Leaving Behind My Dog Days as a Blogger

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In this post, I'd tell you a little story about our dog Ditton. How fearful she is about bathing and how this relates to me as newbie blogger.

First things first, Ditton is an askal. A local variety of dog common in the streets in the Philippines. Pedigreed or not, the summer heat beats down on all of us. Today being a Sunday I have scooped Ditton up from his doghouse to give her a bath. She resisted me and wailed for all she's got - you would have thought I'd been prepping him up for dinner.

I suffered scratches from all her flailing about. She made up for all the aggravation when she licked me all over after I was done bathing her.

I'm telling you this little story because this was how I used to feel on my scheduled posting day. I used to drag my ass to the desktop to get my post done. Must be stage fright - the thought of a global audience can freeze any timid soul. And the peanut gallery might not take kindly to my half-baked ideas. Those kind of silly fears.

Four months hence, I'm eying deadlines with a lot less fear and irritation. I have hit my blogging rhythm. There's nothing like a supportive community of readers to keep you going. Even on my non-blogging days I feel an unexplained hunger to dash off a few notes to my readers. Blog post ideas swirl thickly about my head in my work and even when I try to sleep. I've even dreamed about writing risque posts and be laughed at out loud in the social media.

Have I tamed the online beast?

Not quite. But I have learned to work around it to get things done.Don't look now, but I have won over my habit of checking my AdSense earnings every single day - I haven't looked in the last two months. I can't give up checking Google Analytics though. If I do, how else will I find out that a lot of you, dear readers, are driving modest traffic to my blog. You not only fulfill my need for conversations, but you're also sending warm bodies to this quiet blog. Thank you, thank you.

To this day, I still haven't lifted a finger to understand SEO and all that mumbo jumbo so I will be loved by Google. Of course, Google still doesn't love me. I'm grateful, however, for some unexpected morsels that dropped my way from the bounteous Google table. It has rewarded me with a Page Rank 2.

I'm as perplexed as you are, my friends. Perhaps it's Google way of saying I had better stay put in Blogger? Whatever, Matt. Just a thought: I would have a made a post myself had I got a Page Rank 0 - that it's no skin off my nose. Just want to make that clear. I'm capable of that, too.

I have learned to value what is essential to my blogging. Frankly, I don't live for these metrics. I have found my self-worth on the things I write about and the conversations that spring from them. There's value in those interaction. I'd rather write for you. I have no love lost for a machine no matter how semantically gifted its algorithm may be.

Clarity of purpose. I started this blog writing on whatever caught my fancy. Three months hence, I have narrowed my focus on three things: writing, blogging, and the social media. Who knows much farther down the road I'd train my sights on a few more, or lose one or the other. The essential thing is that I write about things that make my heart leap to my throat, right?

At the core of the things I love is writing. We have a tenuous hold on life in this planet, living as we are on borrowed time. I just hope that in this short stint it will have been said - in my lifetime - that writing defines me. It's all I ask.

Sean Platt who writes posts as perfect as a boquet of flowers has this to say about writing:

Language is the landscape, populating the white space of an otherwise empty page. Our ideas are the seeds we plant and our words are the blossoms in spring time.

For the rest of this blog's natural life, I'd do my best to be more lucid as a writer. Like Sean. Because I'd like to gift you with those blossoms in spring time, too. Failing that, I'm not above dragging myself like I did to our dog Ditton for a quick dip to clear the cobwebs in this aging brain.

Related Posts:

Little Known Way to Overcome the Fear of Blogging
Top Foolproof Writing Tip
Get Rid of Your Feeling of Inadequacy as a Writer Once and for All

Tags: blogging, writing, social media, Twitter

Welcome Fifi, We Heart You Too

Good news, friends. Fifi has joined our ranks. She has finally put up a blog of her own: i heart tibby.

Tibby for the uninitiated is a name she gives to her online pet on Facebook. Fifi has a funny story about her fascination with Tibby her online pet. But I think it will be better if you hear it from her.

Many of you might be surprised that in so short a time she had landed on the top 10 commenter for March. I'm not. She's lot of interesting things to say. She used to just email me her reactions on my posts until I have convinced her the readers here are properly vetted, making their bite pretty useless. Am I right, my friends?

You will do just fine,Fifi. I know it's easy for me to say this, having no experience juggling studying for the law and blogging and taking care of Tibby. For what it's worth, however, I credit blogging in keeping me sane. Besides I can't afford to lose it as the community here keeps me from keeling over. So I guess you might find blogging helpful, too.

So what do you say, friends? Let's pay our new buddy a visit, okay?

