Thursday, September 2, 2010

Why I Blog


I was first writing part of this post as a comment on Haitham’s post, but then I found I have a lot to say (doh) and thought I should write it here instead, because it wouldn’t make sense if a comment is longer than the post ;)

So why did I start blogging? It actually first started like this, having so much to say, things that won’t fit in a comment, and things that don’t belong on other people’s posts.
The thing is I never really expected to have more than 20 followers, and I’m not the biggest fan of being in the spotlight so it’s not the fame or popularity either, but I have almost always had something to say, something to criticize or something to praise, and I’ve always done it the same way, mostly with jokes (regardless whether they’re funny or not.) 

However, posts that make fun of things I don’t like or things that I would like to see change (like the one in the doctor’s office and the taxi drivers post for example) and posts in which I try to say that some things are being done the wrong way (like the Jordanian English post) seem to be the kind of posts that get understood the most. People usually accuse you of being arrogant when you correct a mistake (apparently correcting grammar and spelling mistakes is what people hate the most) or they say you’re being a two-faced person for talking about things your friends do. 

What I’ve noticed about some (very few and I’m very thankful for that) readers is that they like to attack people who criticize something, anything! You come out and say the internet is crappy and they get all worked up, even though you’re positive their connection is so bad too, you might even get a “ooh look at you complaining about the internet, you know some people don’t have a place to live in and you’re complaining about something stupid like this”, tayyeb meen jab seeret el mawdou3 asasan? If I talk about anything else other than poverty, wars, hunger, unemployment..etc, does it mean I’m being insensitive? Shallow? A narcissist maybe?

Other than attacking, some people like to psycho-analyze a blogger, I always get shocked when I get these, you might have read some comments here, people like to think that the real reason you’re writing a post is because you have had a bad childhood, are lonely, miserable or have some deep dark secret that is torturing you and your only way of venting is by making jokes about things you’re not fond of. Sometimes we need to think in a simpler way, there isn’t a “real motive” behind these posts (mine at least) other than what’s out there, I go out for a couple of hours, face some problems with bad-mannered drivers that make me tick and I come home, open the blog and post what I saw, it doesn’t mean I’m a sensitive girl that comes from a broken family blah blah blah.

Yes I did meet some really bad people in my life, they did things that upset me at the time and I complained, I did not sit in my room crying after my post about friends, nor did I think about quitting my job when I said I was unhappy in it, we have bad days and good days, I do complain about my job but some days I really love it! And I did have some back-stabbing friends one day but at the same time I know some of the greatest people on earth, in my opinion at least. But where’s the fun in writing about that?

I guess you now have an idea about the reason behind this blog, it’s as simple as this:

I blog for fun.

I’m also so glad I decided to do it, I met some of the most amazing people through this, got to know how other people outside my world think, changed some ideas I had, learned so much from other blogs, things about life, about people and about myself.

Finally, anyone is welcome to criticize me here any time, just keep it reasonable, and don’t say something you don’t like people to tell you. That doesn’t mean I’m changing the way I write posts but it’s always nice and eye-opening to know what people think. I might also make fun of anything you write here so beware.

*Note: I did the girls/guys guides post that Haitham mentioned with Seleucid not melicieuse. Just to be clear and give him his credit :) but I would absolutely LOVE to do a double post with meli, she’s one of my favorites :)

*Another note: I love myself.