Here We Go Again

I’ve been reading Jess’ blog since around September of last year.  I admit, I “found” her because she left a comment on one of my posts I’d written about finding a job/career I’d like.  She’d never commented before so I checked out her blog.

I’m sure you guys knows what that’s like, right?  When someone new leaves a comment you’re often left wondering, “Hey, who’s this person?  What are they all about?”  And you kind of hope they’ve left a link to their blog.  Well, I do, at least.  So I clicked over to her site, read through some posts and thought it was interesting.   As with new commenters, some of them stop by to read one post and then there are the others who stick around.  (I prefer the ones who stick around, btw.)  I was hoping she would keep coming back to mine.

I’ve “chatted” with Jess via meebo, email, our blogs…and she’s a great person — friendly and open.  I like her blog because it’s about her life.  She’s my age and, although she’s a mother (I’m not but would like to be one day) and although she lives in Maryland (I live in New York City), there are things we can definitely relate to — relationships, work/career troubles, and just being a woman, in general.  It’s nice to see a woman my age deal with the balancing act of having a family, planning a wedding, and just trying to enjoy life in general.  It’s realistic.  

Plus, the girl likes and understands baseball too.  Which, in my book, is always a good thing. 

She also particpated in my blogger Q & A.   I was psyched because she got back to me really quickly.  Reading her replies, I learned a few new things about her which I’d like to share with the rest of you. 

Here’s Something About Nothing:

How do you go about writing your blog?  

Mostly, I write as the mood strikes. When a post is going to be long, and full of pictures, it’s usually a few days worth of work.
 
I always wondered how long it took you to do those picture posts.  I think they’re great.  Sometimes I want to do something like that but I don’t because I never know what kind of pictures to take and I feel, to a certain extent, that I wouldn’t have the patience to do it.  I think you have a good eye and I like the pictures you take.
 
How would you describe your blogging style?
 
I would say my style of writing is as if I’m talking to someone, directly, rather than as if I am telling a story, which is the style I’d like to write in.
 
That’s what I like about your writing.  It’s real, it’s not pretentious.  It’s just like you’re talking to us.  Good stuff.
 
Are there topics you choose to avoid on your blog?  Why? 
 
I would love to write publicly about Greg’s past relationships and experiences but he has requested that I keep those ‘thoughts’ private. The reason being is because he wants to leave those memories in the past and move on.  Another topic is sex, I don’t know who, of my friends and family read and I don’t want them to start family rumors and such. And, then there is my childhood, which I’ve never really had any reason to write about it, unless I create one of those 100 things posts.
 
Regarding writing about sex…I personally like to write about it (but I usually reserve that kind of thing for my secondary blog) because it’s part of my life.   However, I think if my blog wasn’t written anonymously, I’d probably avoid blogging about it.  

Don’t do a 100 things posts!  Resist the urge!
 
What’s the most annoying thing about blogging?  A cool thing about it?
 
An annoying thing about blogging is how people could misunderstand the meaning, or writing, of the post – just like if someone misunderstood an email; then you have the people that feel your opinions are wrong and have the need to tell you because they aren’t open-minded enough to see things in a different perspective. A cool thing about blogging is having the ability to look back on your life, a virtual memory of thoughts and feelings. Plus, it’s really neat to read about other people lives, thoughts, feelings, events from all over the world and to make new ‘pen-pals’.
 
think many a misunderstanding happens simply because the medium doesn’t allow for an immediate exchange between individuals – things can get more heated than they need to be because you’re sitting there, stewing about it, waiting for a response or you’re unable to respond back as quickly to explain what you meant.  Also, written text can’t convey tone or inflection, like sarcasm, sympathy, etc.
 
What are your pet peeves when reading a blog? 
 
I am bit of a hypocrite when it comes to annoying habits of bloggers because I know I make the same errors, but it does irk me when people spell ‘weird’ incorrectly or use ‘too’, ‘your’, ‘their’, and other words of the type incorrectly.
 
I’m a hypocrite too – I hate misspellings but I commit them many times.  I’m lazy most of the time – I don’t use spell check.  Bad blogger, I am.  However, for work I’m really anal about it. 
 
Any funny things/new experiences that have come out of blogging?
 
I’ve had someone create a false identity to get ’secret’ information about Greg and his ex, but I knew all along who it was; otherwise, nothing out of the ordinary.
 
Oddest search term for your blog?
 
Grampa porn, so far
 
That one is hilarious and disturbing at the same time!  And, now, I just realized by having it on my blog now I’ll probably get hits from people looking for old people porn.  Haha!
 
Most frequent search term?
 
Holly Madison, Holly Culkin, engagement rings, Michael Kroopnick
 
What is one of your own favorite posts?  Why? 
 
I don’t think I’ve ever felt one particular post as my favorite or ‘best of’.  A few that stand out at the moment (because I’m writing from work and I don’t have access to my own blog), are the ones that I wrote about Greg and I’s growing feelings and love for each other (basically all of the Feb – May’s posts, which some are on my Y!360 page and/or Myspace); the anticipation of Greg and I moving in together; the anticipation of our future trips and writing about them. I did enjoy writing about my engagement and look forward to writing about the wedding planning.
 
As for your blog, the first post that stands out is when you were lying on the bathroom floor ‘exercising to relieve some stress’ and Chris walked in on you; as well as when Married Guy accidentally brushed against your breasts and the reaction you felt (because I’ve felt the exact same response), and overall everything you write about, especially you and Chris.
 
