What with one thing and the other, we ended up in a situation where we were joking about the mother’s (non-existent) blog with a nurse. What was supposed to be facetious became uncomfortable when the nurse asked how often the mother updated her blog. See, it wasn’t that the ICU nurse was curious about the blog — it was that she assumed the mother was posting hourly*. Talk about lowering expectations.
If anything, blogs are proof that the written word is alive and well. Also that our most profound desire to express our deepest thoughts also coincides with such events as colic and other embarrassing moments (in weaker, more dependent individuals). While we don’t have children (and, thankfully, the cats don’t read English), we believe the joy of blogging about your parenting experiences comes from the same place as our joy of humiliating our (much) younger sister. The things she endured before she could form sentences make us proud, and who cares about her mental health:
But the question is, at who’s expense? How will the bloggee feel, say, 16 years from now, when her prom date Googles her entire existence?
Really, if you want to protect yourself from this sort of thing, come out first. The only guarantees of success are being oldest or being an only child. Also, bribery works. It also helps if you’re ahead of your parents in the technology curve, but that’s getting tougher. If there was ever time for being born a child prodigy, now would be it. You don’t have much time.
* – If only. The mother is actually funny. We aspire to her level of humor, though we prefer not to descend to puns.
3 responses so far ↓
Suzanne McMinn // Feb 1, 2005 at 6:59 am
Hi. I’m one of the DotMoms (one of the sites mentioned in the NY Times “Mommy and Me” article….. Overall, I thought the article was dismissive and derisive of blogging, completely missing the point of blogging being a healthy outlet and connection to other people going through the same things you are. Parenting can feel very isolating, so the sharing and connection of blogging can be a powerful thing. In the end, if it exposed other women to blogging, whether they start their own blog or just visit other moms’ blogs, it was a good thing.
booksquare // Feb 1, 2005 at 11:02 pm
First, congratulations on getting mentioned. They say there’s no bad publicity, but I think Paris Hilton has actually proven that wrong (g). But for most of us….
The NYT has done quite a few stories on blogging, but, I suspect, they don’t quite get it. Most media are looking for an angle — and they’re looking at the profit side, publicity side, or the Fight The Power side. They don’t seem, yet, to get the idea of community building. Blogs are just another step in this direction. People like community — and they like it in their own time.
I remember reading article(s) a few years about about mothers who post to newsgroups or forums when they’re up with their babies in the middle of the night. Yeah, you need to share with other people who are dealing with colic (would that the mother had this kind of resource…she would have realized I’m normal!
Blogs are so many things, and finding a story is hard. I wish the NYT would put forth the effort to get it. But then again, it’s kind of cool knowing this world is developing on its own. It lets us define our own structure.
booksquare // Feb 1, 2005 at 11:04 pm
PS — Yes, I think moms and dads will find their own. It’s always comforting to know you’re not the only one, and I believe blogs offer that sense of “I’m not alone”.