Random and Odd

Kristine

I started out using Blogger. It was a free program, but during the sale of Blogger to Google, there were months of ‘glitches’ and it became extremely frustrating. I finally decided to buy my own domain at randomandodd.com/. I use wordpress now. The program transferred all my writing and comments without a flaw. It was an easy switch to make.

I started ‘blogging’ before it had a name. It started out with ‘what I was reading’ and pictures of the kids. It wasn’t long before I found that my written diary was missing and I began writing my journey as a parent, married in suburbia.

During my divorce I shut down my personal blog that had only one reader. Myself. I kept all my writing, but used it mostly as a personal reference of how I was doing.

After the divorce, I opened up another ‘about me’ page. It was http://www.justkeeton.com/. I enjoyed sharing my stories about how I was doing in my fantasy football league. I spoke of the funny stories my kids would play out in front of me. I picked up two more readers, my mom and sister.

Due to my lack of income, I lost my domain and started writing in my personal diary again. I even began writing poetry.

After college I opened up my ‘Random and Odd’ page and started pouring out the pain of a relationship I didn’t think would last. I began to share the pain I had gone through with my divorce. After awhile I finally began to talk about the anxiety and panic I was living with. I didn’t realize that I had people reading and relating to the way I write and the stories I would tell would offer them hope. I began getting emails from genuine people thanking me for my words.

It was then my blog somehow got bigger and bigger.

The word ‘blog’ has always been a mystery to me. It wasn’t until I started reading a book called, “A Feminine Mystique” that I started to understand how much ‘blogging’ had opened doors that were always whispered about. When someone else can write something personal about themselves and have someone say, “I understand. I battle that too.” is powerful. It gives people a link to the outside world of the world they are in. The normal day to day grind of a housewife, a working woman, a cancer patient, a single father…is now shared with many people that can give someone the strength to keep it together when they don’t think they can handle another day of the ‘grind’ they call their life.

My blog to me is the written; “Note To Self” I want to remember what I did last year. Two years ago. I want to know that I had a bad day. I want to remember that my kids glued me to a plastic chair. I want to go back through the pictures I thought were my best.

I don’t pick my topic. My topics pick themselves. I sit down and start writing, much like I did when I picked up my pen and fought to keep the binding down to get all my writing in it before it slammed shut.

My home is full. We have 5 kids. My ex-husband is one of my best friends. My husband’s ex-wife was attacked at her home by 4 men with guns and has been sharing our home for 6 months with her one year old child. Topics are easy to come by.

I’m not a big fan of blog templates. I have finally found a simple blog template. Not too overwhelming. I would like to be able to find ones that I like, but being picky about the layouts and how my words look on them and the response I get from my readers…I have only changed it twice.

Blogging matters to me because I NEED to get it out. I need to talk to my friends, my family. I need to let them know that I am okay. I’m not okay. It’s also important for me to share my life, because I feel no matter how much anxiety and panic I suffer from that it doesn’t take away from trying to be an open and honest person who is willing to open her heart and home for people no matter what title they have in front of their names: ex, new, step, friend…we are human and we need to treat people like that.

Everyday is a high point. I get emails from people that make me realize that the life that I am leading is helping them. They see how people can treat other people and they realize they can be better. They also realize that I am so far from perfect and that is SO totally okay. Last week I asked my readers to send me ‘mixed cds’ so I can open up to new music and get to know that reader on a new level. I have received over 30 cd’s and I am thrilled to death with how they really listened to what I needed and without a question, sent me music. I am planning to making Cds for my readers that sent me some.

I use to have advertising on my site, but realized after awhile that I almost felt like I was writing for advertising reasons and one night I pulled all of it off my site and got back to writing for me again. I probably won’t go back to the advertising.

PS: This strong, beautiful woman writes more on what 'blog' really means to her after she sent off this post.