When I wrote the ‘caught masturbating’ post it was one of my first blog entries — when I had no readers.  I remember thinking, “I can write about this.  No one is gonna read this sh*t.”  Little did I know. LOL.  Been thinking about taking that post down or editing out some of the details…
 
My favorite posts of yours are the picture posts. Mostly I enjoy reading about the things you do – like shopping, housework, vacation planning, etc.  It’s real…it’s tangible.  It’s a cool window into your life and how busy you are and how you work hard to keep your life, relationship, family on track.
 
The post I really enjoyed was your “Reality” post.  I think that may be my favorite of yours.
 
If your life had a “soundtrack” what 5 songs would have to be on it?
 
I’m horrible with song titles and artists; I Miss You from Blink 182 (as my break-up song from Adam), The Reason (can’t remember who did that one, maybe Hoobastank).
 
I love that Hoobastank song too.
 
What is one thing you’d like your readers to know about you that might not come across in your blogging?
 
I am an intelligent person, even though my writing may not portray so. I comprehend everything that everyone writes about but I have no ability, whatsoever, to show that, and be able to communicate with a comment or by my writing. In addition to that, I would like readers to know that I am a genuine, fun, and funny person.
 
If I may say so, I don’t think you give yourself enough credit.  I think you do come across as an intelligent person with a lot of valuable life experience.  And I think your writing reflects it as well. 
 
What other websites (non-blogs) do you frequent daily?
 
www.fborfw.com (a comic strip I’ve been reading since middle school); Yahoo, MSN, and local newspapers (The Sun and The Post) for news; message boards such as the Orioles hangout and The Knot, Flickr, Myspace, Facebook (to feed my scrabble addiction, at the moment).
 
If your blog were a television show or movie, which actors would play the characters in your life?  Would it be a sitcom, drama, etc.?
 
Christina Ricci, when she was in Casper, stands out for my character (the new girl in the school, who people don’t give her the time of day or try to get to know her) and I believe my life would be a sitcom with comedy and drama.
 
What do you do when you feel you’ve gotten a comment that seems to be ‘attacking’ you?
 
I’ve yet to receive such a comment, thankfully. But, depending on the topic of conversation – I would either allow the comment, after all everyone is entitled to their opinion, but it the comment is a ‘verbal threat’ or the person writing the comment begins to harass me, then I will block them or take other actions.
 
What kind of blog writing styles do you find interesting?
 
I like the blogs that people are able to make you think, like when J wrote about beauty the other day, or when you wrote about what you’ve learned from your past relationships, also I like the writers who are able to write as a novel writer.
 
What are your thoughts on people’s “100 Things About Me” pages/posts? 
 
They’re interesting to read, I haven’t felt the ‘need’ to do one of myself (unless I am bored beyond control).  Really, I don’t have any feelings towards them.
 
When she’s old enough and if the blog is still around, would you let Amelia read it?  All of it or just certain entries?
 
When/if she’s old enough and if the blog is still around (meaning the website is still ‘active’, remember web pages made on angefire?), yes I would let Amelia read if she were interested. I remember finding my Mom’s diary when I was in 5th-6th grade and reading it and asking questions.
 
I think it could be cool for Amelia to read about the first year of her life through your eyes.  She would see how much she was loved and cared for!
 
Did you find anything interesting out about your Mom when you found her diary?  Any new perspective about her?
 
It was interesting to read about my Mom’s first ‘true love’, Richard. My Mom felt that if he hadn’t enlisted into the military, they would have married each other, but the reason she didn’t marry him is because he was a completely different person when he returned; not the person she fell in love with.
 
Let us know something interesting about you.
 
I have a wicked memory for numbers and sequences, and at the same time partially dyslexic (undiagnosed); When I was younger, I would read through the medical dictionary book and that’s when I decided that I wanted to be a nurse; I am horrible, absolutely horrible, at first impressions, especially in interviews; I am so shy that I try to stand out and be bubbly and stuff and usually makes things worse!
 
That’s cool about how you decided you wanted to be a nurse.  What was about it in particular that made you think about becoming a nurse and not a doctor?
 
I was/am fascinated with how our bodies work, all the things that could make it go wrong and how to fix it.
 
The reason I’d rather be a nurse is because I can spend more time with a patient and develop more of a bond and trust than if I became a doctor. Granted, not all doctors are about seeing the patient, writing a script, and sending them off, but, in my experience, the nurses have always been the ones that truly took care of me. Well, except for evil nurse Mary that was assigned to me during my delivery – she was just nasty and impatient.
 
Hmmm.  Mary sounds like a biatch…
 
Shy? I wouldn’t think you were shy!
 
Oh, I am extremely shy! I tried to self treat my shyness by meeting people online (not dating sites) but that didn’t help either. I’ve written before that after Greg and I met the first time, I didn’t think I’d hear from him again due to my shyness.
 
Luckily, you did!  
 
Would you ever have Greg write a guest post on your blog?
 
I would love to have Greg write a ‘guest’ post. I don’t know what he would write about (although, I would enjoy reading his declaration of love for me), but he’s into the concept of blogging and has created three blogs himself (simply carbonated, Greg’s travel and weather), but, just like a lot of other ‘projects’, he hasn’t thought about them lately.
 
Question from Jess to me:  What do you think Chris would write about if he were to do a ‘guest’ post?
 
He’d write about work.  And music probably.  He is very, very passionate about both.

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Thanks, Jess!  I had fun doing this with you.

So, guys, if you want to know more about her, check her blog out!