Why Blog?

I have been asking myself this question for a while now: why do I blog?

Do I blog to talk about politics? Sometimes. Do I blog to rant? Sometimes. Do I blog to make friend? Occassionally. Or do I blog to keep friends and family in the loop on Sam? Yes. But mostly I think I blog for Sam.

I have kept this blog for the Family Groove for the past 14 months. I do not treat it like my essay writing or like my column. I do not treat it like my professional writing at all. It isn't. My blog is an opportunity to be myself, to have one-sided conversations that sometimes become two-sided thanks to comments. I have made new friends (shout out to Kristi of Interrupted Wanderlust) who have become real life friends (albeit still virtually). I have kept in touch with old friends who read and I do not need to tell my Sam stories 100 times. They are all in one place. My blog is really an opportunity to shed the professional writer in me and just be myself. I think that must be why so many professional writers are so different in their blogs. Look at Ayelet Waldman or Steve Almond, both of whom have (had) blogs that I enjoyed. It is a window into their real lives

Perhaps most importantly this blog has become a means for my daughter to see what her first years were like. I realize I could be doing this in a private forum, but then I am not a private person. I like sharing Sammy stories and let's just say that I promise that for every 1,000 things I share on this blog, there are 1,000 more things I keep private. Contrary to what many think of me, I do have secrets. And I know what they are. Still, I like to share and I love the idea that some day Sam will have a record of her first year, complete with photos, rants and whatever else I choose to share here. I wish I had the same from my first year of life.

I say all this because in the next few weeks I will be starting a new blog. I will certainly not abandon this one, but I have been hired to talk about one of my passions other than my kid: SHOES. Yes, that is correct. I have been hired as one of the bloggers for new website called shoetube. Check it out. It will go live in February and I will post more about it then. So, thank you to The Family Groove for getting me started in the fabulous world of blogging. Now I will be able to talk about my two greatest passions in my two blogs: Shoes and Sam. What's next? A running blog? Perhaps a political one. Anything can come when one mixes business and pleasure.