Sep 18 2007
18th Century Advice for 21st Century Technology
Samual Johnson, 
an 18th century author, is quoted as saying, “What is written without effort is in general read without pleasure.”
Dr. Johnson has gotten inside my head. To summarize so succinctly my angst in being the author of this blog from more than 2 centuries in the past is truly mind boggling. But what he doesn’t elaborate upon is that sometimes the effort itself is a hindrance to the creation of the written word in the first place. It would be easy to spew drivel about the humdrum of daily life simply for the sake of journalizing it. If this blog-o-mine wasn’t put on public display, perhaps it would be a diary of the monotony of daily life spattered with the occasional highlight interesting only to myself and those directly connected with my life’s events.
But it is put on public display. For that reason, there is a certain pressure to provide something worth reading. This pressure translates into effort. This effort is what, according to Johnson, allows me to write something pleasurable to read. But this pressure can also be paralyzing. This pressure can cause a performance anxiety of sorts. This pressure to perform, to entertain, to appear competent can be self destructive. The world will see this. Actually, only about 1 billionth of the world’s population will actually read it, but the pressure is there nonetheless.
For this reason alone, I have a level of respect for anyone that attempts to do this. I admire anyone who attempts to publicly display their thoughts, their words, their feelings, their sense of humour, their goals, and even their vulnerabilities.
My nephew entered the blogosphere today. He did so without fanfare. He didn’t publicly announce it. But as wonderfully vast as the web can be, it is impossible to hide. You are out there Ronnie, and now I’m telling others! I admire your courage as you publicly display your wares. Good luck, and welcome aboard. You are now one of us. I hope Flip or Fantasy becomes a regular watering hole for those of us thirsty for a pleasurable read. If your first post is any indication (cleverly titled by the way), good ol’ Sam Johnson has some good readin’ to look forward to. And so do I.
Welcome to my Web Blah... er, Blog.
September 19th, 2007 at 7:39 am
Johnson also wrote “When a man says he had pleasure with a woman he does not mean conversation” and similar things about women, so ya gotta take his stuff with a grain of salt.
Speaking of women, my first post was about a nipple.
I don’t worry about my blog’s content anymore, which, I know, is obvious. Other interests and priorities come up. It’s a hobby, although the thrill of knowing you’re read by others IS exhilarating (and nerve-racking) at times.
September 19th, 2007 at 7:48 am
I like that second quote you provided. Man! He’s still inside my head!
September 20th, 2007 at 8:27 am
” Performance Anxiety” hey Steve …….. there’s a pill you can take for that!!!
I say it again ….. Donna, you’re a saint!! Not only do you have to put up with Steve’s antics, his blog, his looks or lack thereof you now have to put up with his preformance issues. God be with you!
September 20th, 2007 at 9:07 am
A pill eh Craig? Can you loan me a few of yours?
September 20th, 2007 at 10:05 am
Don’t need them however I can ask some of the senior citizens in the building if they can spare one for you ….. that would be more than enough according to Donna!!
September 20th, 2007 at 10:06 am
Off to check it out!
September 20th, 2007 at 8:21 pm
Thanks for the mention in your post. Didn’t take long to find me at all. And you’ve already thrown a few readers my way, so I appreciate the added pressure. Looking forward to getting used to it though.
Anyway, I guess now that I’m out there myself, I might as well start making some comments too. I’ve always been a faithful reader of yours, now, I’m going to make a stab at being a faithful commenter too.
September 21st, 2007 at 7:49 am
Ha! I was wondering if you would consider my endorsement a blessing or a curse. Now that both of my readers know about you, you will be inundated with traffic!
September 21st, 2007 at 4:20 pm
I actually like BBS’s more than blogging, I wish they were still around.
I barely blog anymore, my life isn’t worth boring other people about, usually. I’d rather go on a themed message board and discuss something pertaining to the theme. Then when I get bored of that theme I move onto something else, but at least for a little while everyone is discussing the same thing. I find with blogging the “sharing this with friends” effect is very fleeting. I write it, they read it, they may post a comment, then it’s all over. I don’t like the themes to end so quickly, but it’s hard to pull people back in because it becomes yesterday’s news so fast.
“What is written without effort is in general read without pleasure.” I think this is antiquated, it’s a lot easier to write nowadays without first having to catch a goose and pluck a feather. Unless you wanna. (I’ve corrected and re-worded more than a dozen things as I’ve been writing this, without having to write the entire thing over again, perfectly, the first time.. Don’t worry, it was my pleasure).