This is a legitimate question.
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| "What is an online Dairy? Are there virtual cows?" - Alison HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAH *dies laughing* |
I love blogging. I honestly had no idea how attached I would become to a hobby, but I've become very attached to blogging. I love it. I'm not gonna bullshit you, there are quite a few things about blogging that I'm just simply not a fan of, but for the most part, I love this.
And actually, I guess I'm going to be talking about one thing I don't necessarily like about this hobby. The categories you're put into and specially what it means to be a "lifestyle blogger".
Let me set the scene, so to speak.
I had a bad day yesterday. If you follow me on Twitter, you're probably more than aware that I had a bad day yesterday. I don't want to be vague about it because it isn't a big secret, so basically long ass story short - my landlord sold his house/our apartments and a new management company has taken over and it was all very (very, very) short notice and now I have until July 31st to decide whether or not I want to sign on for a year with a 34% increase in my rent a month or move. So yea, in the next 28 days I need to make that huge decision and I'm stressed about it. Stressing about it doesn't solve the problem, but no one seems to have told my stress level that. The majority of this situation happened yesterday and it made for a very bad and very stressful day.
Also, I really want to go on record saying that the way this entire situation has been handled by my old landlord and my new landlord has been sub-par, at best.
So anyway, when I sat down last night to write a blog post for today THAT was all I wanted to talk about. It's on my mind and I'm stressed and honestly? I just really needed to vent it out a little. However, as I opened up Blogger to write about it a few different things went through my mind -
- Well, I didn't post yesterday and my post on Tuesday was kind of weak and really my post on Monday wasn't that great, so I really need to write a creative post for tomorrow to make up for the week.
- Do I really want to write an entire post complaining? That will make me seem like a glass half empty person and I really like being a glass half full person. Can I be glass half full and still complain?
- I don't have any pictures to go with a post like that.
- Maybe I could make some random PicMonkey graphic and pass that off as a picture for the post?
- I won't get any comments because who actually cares about my living situation? Not a damn person besides me and the people close to me.
So I changed my mind and I just spent the last hour getting creative and writing a long unique "pin able" post with plenty of jokes, a little sarcasm, and several pictures that I spent entirely too long cropping, resizing, and adjusting. It ended up being a post I should have been proud of.. but I wasn't. And when I was done, instead of hitting Publish, I deleted it. The whole entire thing.
A big part of my issue tonight is just the mood I'm in, which isn't a good one and I can admit and acknowledge that. However, I was so annoyed with myself for not spending that hour writing what I wanted to write.
What is blogging? On one hand, yea, maybe it isn't necessarily an online journal, and yet.. In the other hand I read blogs every single day and some of them discuss their recents dates, pregnancy updates, their weekends, their half marathon training schedule, and I could go on and on. Isn't that a little like an online journal?
But then I guess, it's not always like that is it? I've posted things like Man Candy posts or my Top 5 Christmas Movies and neither of those are things I would've put in a journal. I wrote them because they were going on my blog and I needed to be creative. I read blog posts every day that sound more like a Buzzfeed article and less like an online journal (which is in no way a bad thing, i love that shit), but both are tossed into that "Lifestyle Blogger" category.
What does that even mean? Lifestyle Blogger?
One would assume that it meant if I was having a bad day then I could write about it on my blog. Since that bad day happened in my life and does that not fit into "lifestyle"?
But blogging pressures are real sometimes. The pressure to grow and the knowledge that you're only as good as your latest post are both very real things. I'm usually decently good at ignoring both of those things, but clearly I slip up. And now here we are.
I also find it mildly interesting that this post will get very few views. Even worse is that probably half of those views will be people who won't even read this whole post. I mean, why would they? This isn't a great post by any means. It's not well thought out or planned, it isn't going to have any pictures, and it's wordy as fuck. In this social media and digital age where we need to be entertained at all times and if you don't capture our attention in the first 7 seconds? Then we're moving on and clicking that X in the corner.
But that's a different topic for a different day.
I actually started reading your post based on the title and I read all the way through. I actually did want to hear about what happened with your living situation. That's the stuff that interests me more than reading about make-up advice or fashion posts. Real stuff. I hope we get to hear about your frustration and I hope that it all works out!
ReplyDeleteI READ THIS WHOLE POST. i love it girl. and thats so shitty about your landlord/s. ugggh. let's egg them. i hope your stress subsides soon cause aint nobody got time fo dat.
ReplyDeleteOHMYGOD. 34%?!? I added 34% to my rent just to see how much it would be.. THAT'S A RIDICULOUS AMOUNT. Especially for them to go up all at once?! Finding an apartment in 28 days isn't too bad. If you had started looking any earlier then you would have found a place you loved and needed but if you got it now you'd have to pay rent in two places until your first lease was up, but if you don't get it then it'll be gone and now you're homeless! (that escalated quickly..) This is the longest comment ever, but I'm gonna keep going. I would read your lease, generally there's a clause in there that says they won't raise the rent a certain amount without giving you a notice of like 30 days or something..
