept a private journal, and I even tried to do that a time or two. But as much as I like to read, I don't really like to read my own writing. I know that doesn't make much sense, but that's the way it is. The idea of writing pages of stuff into a journal that no one would ever read seemed rather silly to me.

My idea to write a web-based journal started a few years ago. It just stayed at the idea stage for a year or two. I kept a travel log on my first trip to Thailand, and the few people who read it seemed to like it. On second thought, I don't really know that, but at least they read the whole thing, so it seemed promising. For the next year, I had ideas about adding lots of photos and videos and building a site that lots of people would visit. Last fall, I decided to do it for real. In December, I bought the "theskinnyonbenny.com" domain, and I went live in January.

One thing that never inspired me is other people's web logs. I never really looked at any others until very recently. Mine certainly isn't typical. The typical site has a professional look and feel that puts mine to shame, but the posts are either short, pointless comments in the dark, or they are a rambling meaningless mess. Of course there are some exceptions. I have read some others the weekend that are very good.

This is a photo from my recent trip to Puerto Rico. It has nothing to do with this post. I just like having a picture embedded in my blog entry from time to time.

You probably don't know that for every two or three posts that make it to my site, one gets written and deleted. There are some out there that probably should be deleted, and there are definitely some that were pretty close. I was pretty close to not posting the one where I argue with a little kid about pajama pants, and it turns out that this is by far my most asked-about post. The lesson: I have no clue about what entertains and what sucks.

I personally like the posts with pictures, but I haven't added a photo in over a month, and no one has complained. I'm going to keep doing them, if only just for me.

One thing I haven't gotten much of is participation from others. I think I've had a total of three blog comments, although I bred the "no-comment" culture by not allowing them for so long (because I was too lazy/busy to make the technical aspect work like I wanted them to, not because I didn't want the comments). The bulletin board isn't used at all and is on the shelf for retirement. I know the reason for that: it's just too big a pain in the ass. Too many levels of hierarchy, having to sign up and keep an active user/password, etc. I'm going to look for (or build) a simpler BB program that would make it easy for all to participate.

On the other hand, there are two full pages that were written entirely by others and that were good. Thanks for those.

Oh yeah, I suppose I should comment on my atrocious spelling and word misuse. Like I mentioned above, I don't like reading what I wrote. It tends to lead me down a path of self-editing that feels never ending. I'll try to do better.