Ten years

I’m pleased that I’m blogging today, because this blog is ten years old today!

I’m amazed that the blog’s lasted this long, to be honest. I started it because I needed to investigate all the “new” tools that were becoming popular at the time. I needed to figure out what “Web 2.0” was. I had also been given a task by my then boss: could the library use a blog? (That was my interpretation of the task I was set. I think my boss actually wondered: HOW could the library use a blog?)

I’m glad I decided that just reading about blogs wasn’t going to be enough, I needed to actually try it out for myself, to see how easy (or not) it was. When I started this blog I had no idea where it would take me.

I’m glad I can sometimes suspend disbelief enough to try things out, rather than just dismissing them completely 🙂 This is where I confess that at the time I thought the whole blogging thing was a fad and would soon pass, and there was no professional use for blogging. Really!

One thing led to another. For me as a librarian, it was a good time to start blogging, as back then many librarians were exploring the technology too. The biblioblogosphere was buzzing. (Biblioblogosphere, such a clumsy word. Does anyone still talk about the “blogosphere” these days?)

On reflection, I was actually blogging well before I started investigating blogs for work. I have my sisters to thank for this; beautlotus has been blogging for longer than me, so has The Food Pornographer. My other sisters haven’t been doing this for as long, but Juji Chews‘ and Hungry Hungry Hippies‘ blogs mean I’m part of a nice little network without any effort at all on my part. (I love how tech-savvy my family is!) My blogging didn’t really “take” until I started this blog, though.

It would probably be too navel-gazing and boring to read about (so I’ll spare you the minutiae) but I can definitely say that blogging did a lot to build my professional confidence and identity. My first ever conference paper was about blogging!

Having said that I like(d) being part of the biblioblogosphere, I’ve never considered this blog to be a “librarian’s blog”, in that I seldom write about professional issues here. It’s more a personal blog for me, I think.

Kate wrote about why we #blogjune. I’ve been pondering why I blog at all, why I stuck with it even after my task for work was done (we did end up setting up a blog for the library I was working for at the time. It still exists).

Why do I still blog now?

1. The sense of being part of a bigger something. Even if I haven’t written much about professional issues here, this is still a blog by a librarian. And yes, Kate, I would like to do something together!
2. Having a space on the web that is mine. I pay for hosting and maintain this space. It’s not controlled by any large corporation.
3. I can say more than a mere 140 characters’ worth here.
4. When I do blog, I find it makes me more thoughtful. I notice things more – even if it’s just so I have something to blog about!
5. It’s fun! I enjoy writing and lament not making the time to write more…

I’m not sure if I’ll be writing this blog in another ten years from now, but I hope I’ll still be enjoying creating some form of personal expression.