Ellen: So October has come and gone and we need to explain why we didn’t jump up and down hollering that it was our First Blog Anniversary.
Erin: Because, really, we are those type of girls. And if you look over at the Archives it appears that we started in October 2011.
Ellen: But that, while not exactly a liar, liar pants on fire moment is not really accurate either.
Erin: The switch really got flipped . . .
Ellen: Let’s be clear. We really don’t know how the blog went live. Bless you for your help, Colleen.
Erin: Alright then, our blog was available for perusal on January 11, 2012 at 5:47pm. It was our Blaunch — Blog + Launch!
Ellen: For the last time that sounds like a cat puking. The post we wrote about it was “Happy BLirth-Day.”
Erin: What started in October was us trying to get our idea going.
Ellen: Really. I’ll save you a trip to the Archives to prove our point. This is ALL we had going on in October 2011.
Erin: That was it. For the entire month.
Ellen: But that content took us about 5 hours to figure out how to load. I thought the picture resizing was going to kill me.
Erin: And those three comments? They were made in JANUARY and FEBRUARY. We had so little content on the blog, that it did not take people interested in our BLaunch much time to run through all of it.
Ellen: So in actuality we are around the nine-ish month mark. And I totally noticed that you said BLaunch.
Erin: Whatever. But still, we are a little fresh at this and still finding our groove. But what I remember most vividly is our ridiculous notion that we were going to write these posts and people would just flock to read them.
Ellen: Not so much. Without a lot of tweeting, status updating, and blog visiting, your precious word gems thud like trees falling in the forest with no one to hear.
Erin: A huge part of blogging is working the social side, finding your niche, gaining your audience.
Ellen: You know, starting to blog felt a little like starting at a new school . . .
Erin: A feeling like you’re the new kid in the cafeteria holding your tray, not knowing where to sit, or what the unwritten rules are. Sooo, to celebrate our Blogiversary 0.75, let us regale you with . . .
Ways Starting to Blog is Like Starting Middle School
1. You begin clueless and self-conscious. You are not even sure how to find blogs you want to read, let alone find people who will want to be your friends, we mean readers. You feel lost and untethered. You wonder if you have on the “right” shoes and blog banner. Does this font make us look fat?
2. There are clubs to join! Bloggers love to join circles and tribes. You find like-minded bloggers and have great things to read. Your new friends visit your blog. It feels like popularity. But then you realize all of your time is being taken up by the same people. Newcomers aren’t feeling so welcome to your blog because you’re twisting your work to fit in. Imagine us trying to fit in with the goths. We just don’t have the lank hair for it. Although we are rockin’ some epic under eye circles.
3. Go to parties! Meet new people! There are link-ups and blog hops where you can add your post to a list of other blogs. You conga line from blog to blog mingling and reading. There is dancing and laughing. Everything is great until you forget to do your homework. You’ve been so busy eating Cheez-its with the blogarazzi that you didn’t get your homework done. You have no blog post for next week. And report cards are coming out: New pageviews – 5. Your party rockers are nowhere to be found. All reading and no content means you’re a grounded blogger. Now you have to do extra credit to catch up. In blogging terms, a nice viral meme would save the day.
“Tombstone Credit”
4. There are popularity contests! There are votes to be had: Funniest Blog! Top 25 Squirrel Blogs! Best Use of Witty Caption Asking People To Follow! You get sucked into begging everyone for votes until no one is returning your calls, they are blocking you on Facebook, and they nominate Sisterhood of the Irascible Moms for Homecoming Queen out of spite. But then you discover you can make your own lists and groups and that is cool until you get left off of one and are consigned to sit with Polly Pintersuck at lunch, drowning your sorrows in your Capri Sun.
5. Then there are the haters. These are the more energetic cousins of the leaver-outers. They steal your tofu wrap, write about you on the bathroom wall, AND tape a “Kick Me” sign to your back. No wait, they just bomb your Facebook wall, take a dump in your comments, and send you accusatory emails and tweets. If you’re lucky, they organize a cyber-gang against you, too. “They hate ya, cuz they ain’t ya.” Either that or they are trying to increase traffic to their blogs.
♦
But overall, blogging is a blast. The good definitely outweighs the drudge that can sometimes sprout from cyber-cohabitation. And our blogger friends? They are some of the smartest, funniest, most fun-loving people you would ever hope to meet in cyberspace or Colonel Leghorn Middle School. We’ll take you at our lunch table any time. And by our lunch table, we mean join in our “Tombstone Credit” meme!
Do you feel like you never receive credit for something you constantly do that makes this world a better place to be? Of course you do! Feel free to copy our photo and add your own caption. Be clever! Put it on our Facebook Wall (make sure to “Like” us while you’re there.), then put it on our Pinterest Board. We’ll show you all kinds of love. But be original or we’ll totally trash you to the chess team instead.
Happy .75!
You nailed the “new to blogging” feeling.
