solo post - L
Don't Clementines just taste better at Christmas-time? I bought these for T because she loves to eat fruit. But these really aren't very good. I think it's a combination of things – the wrong season and product of the wrong country (these are from USA and the best are from Spain).
This is sort of how I'm feeling about my blog– it's a combination of things that is leaving me disappointed. I just don't feel like the posts, or the photos, have been good for a while. I feel like it has lost the charm (if it had any) and simplicity that we started out with back in August. I'm afraid if I take a break for a while, I may never get back to it. I have enjoyed blogging so much and have met so many ladies that feel like true friends. So more than anything I'm afraid of losing them. To all of you who are dedicated readers and leave comments, I appreciate you way more than your can imagine. Or maybe you can imagine, because I know you know how good it feels – how much inspiration and motivation it gives you – how it brightens your day. I hesitate to even say this, but I have to admit, some days more than others, I get frustrated that my comment average is probably 10 or less a day. It's like trying so hard to be someone's friend and they just keep ignoring you or turning down your invitation. Isn't that how it feels? – when you visit and leave comments day, after day, after day and they never come to visit you, ever. Can anyone else admit that they feel this way every once in while or I'm I just extra sensitive? I know mine/ours is not a polished blog – not much there to fill your minds with or leave you thinking, or inspired, no wisdom, or humor. It's just a simple blog that has possibly completed it's purpose for mother and daughter's first year of spreading wings – discovering our new lives apart. Or... maybe I just bit into a bitter seed and the next bite will be sweeter. Maybe these clementines aren't so bad after all - just different.
14 comments:
you are right. it stings when people dont acknowledge your constant prescence on their blogs. totally puts me off. ha, maybe its just my childish side.
its lovely getting comments for your own posts, isnt it?
your clementine metaphor PERFECT!maybe you need to try something different since the premise of your space has changed for the summer?
simple photo blogs appeal to me (obviously if you see mine!) and do not think for a moment that yours is nothing but bliss!
i usually stop commenting/visiting if the blogger does not ever comment on mine...just do not have the desire for it to be one sided.i enjoy feedback and the friendship...
blessing my friend,
elk
Oh you. There is such a unique beauty here. I never, NEVER come here and experience disappointment. You have something that nobody else has and your photos always speak to me. Really. I'm amazed.
As to blogging and the hurt. Yes. It's there. I feel it. It's a battle. But then I have to remind myself that blogging is a social thing, not really about art, and that is where you fit in, and where I hope to fit in with words. I am not social nor do I play the social games and that is reflected in attention. It is work to get comments. It should be about value, but it is not.
I come here because there is value here. Because there is art. Because it speaks to me. Because you and your daughter are lovely, and we are all lucky to have you.
erin
i thoroughly enjoy visiting your space.
i am fairly new to blogging and don't know much about blog etiquette. however, it is certainly more enjoyable when there is at least a periodic reciprocal relationship...
hope you have a great weekend
ps. i just have to say that i love your blog. it is always a joy visiting here.
i think we all get down on blogging at time but i, for one, look forward to reading your blog.
well, I never find your blog boring or anything - I love looking at the pairings you make or just knowning what my friend one state over is doing. and I think we all go through these phases where we feel what we say isn't that important. so, I understand.
and yes....I know what you mean by the comments. I probably read altogether about 50 or so blogs a day. I have my special friends, like you, that I comment every day. Sometimes are are some that I really don't have a comment for (like List of the Day) but I enjoy reading. There are some (like Dooce) that have a following so big that I know they would never comment back. And then there are some that I know read me regardless because they will e-mail me and say "I really loved your blog today". Keep heart. Just remember that your blog is for you. ((hugs))
When I have been having busy weeks like I have been having lately and I don't get to visit blogs, yours is one of the blogs that I miss the most. I feel like you are a friend that I haven't seen for a few days. I totally enjoy your space and please don't ever feel that it isn't good. It is perfect!
I know how you feel about the comment stuff. I feel the same. As elk said, I also usually will stop commenting/visiting bloggers that don't reciprocate. I want it to feel like a friendship.
i can fully relate to how you are feeling right now. i went through something very similar in december. i wrote a very long blog post about it. i got an overwhelming response from everyone. we all go through this and i think that it is a healthy phase in the cycles of blogging. when i got it off of my chest and when i got the positive feedback, i realised that i was now free to grow and change and that i was accepted and loved.
i also understand how frustrating it is trying to become friends with someone who just simply ignores you. part of my growth spurt in blogging was defining for myself why i blog and what my objectives were. i realised a few things:
1. i do not blog to receive comments although i appreciate them very much when they do come.
