I am taking a break from the blog. I really enjoy it, but there are several factors. It can be time-consuming looking for things to write about and being able to articulate an opinion on them (not that there's any lack of things to write about). I am also getting tired of the comments that I am consistently having to delete. It's a lot of spam and other shit, when what I have always hoped for was a modest audience that would maybe comment intelligently on what I am discussing. But that's probably unrealistic on my part. I heard somewhere, I don't know if it's accurate, but I heard that there are a billion blogs in circulation around the world. I don't know if that factors in people who use sites like Facebook and Twitter to microblog, or if it's just sites like this, but either way, that's a lot of competition over people whose eyeballs you want to be on this site.
I have noticed an uptick in visitors to the site, based on the web counter at the bottom of the page, but I strongly suspect that's mostly due to the spam programs that I mentioned above, rather than any legitimate interest in what I write about. Don't get me wrong, I've always done this for myself. I rather like browsing through this blog now and again, and reading what I wrote on something six months, or a year earlier. It's a lot like a 21st century type of diary, only that it's also accessible to the world. But that doesn't mean I wouldn't have liked a community, however small, to try to visit and debate, or agree, with me about what I write about. But again, there are a lot of these out there, and it can be a real bitch to compel people to spend some of their time at your blog rather than someone else's.
This probably won't be good bye, on a permanent basis. But I am trying to change things in my life to some extent, and trying to avoid things which cause me discomfort. Like the fact that I started this blog envisioning that I'd be writing for other people, and not just myself. Or Facebook and the fucking meaningless drivel that many of its users post. Or searching for a real, meaningful job when the economy is destroyed and no job that you apply to follows up with you, for whatever reason, whether I'm overqualified or not qualified enough. As you could see, I'm not in the best of moods right now. But this blog was always about keepin' it real, and if this is, by chance, my final entry, at least I'm ending it with the same tradition that inspired me to start it in the first place. To quote Dr. Cocteau from the movie "Demolition Man",
"Be well."
4 comments:
I was browsing randomly in the blogging websites and I reached unintentionally to your blog. I just want to tell you that your writing managed to keep me reading it till I finished your last post which means - from my perspective - it was valuable. Having zillions of blogs out there doesn't mean the good ones will be masked by the noise. I felt that I'm hearing to your internal voice and self conversation in your personal diary as you called your blog which is inspiring enough for me. Keep writing man. someone out there enjoys your writing in addition to you.
Adel,
Thanks very much for the kind words. I will likely get back to blogging in the near future, I don't believe that I was having a good day when I wrote that, and decided that I would take a little break from blogging.
I never doubted that people were reading it; I guess I just had to feel ensured in some way that my webcounter wasn't overly-inflated as a result of the spammers. That probably frustrated me more than anything; I'd rather not have any comments at all to moderate than have to shift through porno ads and Chinese writing.
I've been blogging for quite awhile, and I noticed that it went from not really having a focus (a lot of my posts dealt with interests and hobbies, like politics and video games; odd pairing, I know), to dealing with a specific but wide-ranging topic (energy descent and the staggering implications that it poses to us). This topic is also quite depressing, so it's in the interests of most people to deny it. I tried furtherng the blog's readership by linking to it on my Facebook page, but as you could probably predict, many of my FB friends just aren't interested in such stories.
About the tone of my blog, admittedly, I am not a professional writer. I had planned for awhile to begin to read works on style and writing form, and perhaps one day I will. I don't really plan on what to write when I do find a good article or story to refer my readers to, and there are times when I come off kind of flat, but there are other times when I do surprise myself and manage to crank out a few paragraphs that actually carry some substance.
There is also a lot going on in which I want to talk about, like the oil spill blow-up off the Gulf Coast and the global economic situation. If you do happen to be the only reader traversing this blog, that is more than good enough for me as you do value what I have to say, and I really do appreciate that. I guess I needed those kind words; so again, thank you.
Jeff
Jeff,
Nice to know that you'r getting out of the negative mood. I read you latest post about the fossil fuel decline. For me as a professional working in the oil and gas sector, reading these perspectives really helpful to get the other side of the story. Come to Indonesia here to see the most inefficient way for burning the fossil fuel. Everybody here has a monster cars consuming madly gallons of fossil fuels and the government still subsidize it!!!
another point, what I like about your writing - and it is not empty words - the natural flow of the ideas. I was a bit afraid that I will not be able to follow your blog again or I can not find it again the internet ocean but luckily I found it.
have a good day!
Adel,
Thank you again for the kind words. For me, it's really cool that you not only live in Indonesia (a far ways away from me, in New York), but that you are also in the oil and gas field. I try not to get too far into the nitty-gritty of it, as I'm no scientist or geologist, but the far-reaching implications of it just astound me. You said that my blog helps you to see the other side of the story; does this mean that people in Indonesia are ignorant of PO, just like many of my fellow Americans?
I am very interested that you mentioned the government subsidizing the transport of SUvs in Indonesia. Are you familiar with something called the Export Land Model? The Export Land Model is when a country peaks in oil production while also increasing its domestic consumption. Its oil exports then decline. I'm mentioning this because your country is one of the case subjects. Indonesia has already gone from being an oil exporter to an oil importer in the span of 5 years (2002-2007). This is the Wikipedia link: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Export_Land_Model.
I wonder if at a certain point, countries with large energy reserves (for example, Russia) might tell the rest of us to "screw off" and keep their reserves for domestic use.
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