Ten years of blogging

The one thing that I forgot in the middle of my decrepit computer is that 17 September was the tenth anniversary of The Irrefutable Proof about Hobbits.  I am such a bad parent that I didn’t commemorate this special day!  I have been thinking about it for a while.

The Irrefutable Proof about Hobbits started ten years ago on Livejournal.  The account is not updated now.  It is still there if I ever go back to it.  The title was a nod to the movie The Irrefutable Truth about Demons.  Actually I’ve never watched it.  There is no proof about the existence of hobbits in this journal except that I record my life, The Hobbit.   My icon was taken from the National Geographic website, the image of a Homo Florensis Hobbit, Ebu Gogo, the flesh-eater.  I liked the irony of not being identified as one of Tolkien’s hobbits.

The subtitle Satura I picked up from a year of classical studies.  It is a Greek word with multiple meanings: the origin of the word ‘satire’, a mixed dish of fruit shared as a dessert.  On Livejournal I used it as the name of my friends’ page.  It was always in the back of my head as a title if I ever wanted to publish a fanzine.

Originally I blogged daily, recording my life.  That palled after flatmates I lived with used it to track what I was doing.  It became irritating to post a blog and have some one come and say to me ‘so you XYZ…?’ about half an hour later.  I started thinking ‘Why, yes, Captain Obvious!  And you only know that because you’re stalking me!’  My life returned to my written journal.  The Irrefutable Proof about Hobbits became more sporadic.

Still I kept returning to it.  I find I like to blog and report on events as I encounter them.  It’s not going to be a popular blog.  It’s way below the radar to get the hits.  And I don’t want to promote it.  People still find it.  I moved it off Livejournal to WordPress.  It’s still followed by a handful of friends: Southern Dave, Jason Goroncy, Traci Voss, Tony Skaggs.  I share it on Facebook and Twitter and I know people visit from those sites.  I never know who they are and they never speak.  They are still out there.  I lost one follower and friend, Grace Gardner, when she took her own life.  The world is diminished by that loss.  She is not forgotten.

And after this year’s break for house-sitting I return to blogging.  I look forward to finding new things about which to report, gripe and be  curmudgeonly!  As well as new surprises to delight me.  I hope for another ten years!

Celebrate with me!

If I’ve got it right then this is the ninth anniversary of the earth-shaking blog, The Irrefutable Proof About Hobbits.  So charge your glasses.  Here’s to another nine years!

Updating

Apologies to regular readers on WordPress.  I’m updating the conlang tag in preparation for a feed on the Conlang Aggregation Feed.  This will mean some posts will be posted for reading again with little change.  Please bear with me.

My life as a….

I like adding new things to my face-book interests so having been told that the Blue Oyster Art Project Space had a presence there I went and checked out the page. Pages actually, there are two of them. I was bemused to discover that the most recent news on one page was a review I had done after my visit for a talk that they had on there. Good grief! Am I the only person in the blogosphere who is reviewing Dunedin as a space of art and culture and public events? It would be humbling if it was true. I have no qualifications to be a critic, or say if music, dance or displayed art is good. Where are the real people who should be doing this?

I plan to continue blogging about events that I attend and that I find fun. People who stumble over my blogsite are going to be surprised by the eclectic mix of things that I have discovered. Perhaps I’m not as broad-minded as I make out to be.

And shout out when your event is on. I’ll be glad to come and see. Look out for the little guy in the big green felt fedora. That’s me. I think I’m slowly turning into an old identity in this city. And if you think my opinion is wrong then tell me, or if it is right. It’s the only way I’ll learn better.

Maybe I should go talk to the people at Hidden Dunedin. It could yet prove that I am a force for good.

Per Crucem asked me today if I liked having my new blog on Word-Press.  I’m quite happy here.  I haven’t figured out who’s still reading me.  I hope at least three or friends are still reading me.  They should know who they are.  The hits on this site have been dead for the last couple of days even though I’ve been posting stuff.  Never mind they are up again today so I’m happy.  People are finding me so I’m happy here.

I hope the person who came looking for the quote ‘when I have money I buy books’ found a link that attrributed to Erasmus.  That’s who I understand said it first.