2. i blog in order to process my own interpretations of life and i would continue writing and photographing whether people were providing feedback or not.
3. i defined what my two blogs were for and i have kept to that ever since.
4. i also decided that i would follow certain photographers and writers even though they ignored me simply because i could learn from them but i also went through a filtering process where i cut ties with people who were draining me.
perhaps you could ask yourself these same questions and maybe the answers will provide clarity?
as for your blog. i appreciate your and t's relationship. i appreciate your art and your photography. i appreciate the friendship you return my way. i value you.
we all need a break sometimes and believe me very few if any of us will be leaving you. i was amazed at how supportive and caring everyone was during my break a while back.
do what you need to and know that only the worthwhile remnants will remain.
all my love,
claire
I just today wrote a post thanking everyone for visiting my blog & making me feel important & wanted & liked, and I included in that thank you even those who never comment. But I wish they would - I mean, I want to know who it is in Dubai who reads me regularly, and what that person thinks. So I understand. As for your blog, I think it's amazing, and now I am feeling a bit guilty for not commenting enough! :) I don't know how I really feel about this. I know so often I visit blogs while at work, sneaking a peek while on break, and sometimes mean to come back & say something & things just get in the way. I hope that is what happens when someone doesn't leave a comment for me. And sometimes, like right now, I am just snowed under with work & trying to find time to paint, and yes, to post on my blog, and I tell myself that may also be the reason that someone doesn't comment. So what I am saying? I don't really know - LOL! I think if you have to take time off, you should. I know I will be here when you return, and I will miss y'all while you're gone.
And Clementines are the best!!!
Take care.
:) Debi
Perhaps it is seasonal - perhaps the late Spring Blog Funk.
I have been debating whether I should take a break or not. I decided to announce my break in my blog only to have thoughts in my head I had to get out - whether they are read or not.
As for you, I love the simplicity of your blog. I love the perspective of your photos and the juxtaposition with your daughter's work. So, I would miss you if you took a break. I will keep commenting when I stop by.
I've been struggling a little too with my blog for some reason. I do appreciate this blog though and seeing what you two come up with.
Leslye.
i completely identify with every single thing you said. i have a couple of things to say. if you take a break, you will not lose my interest or friendship. your blog has been in my blog roll {daily reads} from the very beginning of my photo blog. i draw tremendous inspiration from your blog and posts. just this morning, i thought, "i think sometimes people only comment on my posts so that i will comment on theirs. and quite possibly the other way around {even though i hate to admit it}. i wonder how many comments people would leave if i stopped commenting on other blogs." but their are those that i would visit even if they did not visit mine. and yours is one of them. i truly believe that certain blogs i visit are a source of inspiration that push me to be a better photographer. it's worth it for that alone. but as you say, i have met so many friends, and i truly consider them friends. my husband teases me saying they are not real friends. but i disagree. just because i have not met them in person, does not mean that they are not. i think EVERY blogger comes to this point you are at at least once. even if they do not express it, they do feel this way at some point. i was there about a month ago, and sort of wrote about it on my Jorjah-B blog. i encourage you to keep going, even if you have to take a break for a bit. i will certainly miss you if you don't. i consider you a friend. i truly do.
oh, i almost forgot. this photo is wonderful. the colors!
I totally agree with everything you have said! And I think everyone goes through these down times. And I do believe that there are times when we all get busy and just don't have the time to comment, even though we are still reading. Sometimes, I feel like I really don't have much to say, but I sure do appreciate people who leave comments. And on those days, when it's kind of a bad day or I'm feeling in a funk...comments cheer me up! So, I totally agree with you. If you take a break, I'll be back! Don't worry!!
Oh, Leslye! I've been away for a few weeks because the end of the school year is so hectic. So, when I read this, I felt a catch in my breath and a squeeze in my gut. "NO!" I hollered. "You can't take a break! I'd miss you too much!" How's that for selfish??
Then, I read on. I do know what you mean. I don't think you are extra sensitive. I think you are real and honest. It hurts my feelings, too. There are people whom I admire so much, but who never bother to visit even once. Somehow, it just feels rude, doesn't it? Still. There is more good than disappointing. I try to remember that when I am feeling rejected or competitive or not good enough.
I thought a lot about it and decided that I couldn't let it bother me. Or, at least, when it did, that I had to put it away fast. There will always be people whom we admire from afar. Do I admire them enough that I want to read them even without the relationship? If yes, then - my choice. Not their problem. There are others who I've quit reading because the "slight" (intended or not) felt too real.
I began my blog for me. I continue for the relationships. So. Know that I love you and your blog. I cherish our friendship. And. I feel that way even when I am swamped and not around for a while.
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