ReplyDelete..still going.. I totally understand the creative pressure. Hence why I've been MIA here and there... My creative juices just haven't been flowing. I think that's it... I hope today is better for you!
First of all, I would be LIVID if I were you...and as much as it totally sucks, I think I'd move. They don't deserve your business if they're going to treat you that way and tell you things at the last second. Second, I totally know what you mean about the pressures of blogging. I always find myself writing posts and then deleting them because I feel like people have no interest in reading about it. BUT, I also constantly remind myself that this is MY blog and if I want to use it to vent, post pictures, or put memories down in writing, then so be it. I try to write my blog regardless of how many comments it will get...and maybe that's why I don't get very many! Haha! Best of luck with your big decision and happy 4th weekend!
ReplyDeleteDude you're being real and I like reading posts like that.
ReplyDeleteF that noise of 34% Id be finding me a new place and legally I think they HAVE to give you more time than that.
PS I read the whole post :))
I totally read through all the way! As someone who loves to read almost more than anything else in the world I love actually being able to read a post. Fun posts with plenty of gifs are great, but its nice to get to actually read someones thoughts too!
ReplyDeletei think our biggest issue with things online is that we are so busy looking for lists that we just skip posts or articles in general that are wordy as fuck. even though they are the ones that are always the most interesting or educational or thought provoking...
ReplyDeleteI agree with you. Some days I think that I shouldn't post what I had planned, because people will probably think it's boring and won't care. But then I just try to remember that I created this blog for ME, to be able to document all different aspects of my life...the exciting and the boring. So I think you should post whatever you feel like posting :)
ReplyDeleteGood luck making your decision about your apartment. That is super stressful, so I hope it all works out in the end for you!
I honestly love posts like this. They show a more vulnerable side to blogging that some deem uninteresting. I read the whole thing and I'm just as stumped as you when it comes to describing what blogging is.
ReplyDeleteI read your post. I actually love when bloggers talk about the bad and good in their life. It let's me know they are real people dealing with the same things I am dealing with in my daily life. I am currently in a moving situation as well that is stressing me out. I hope you can figure out what is best for you. Let us know how it goes if you want to.
ReplyDeleteCount me in as one who read the whole thing. I really can't agree more with what you said about lifestyle blogging — and the knowledge that we're only as good as our last posts. But for what it's worth, I like reading the real stuff. So please, tell us about what's going on with the living situation. Because we're all nosy, or else we wouldn't be reading/writing lifestyle blogs to begin with :)
ReplyDeleteGenuine bloggers and genuine posts beat that run of the mill crap any day! While not all parts of our lives are pretty (hello asshat landlords!) they are a part of our lives! And our blogs, at least in my opinion, exist to help document our lives! So I say kudos to you for this post... and good luck on your big decision!
ReplyDelete-Kate
www.theflorkens.com
It's definitely a lot of pressure, and no one from my "real life" (non blogging friends) understands. I think it's important to document our lives among those "buzzfeed" posts, because we're sharing our lives, and our thoughts/opinions, whether they're funny or serious.
ReplyDeleteIt's lifestyle because we want to hear about your life! My favorite thing about blogging is getting advice and finding kindred spirits. You never know who has been in your situation and can commiserate with you!
ReplyDeleteThat said, 34%?!?!?! That's crazy!
I like wordy. Especially if the alternative is one sentence at a time interspersed with barely relevant imagery.
ReplyDeleteI think the pressures that come along with it really depend what your goal is. If you're trying to make money blogging, then sure, there's some very real pressure to hold on to your readers and get lots of hits so people will sponsor you. But if it's just for you, then screw what everyone else says and do what you want!
Good luck figuring out your housing situation!
I like posts that tell what is going on in your life better than a favorites post. So lame about the apartment situation :( Seriously you'd think they could have given you more time. 34% is huge!!
ReplyDeleteI read the whole thing and I for one like it when a blogger talks about their real life and problems rather than beeing "buzzfeed-y" all the time. It's relatable and makes me feel like I'm not the only one who sometimes just wants to spew it all out there without worrying about pageviews. And it's lame that some of our most heartfelt posts get zero comments, but I guess that's all part of the game.
ReplyDeleteI found this post from Sarah over at Sarah's Spiel, and holy cow, you hit the nail on the head. I've been worried about posting all about my wedding plans and ideas since I got engaged because I don't want to annoy readers or anything, but ultimately, it's my blog and I should write what I want to! Thanks for that reminder- you do you, and complain all you want about your landlord(s)! Even positive people have to deal with really sucky situations, and some situations just don't deserve any positivity!
ReplyDelete