Ninja Mom recently posted..You wouldn’t like me when I’m profane #BullyShaming
Thanks lady! Ellen
Spot on! I started at the end of June and I ha no clue what was going on. I almost stopped a few times, blog hops never worked for me because I was linking up with mommy bloggers and I’m a mom but not exactly a mommy blogger. Most of my people would see my comment i left on their posts and come and visit and stick around…
Sorry kid, your mom doesn’t play well with others recently posted..Chivalry isn’t dead…in 3rd grade at least…
Making friends makes things easier, but I find myself getting bogged down with my reading. It’s so hard to keep up with all of the fabulous blogs out there. Ellen
Happy Blogiversary 0.75!
I started blogging in March – and I have to say the image of the blogger standing in the cafeteria holding the tray, not knowing what to do? Totally me.
Now that I know my around, so to speak, it is much better! 🙂
Kim@Co-Pilot Mom recently posted..Lessons Learned From Turtle Pie
So true. And moving your blog is like moving to a new school, which I did not see coming. Ouch.
Azara recently posted..The worst place in the world
omg. I have a post half-written about how blogging is like junior high, but it’s crap. I’m so glad you wrote this!!! Awesome post!
Kate recently posted..Are Any Of These Your Pet Peeves?
And like middle school, things get better, right?
(thank you for the post shout out!)
Alison recently posted..A Tale of Two Americans. Okay, Many Americans
I’m definitely still at stage one, wondering what I am doing and if/why anyone would want to sit with at lunch/read my blog. It’s encouraging to see that you’ve been at it for less than a year and found your place in the cafeteria/blogdom.
Ginger Kay recently posted..Mo, Empathy, and Campaign Confessions
I think that describes my middle school and blogging experience. I am a wall-flower and OK with it… which means I will also never be a huge blogger.
Jane@FromADoctorsWife recently posted..How Worried Would You Be?
LOVE it. Happy Blogging. I’m right there with ya, slow and late sometimes, but I’m there.
Angela Shelton recently posted..Book Signing and Blog Tour
Oh my goodness, so well put! Except suddenly I realize I’ve been doing too much homework and not joining any clubs! I don’t even know what a blog hop is, and I’m a year and half into this. Much to learn, but having a blast in my own little world ha. I need someone show me how to join a club!
Highly recommend Monday Listicles! Stasha’s badge is in our sidebar. Great topic each week, fun bunch of writers, and everyone is pretty committed to reading all of the entries. This week’s topic is “10 Things Bond.” Ellen
Congrats! All your middle school points are spot-on. I also get the teen angst of “This is dumb. Why am I even doing this? No one cares about me.” every once in a while. Astounding that we’re choosing to relive middle school, isn’t it?
Good luck in the next .75 years!
christine recently posted..Things That Go Bark/Cough/Pee in the Night
All very true! I still get intimidated by trying to figure out how to do something in WordPress that I don’t know how to do.
Stacie @ Snaps and Bits recently posted..One Singular Sensation
Oh, man…I was laughing and nodding through EVERY SINGLE ONE! So, so true!!
Happy (sort of) Blogerversary! 🙂
The Dose of Reality recently posted..Don’t Dog Sit If You Want To Be a Brain Surgeon
Bloggers unite. Erin
Happy sort-of blogiversary. I celebrate 5 years, yes, I said 5, in December. It is so much networking and social media stuff and I have just slowly made my way around. Time and stuff is a minor issue. Congrats on surviving your initiation to blogging!
Stacey recently posted..Just Run
Yes! You got it just right…I have similar feelings, and wrote a post called The Awkward Blogger because I just can’t get past the fact that I feel like a total blogging dumbass.
Way to put it out there- found you on Finding the Funny today!
Stephanie Sprenger recently posted..Junior High Mommy
This is PERFECT! “Does this font make me look fat?” Hilarious. Oh, and for the record, your font is lovely. I can completely relate to everything in this post, and even though I’ve been blogging for about 7 months now I still feel like a complete newbie. I get way too distracted reading other blogs, and then I have no time to update my own blog. I’m pinning this awesome post.
Laura @ Stroller Parking Only recently posted..Parenting And The Moral Superiority Index
Why thank you. And thanks for reminding me to pin this post. I keep forgetting to do that. Back when I started blogging, there wasn’t that new fangled Pinterest. ::best granny voice:: Ellen
Wel, since I teach middle school and I have a blog, I can speak as an authority on both, and I totally agree. THis blogging world is so middle/high school. Except if you’re lucky, you find a way to get paid. BUt you have to sell yourself a little. Oh yeah, it IS like high school….
I think it’s time to add you guys to my blogroll. DOn’t know why I haven’t already since I get such a kick out of your blog!
sparkling74 recently posted..Now And Later
Awww, thanks! We haven’t even gotten around to making a blogroll yet. Since there are two of us, we actually have to discuss it . . . and that hasn’t happened yet. Oy! Ellen
Pingback: What We Learned About Each Other in 2012 | Sisterhood of the Sensible Moms
Blaunch! I love it!!!
Bee recently posted..Review: The Childless Revolution
I knew you would! Ha! I love it when other people agree with me! Thanks for that! Made my night! Erin