Anonymity and Blogging
Or, Why Uncle Jim Is Smart Enough To Self-Edit.
Okay, I’m not sure why this seems to be such a hard concept for people to grasp, but I don’t put everything I’m thinking or worried about or living through on this blog. I know, I know, that’s terribly shocking to most of you, but it is sadly true. And, that’s not just because my wacko ex-wife pours over every word looking for hidden meaning or messages, either. I’ve been fairly careful about what goes into this blog for quite some time. Heck, even back in the Before Time, when I thought my marriage was going well, I made sure not to get too deeply personal here. For one thing, I just don’t want total strangers knowing certain things about me. For another, I don’t care to have potential employers know other certain things about my personal life.
I mean, potential girlfriends/”life-partners”/whatever don’t really need to know all my quirky habits up front. It’s far more fun and interesting, not to mention amusing, to discover them gradually as we go along. They don’t need to know that, on occasion, I will work for 20+ hours at a stretch doing a conversion or implementation. Or, that I might get a call at 1:00am that I have to respond to or the company will loose more than I make in a year. And, future employers don’t need to know how far in debt I really am. Or, the details of my more intimate personal life. (For that matter, neither to potential girlfriends!)
So, I’m careful and thoughtful about what I present here, not just because of famous blog-related firings, but because I want this blog to be safe for a certain teenage girl, who used to think quite a bit of me, to read. (Yeah, okay, I’ve said some not-nice things about her mother, but, well, she’s got to see that sooner or later.) So, while I’m not quite willing to go to the lengths that some bloggers go, and move my blog to another, anonymous name, I’m also not willing to be as brutally honest as other people, either. Nor, am I willing to be anonymous. At least, not yet. And, if I do, I certainly won’t announce it here, where my personal stalker will see.
So, your Advice from your Uncle Jim? “Think about what you write before you let others see it. If you’re not willing to be responsible for it for the rest of your life, don’t write.”
Advice from your Uncle Jim:
"There is no substitute for hard work."
--Thomas Edison
You said everything I’ve thought. And more.
But sometimes, you can use your blog to let people know more of your thoughts and regrets like I know you do.
Well done my friend. Well Done.
Comment by sass — 11/27/2005 @ 3:49 pm
Thank you.
(You should be getting your check shortly.)
Comment by the Network Geek — 11/27/2005 @ 4:05 pm