Well, Fifi - welcome aboard!

Tags: blogging, Blogger

Gearing Up for a Word War: When Do You Push the Button?

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I had an interesting day in Twitter the other day. I followed a meta blogger who had many times baited an A-list blogger into a word war. I had read a few exchanges between the two and I must say the A-list blogger handled himself well. He remained levelheaded, answered the points raised by his nemesis with calm and deliberation. But the lesser light of the meta blogging world would not let go. Perhaps realizing the futility of engaging the other blogger in a long and fruitless debate the superstar blogger let it rest.

I am friends with both the superstar blogger and the superstar wannabe in Twitter. And a delicious thought ran through my mind. I'm in the front row seat of the Twitter coliseum. Has superstar wannabe outgrown his grievances? After all, I have seen their online tussle when I was still a mere blog reader and Twitter then was not as big as it is now. Will superstar wannabe use Twitter to showcase his gladiatorial skill? Interesting Twitter melodrama.

And this makes me think: Would I have acted with the same supreme coolness that superstar blogger displayed?

I doubt it. But of course I've been blogging for only four months now. I have not yet been tested in such sticky situations yet - no occasion to feel anger or betrayal. So I'm interested to know. What gets your goat? What are the issues or wrong moves of other bloggers that will surely get you riled up?

Will you write a stinging post? Are you up for waging a word war on a matter of principle? Or will you just hide your broken arm in your sleeves?

Tags: Twitter, blogging

Top Commentator Award Winner for March

Blog author extraordinaire Yatot of The Yatot Chronicles wins this blog's Top Commentator Award for March. For his feat - he has won three times in a row since January - I'm also giving Yatot the Hall of Fame Award for blog commenting.

This means Yatot is already out of the running for the top commentator award for the rest of the year. Thus, I have honored a dear friend and at the same time averted a mini-revolt on my hands. :) Am I not clever or what.

Uber Amazing Blog Award



Aside from winning Absolute Friend by John le Carre, Yatot also takes home the Uber Amazing Blog Award. Let Bingke, who gave me this award, explain what it is all about: "The award is presented to blogs who are "exceedingly amazing" ; blogs that inspire you, make you smile and laugh, give important information, great reads, have terrific designs and just simply awesome."

Not so fast, Yatot. Other readers - Roy, Dee and Elmot - who gave you a mild scare in this month's top commentator race will be sharing this award with you.

One important rule in posting this award in your blog is to state the reason why you love blogging. Here are my reasons: It's only in blogging I get to plumb the clogged depths of my dirty mind, haul out the offending debris, and still be applauded for my feat. It's only in blogging that I get to rub elbows with like-minded journeymen like you and be the richer for it. Blogging helps me define myself. Blogging also leads me to your doorsteps. And having known you - nothing can take that away from me.

Drama - A new skill brought about by blogging. :)

The list of the top commentators for March are as follows:

1. Yatot - 22
2. Roy - 17
3. Dee - 16
4. Elmot - 16
5. Fifi - 16
6. Joji - 12
7. Bingkee - 11
8. Lemuel - 10
9. Adrian - 8
10. Petit and Earthlingorgeous - 7

Passionate Blogger Award



Here's another award I'd like to give to Joji, Bingkee (if you haven't got this already), Lemuel, Adrian, Petit and Earthlingorgeous: Passionate Blogger Award. This award was given by my good friend Dee who has excellent taste in such things.

The rules say you have to post five things you're passionate about and to pass it on to five people. Here's my list:

1. Coffee - because it powers me up and makes me a decent companion.
2. Twitter - because I was a bird in my previous life.
3. Moleskin notebook - because I don't feel I'm an uber blogger until I get one.
4. Kindle2 - because it's somewhere out there, taunting me, "Take me, take me."
5. Laptop - because it's a must-have toy.

A Perfect Blend of Friendship Award



The sole recipient of Perfect Blend of Friendship Award goes to Fifi. She has recently sliced off a big chunk of her Facebook time to be with us. Thank you for your active participation in this blog, Fifi. By the way, I suspect we have infected her with the blogging virus lately. She has promised to give her Friendster blog a makeover. Way to go, Fifi. :)

Addendum to Top Commentator Award Rules:

In case the commenting pace picks up here, I'd like to inform you that you're allowed to post 10 comments per day. Your comments over the 10/day rule will not be counted, but these will be still be published. This is a rule I have happily filched from my friend Jaypee who's holding the same top commentator contest in his blog. As usual, I will not count off-topic comments although they might still be published. Please write in English so everybody understands what you're saying.

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