If you are younger than 50 you probably don’t read Ronnie's blog. But she has been writing about ageing for many months now and if you are younger than 50 (including you 20-somethings) and you read blogs of those 'older' you should read her most recent post linked above. It has some great insight both from Ronnie and her other bloggers about blogging relationships.
I challenge those of you under 50 (or older) to post about blog friendship---not about those you know personally in your life, but about blog friends (any age) that you have made and why you think these friendships work for you at your time in life. Leave me a comment or link to your blog, so I can read this.
The blog friends that are my age inspire me, because we share common ideas, experiences and problems. I love the way we pat each other on the back and support each other as if we were old friends. I connect with those who have similar hobbies (gardening and photography, for instance) and look forward to exploring these more in-depth when I retire. I see similar challenges in our lives and this helps me focus on the big picture.
My blog friends that are younger add so much to my life, since I agree with Ronnie in that we wouldn’t have such an in-depth exchanges of ideas if we were sitting together at a dinner party or luncheon. Their cell phone, children, good-looking passersby, whatever, would be a distraction and interruption. I get to give unsolicited advice (a bad habit of mine) but I also get great perspective from them, energetic ideas, and they help me remember the challenges I faced when I was their age.
Blog mates that are older than me help me see what lies ahead and help me prepare for the next part of my life. They prove that while some parts of the body may be presenting new challenges, that old brain and personality can still shine through when we are not distracted by appearances. They also remind me about how healthy humor is.
And finally the bloggers that I connect with that live in other countries add a tremendous new kaleidoscopic beauty to the exchange of ideas and experiences over blogdom. I get to re-visit those areas of the world I have previously seen or see these places through different eyes. I also get to take a new trip to an area of the globe and have tea in the back garden with the blogger.
I guess what I love about blogging friendships the most is the opportunity to exhange ideas with the whole smorgasbord of the world. (And I love the Internet so that I can look up "kaleidoscopic" and "smorgasbord" since my poor typing can mask my terrible spelling for only so long.)
You certainly nailed the hit on the head. I don't know why, but b**g friends somehow seem "real-er" than real friends. Perhaps the anonymity helps. In any case, my b**g friends are truly friends, I know, and they would welcome me on their doorstep. Ain't that grand?
ReplyDeleteNicely put, Tabor. Thanks for an excellent follow-on...
ReplyDeleteCouldn't have said it better myself...I completely agree.
ReplyDeleteAnd this is exactly why I can't imagine giving up this hobby of mine. I get discouraged, busy, overwhelmed, bored and think that maybe I should hang up the blogging hat for a spell. But then I start to miss the friends I've met through blogging, the windows to their parts of the world they provide.
ReplyDeleteWhat a great post! This is something I've been meaning to write about, but would of course require some time to put my thoughts together. :)
I took a while to think on this one. I know and understand that friendship is important in life, but I have to be careful, because I can cut myself off from friends very easily. Friendship takes work.
ReplyDeleteMy thoughts on blog friends:
My first thought was "not getting interrupted" but that one has been covered, so I will move on.
Blog friends take less work. (For me, anyway) Face-to-face friendships take a lot of energy. I have to be "ON". Energy is a precious commodity for me at this stage in my life. I can't sit like a lump with face-to-face friends as I do when I am sitting in front of my monitor. My face sagging, my eyes drooping. People would think I was on drugs or something. My fingers are moving but all the rest of my energy is concentrated into what I am typing and thinking.
I am a people-pleaser and I tend to give away a lot of myself while listening to others. (If you notice I quit conversing with a co-worker in my office about six months ago because of this)
And then there is the visionary vs. auditory sensory. I like to see photos and pictures and I comprehend more by reading than I do by listening. I get more of a "sense" of my blog friends because I seem to absorb what they write more than when I listen to my face-to-face friends.
Yep, at this time in my life, blogging gives me a release and seems to lift me up, whereas face-to-face friends drain me.
Thanks for the comments. I look forward to more ideas. This is something that my hubby and others don't really understand. So, maybe we need to understand it better ourselves.
ReplyDeleteTabor, this is such a perfect post topic. While we're always busy talking 'to' our blog friends - via comments and posting - we don't always remember to talk 'about' them.
ReplyDeleteAs you and as "peruby" have said so eloquently, the lack of distraction within our blog-friend relationships is perhaps the most important element.
I do see this entire process (blogging) as a learning tool, and aside from our monthly connect-charges, I sometimes cannot believe that this, one of the most pleasurable activities in many of our lives, is FREE.
Windows to the world, indeed. Another aspect for me is that there are some topics I have always been rather closed-minded about; wouldn't even discuss them with my closest real-life friends. In writing, I feel far more open... more willing to listen to another view - more patient! In some cases, I've come around to the other side, in others, at least I can now realize the bottom line of the differences. I'm learning about my own darned self!
I don't know that I would have found another way to explore so many possibilities if not for blogging.
Excellent post!