6/14/10

500

I was clicking through a few drafts on this here blog the other day when I made a strange and unsettling discovery: I've "published" 499 posts. This is my 500th post.

WOAH
.

When I started this blog, I had no idea what I was doing. I had read only a few blogs, didn't have a laptop, had never shared any personal writing with anyone (except for the diary excerpts that I scribbled in long letters and emails to friends who loved me anyway).

I still don't know what I'm doing (OBVIOUSLY). I still use the free blogger template. I don't have ads. I barely "use" Twitter. I don't know how to play the game of blogging for sponsorships or ad money or anything like that and I don't really care to learn. I write because I love to, need to. I do it here because of all the connections I've made.

I've come to know and care about so many strangers through this blog. I've stayed in touch with far flung friends through this blog. I've been moved by your comments, on and off the comment page. And though I sometimes go weeks without much to say, I have a hard time thinking about NOT blogging, which is a very odd statement when you think about it.

Like reaching any milestone, hitting the 500 mark makes me take stock. Last year I started searching for ways to preserve bits of this blog because I don't have any backup to these posts that are the closest thing to a family scrapbook my girls will ever have. I haven't printed them out or put them anywhere other than these "pages". So I started to work on a "blog book" so that I can easily show these pages to my girls one day. I never finished it and I need to pick it back up again. I tell myself that I'm doing it because I want to have something physical to show them but I won't lie, printing and binding these pages into something permanent and tangible would be mostly for me.

And something else has happened. Somewhere along the way, somewhere in the middle of 499 posts, something in me shifted. I have always loved reading but now have to admit that I love writing too and I want to learn how to do it better. It feels scary and embarrassing to admit this to you, but I'm doing something I never thought I'd do: I'm joining a writing group.

It feels fitting that our first meeting is tomorrow.

Thanks, my friends, for coming on this ride with me, for however long you've been on it, for however long you stay.

Here's to the next 500.

17 comments:

Barb said...

I love reading your blog! Thank you for the last 500!! :)

Melanie said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Melanie said...

Good luck with the writing group and for conintuing to share your experiences with the folks out here in blogland. Mrs. Bond (HS Eng freshman year?)
would be proud!

Michelle said...

Good luck with the writing group! That sounds like fun.

Hillary said...

So glad to be part of the community here.

miyoko said...

i was just laying in bed the other night thinking I would document our family website/blog in a photobook. What a neat way to document daily life and will last long after the internet morphs into something else.

:)
good luck with writing group!

Lora said...

Congratulations! 500 posts is a huge milestone. Good luck with the writing group, I'm sure you'll meet some great people there!

Amy said...

I love your writing and that you write a blog for writing and reflecting NOT to fill space with ads and rack up blogger "friends". You really have one of the most thoughtful blogs around and I am so glad that I found your blog.

Yay on the writing group.

Bronwen said...

That is AWESOME!!!!!!! I'm really impressed by your writing, and have enjoyed watching it get richer as time went on. I'm so glad you're joining a writing group. Congrats on 500!

Marie Green said...

You are one of may favorites. Have I told you that?

Whimsy said...

Congrats on 500! And good for you - a writing group! That's just all kinds of awesome.

Sarah said...

Congratulations! And I think taking the next step in writing is very appropriate for you. You are an excellent, eloquent writer who quite frankly puts a lot of us to shame! :)

B said...

Congrats on #500! I think you're truly a gifted writer. I seriously only read 3 blogs now due to lack of time, and yours is 1 of them!

GratefulTwinMom said...

That's so exciting. I think you're a very talented writer. Your humor and poignancy bring me joy when I visit this here blog. Your words inspire me.

Kathi McCracken Dente said...

You rock! I love hearing what CBHM and her peeps are up to. I just wish we could see you guys more often. Your writing is beautiful. If I wrote a blog it would probably come across as ranting and complaining. You manage to talk about the good and the bad with grace and humor. Congrats on 500! Z and E will love reading it someday.

Bird said...

Congrats on 500! I've been awful at commenting lately, but I'm still reading and really admire how you thoughtfully capture so many real moments that we all experience. Thanks for all the great posts!

Cortney said...

I'm so glad I stumbled upon your blog. Like someone else said, you're so thoughtful and I so enjoy reading what you write.

Congrats on 500 and have fun writing!

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