Ten Long Years (and counting!)

, originally uploaded by carolsLittleWorld.

Ten years….ten long years. That’s a lot of time in blog-land. That’s a lot of little white boxes with blue [POST] buttons, isn’t it? That’s a lot of art and photography. That’s a lot of burnt dinners, dried toast, frozen cocktails, and outlaws on the run.

Hard to believe it, but it’s true. This month, on January 16th to be precise, I celebrated an anniversary of sorts. I started blogging on January 16th, 2002. That’s ten years of blogging, ten years of me sitting down at my computer to share with you a slice of life from my day.

When I first started blogging, ipods were “newfangled” devices and hardly anybody else was blogging. Blogs were sort of “play things” that nobody really took seriously. Those that had heard of them thought they were “journals of some kind…on the Internet, no?” Um, I guess, “no” would be spot on right about now. It’s hard for me to even imagine the incredible things blogs have done for people and, likewise, the incredible blogs some people have done. I’m constantly amazed at how bloggers continually find new and creative ways of expressing themselves given this humble “new media” outlet.

In the early days of blogs, most of us thought they would not last very long. Nobody imagined ever making a living from one or using one to sell anything. Most people were kind of afraid somebody like their boyfriend might find it and read it. Everybody was kind of putting out feelers, like trying to make their way in the dark. Nobody had “traffic reports” or statistics (yet) and it was hard to even get listed in the search engines. Hard to believe because now Google owns Blogger, but Blogger was a small little start-up with a dream and a lot of passionate users. And grilled cheese sandwiches. We at a lot of grilled cheese sandwiches in those days, didn’t we?

Blogging has changed in so many ways over the years, but yet it somehow remains quite the same for me. It’s all about me sitting down, at that little white box, facing that bright blue [POST] button, sharing a little bit of my day or my life or my work with you, asking questions, telling stories, sharing fables, swapping cooking disasters, fashion mishaps, and even some of the music we all love. I’ve talked about true crime as it happened and told you what I ate for lunch yesterday that was oh so tasty. You’ve shared in my car repairs, my chance meetings, my paintings, and shots I’ve taken in points afar.

It’s hard for me to believe that I once posted a blog entry from Italy. Now, of course, I can remember doing it. I remember sitting down in a bar in Venice, logging on to some antiquated computer that would type “itsa” for me instead of “it’s a” because the keys were all programmed differently, to “speak” Italian somehow. I had a glass of Jameson, sat down and, “itsa” key be damned, I told you what it was like landing in Venice for the first time, and what my day was like in the Veneto. I’ve blogged from hotel lobby’s in Iceland and volcanoes in Hawaii, New Orleans coffee shops and God only knows how many airports. (Oh, those are the worst!) Heck, I think I even blogged once from some airport after I had forgotten where I was and had to ask somebody (“Excuse me…is this Phoenix? Philadelphia! Oh right….I knew that.” Ok, so I admit it now…I really didn’t at the time.)

And don’t get me started on the pictures. The pictures. The pictures I’ve taken fort the blog! When I first started blogging, it was words only. Words, words, words. That’s all we thought it would ever be. Now? Video? Are you kidding me? E-books? Movies? Photos instantly processed from my phone? Who knew, right?

Technology has come a long way and blogging has really changed over those years. It feels great to be able to do so much so much more easily now. It’s great to be able to create new content for the web on a regular basis and I just love being able to share my ups and downs, trials and tribulations with everybody. I’ve gotten to meet a lot of new friends on the blog too-not just “Internet friends” no, actual real people. I’ve met some of you in the flesh and sometimes even get introduced as, “Oh, this is Carol and she runs a blog that….” Yes, I really am *that* Carol. Hard to believe, isn’t it? (Believe me, it’s even harder for me to believe sometimes. Often, I look over my shoulder and wonder who these people are talking about!)

After all this time, so much has changed, yet so much remains the same. I sit down, collect my thoughts, write whatever happens to pop into my head, hope I don’t spell too many words too horribly wrong, and wonder what you will do with all of these extra commas. (I love extra commas, don’t I?) I happily click on the blue [POST] button and share a bit of my day with the rest of the world. I do it as often as I can, no apologies, all in fun, all as a form of personal expression. It’s an art form for me, in a way, and I love it. I wouldn’t change a thing.

Speaking of the great big world, travels, and the like, who knew that so many people from so far away would ever check in here? Greetings to all of you from afar. I’m always especially touched when service members check in and tell me they were homesick and used my blog to remind themselves what it felt like to live in New Orleans or New York or wherever they happen to live. I’m glad and happy to share a wee bit of home with you, even if it is from miles away and with many Internet hops in-between.

For those of you looking to start blogging, I’d encourage you to go for it. It’s the most fun a little white box with a bright blue [POST] button can give you. Trust me, it’s a fun happening game to play. For those of you who pop in here and read this, even if it’s only once in a while, even if you never happen back by this way again, I wish you all the best too. I really am very thankful that each and every one of you stop by and share your world with me as well. Finally, for those of you who make this software and help put together all of this tangled Internet web we all gloriously weave together, I thank you from the bottom of my heart. Thank you for the tireless work you do bringing these sites together and helping us craft the content that we do. You guys (and gals!) rock! Please never forget that, no matter how many unreasonable demands or new frontiers you may face.

To all of my friends and family, to my artist buddies, photographers I have met on journeys afar and nosy neighbors who dropped in here for only a short visit, thanks for stopping by and I wish you the best. This is your anniversary too, for I would not be able to celebrate my 10 years without having you in the picture. This is your 10 years as much as mine, so please enjoy it. Pour yourself a drink, kick back, and say, “Wow! Has it really been that long?” Why it has, and yet, somehow, it seems like it was only yesterday that it all just started.

Ten years…ten long years….Wow! Who would have ever guessed I would make it this far?

Until next time…