There's a funny thing that happens on the internet. You read something and you think you know all about it. You see a small snippet of someone's life, and you think you know that person. Well, I think I can safely say, that you don't know me. How could you? I've lived 99.9% of my life outside of the Twitter-and Blogger-sphere. But now that I'm here, I want to share more with you, and I would like more of you to share with me. My profound Blogger observation of the day: blogging is interactive. There was recently a discussion on the Mumsnet Bloggers Forum about this, about how we Bloggers paste a link to our latest blog post, and run, without even looking at the entry above ours. I have to say I have done this, mainly because at first, I did try and read a good half dozen or so, and comment, and almost never got a comment back. I still read the front page of Mumsnet Blogs, as they roll over, and I do like the Featured Blogs, and I comment on most blogs that I read, because someone has taken the time to write something original.
But the best way of connecting with like-minded people, not just Bloggers, does appear to be on Twitter, the micro-blogging platform (see my new Twitter local heroes here). Clever people can say a lot in 140 characters, or less!
With another hat on, I write a blog about life in an English village with two Boxers (dogs not fighters, as one Twit said). My latest blog post is about locally sourced and produced food, and why I think pubs and restaurants should be proud to use local ingredients when designing their menus.
And in (almost) another life, I dabbled in the art world, a world I felt so at home in, although not a very good artist myself. But I connected with people through their art and mine. Painting and drawing have always been part of my life. My doodles are legendary, they unlock my inner self, much like a meditation. I have always felt strongly that more people should be encouraged to create; it is a way of expressing yourself even if you can't find the words to say how you feel.
So the next time you are tempted to just gloss over someone's blog, stop, read and interact. People are amazing, and each one of us has an important story to tell.