Sometimes, I'm a sandwich or two short of a picnic. I just felt like saying that. Anyway, I found out TODAY (because sometimes, like yesterday, I don't have time to do anything) that YESTERDAY, The Gravedigger announced that he's discontinuing his blog. You can read about the whys and the wherefores about his reasoning for this on his site, which will be up until August. I suggest that you DO read it before it goes away, because it's a worthwhile way to spend some time. I personally have enjoyed reading his insights and thoughts. The Gravedigger is Portuguese and so, based solely on the translation tool from Google, I offer this simple sentiment:

adeus, amigo.

Of course, The Gravedigger himself isn't "going away." What's "going away" is nothing more than the online space where he shared his writings and his thoughts with us. Indeed, seeing as he's planning on quitting his job, he won't be a gravedigger anymore, anyway. This whole event (does this qualify as an "event?") made me think (briefly) about why I maintain my own blog (this one, just in case you forgot where you were). When I "fired it up", I did it for one very simple reason...

It's free.

I'd been kicking around the idea of having SOME sort of website of my own wherein I share strange and (potentially) humorous things with people for a good long while, ever since Collin introduced me to sixsixfive. My biggest stumbling blocks, though, were the fact that I'm not terribly well versed in website maintenance and html and stuff like that AND I didn't want to PAY for anything. At the same time, holding down a full-time job makes it a wee bit difficult to learn how to use new software and/or put a large amount of effort into updating and such. My attitude changed a bit when Collin (once again) pointed me toward a funny site. This time, it was Bad News Hughes. It was (still is) inspiring...I laughed like a frickin' nutcase reading through his stuff...Of course, I noticed the banner at the top (Blog*Spot: start your own) a few times before I decided that it was time to just frickin' do it. I figured that if HE could have a site where he shared goofy stories, so could I...

And since it was free, here I am.

My intentions for maintaining this blog haven't changed. I started it so that I can have a "body of work," so to speak, that is available for anyone to look at. This way, I don't have to bore people with too many details about certain events, or even tell them whether I can write or not (I can't). If someone wants to hear a sample of my voice(s) or see whether or not I can write and produce commercials, I can send them here. "It's on my blog" has become a common utterance here at work. Invariably, if Collin and I are talking about some crazy crap that happened at the Gazette and someone asks for more detail, it's easy enough to send them the way of the blog page. It's made me a very lazy storyteller and for that, I am appreciative. Having a "permanent record" of sorts that chronicle events and such has been "handy" and promises to be even more so as time passes.

What am I getting at? I don't know. I TOLD you I'm on drugs this week...

So, why DO I "blog?" Because I enjoy it. Why do I update EVERY workday? Because I made a commitment to MYSELF to keep that pace up. It's a challenge, and I enjoy THOSE, too...Why do I audioblog when I'm out of town? Hell, because it's available. Also: free...(remember, I'm a cheap-ass) If I had to pay for ANY of this stuff, we wouldn't be having this conversation. In fact, the $5.75 I paid to have those photos developed at Wal*Mart still kind of grates on me...But, kids, what this whole (very lousy) entry comes down to is this: If you're "blogging" to try and please someone other than yourself, you might as well quit. I'm not trying to be mean, just practical. Look upon it as being in business for yourself -vs- working for a company. If you're working toward someone else's goals, you're not going to derive the same sort of satisfaction and/or sense of reward as working toward your own success. This is NOT to say that you shouldn't appreciate the individuals that read your blog on a daily basis. It's very very nice to have people find and enjoy your stuff. Granted, It's not like radio or television...Individual stations depend upon advertising revenue for survival. They sell their advertising at rates determined by many factors, but the BIG factor is listenership/viewership. The more people that tune in, the more the advertising time on these stations is worth...

Follow me here? This goes back to that whole "free" thing...Stations depend on their listeners and viewers...Blogs, on the other hand, do not DEPEND upon their readers for survival...

The only thing maintaining this blog, and many others as well, is whatever sense of satisfaction the individual (me, in this case) derives from posting entries. OBVIOUSLY, having people read helps this along...If nobody read, then it's conceivable that posting would become mundane. As a "Devil's Advocate" point of view, though, if you feel an obligation to update your blog because you "don't want to disappoint your reader(s)," you'll probably end up looking at blogging as a second job (that doesn't pay anything) in the long run and become "burned out" before you know it. Is there a moral to this story? Yep..."Have fun." Simply put, do it because you enjoy it...Let that be your reward.

I'm still having fun. I hope you, whomever you happen to be, are too. Heck, let's not be sad that "Ze" is taking the gravedigger blog down...We should be HAPPY for him because he's going to be writing a novel and living his life. Yay for him! and yay for the rest of us, as well...You know, people will come and go throughout your lifetime, but I'm a firm believer that everyone enters and exits for a reason. If God intended for me to read Ze's writings, then I hope I got what I needed to out of them...And speaking of writing, and just because I said so, everyone go over to Ray's blog and shame him into writing an entry...

That oughta be "fun," too...

Labels: lame stories, poor usage of foreign language