Friends

16 February 2015

The ups and downs of blogging


Blogging is a marvellous medium and it is quite remarkable how many friends we make as we travel through Blogland. Real friends as well as passing acquaintances, just like real life. I mean, in real life we seldom keep lots of friends but there’s always one or two who stick around for many years, people we’re proud to call friends. Those are the loyal ones, the ones we treasure. However, that doesn’t mean we don’t think a lot of the ones who pop in and out of our lives. It’s the same in Blogland. We have the same ‘friendship’ feeling with fellow bloggers as we do with our pals in real life.

Actually, it is wrong of me to refer to the here-and-now as real life now that blogging and bloggers have not only become real but have taken hold of us for a month, or two, or even years. That’s why we miss people who go sick, those who are unable to let us know why they’ve gone missing and will never know of our concern, and those who simply disappear for good. What happens to them concerns us because we are friends and friends feel things like that. There were two blogging pals of mine who decided to call it a day and who I still miss. Fortunately they took the time to explain and to say goodbye, for which I was and am grateful, but to this day I think of them with a mixture of sadness and gratitude for knowing them in the first place and getting so much joy from reading their blogs.

Another two bloggers simply stopped posting. No warning, no hint of illness or absenteeism. When this happens we’re left wondering ... and wishing there was a way of checking what happened to them. 

18 comments:

  1. Nice post. Like you, I find ups and downs in blogging. The downs are that two bloggers I used to know died within a year of each other. It stills saddens me to this day. They wrote fantastic blogs and I still miss their words.

    Thanks for such an honest post.

    Greetings from London.

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  2. Yes, one particular blogger I got very interested in. She was ill and I still feel a bit worried about her even though she stopped posting nearly 2 years ago.

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  3. i hear you....having been at this for 8 years or so i have sen so many come and go...and i have lost real friends to death...and mourned the passing of people i have never met....and experienced joys at them as well....but it seems recently all the more are disappearing...so i feel your sadness...

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  4. What you say is so true. I can think of 2 bloggers who just stopped, and I like to think they tired of the daily post rather than something terrible happening.

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  5. Excellent post topic, Valerie! And what you shared here is so true!

    " There were two blogging pals of mine who decided to call it a day and who I still miss. Fortunately they took the time to explain and to say goodbye, for which I was and am grateful, but to this day I think of them with a mixture of sadness and gratitude for knowing them in the first place and getting so much joy from reading their blogs."

    Same here! I still miss Herman Turnip and hope that one day he returns to blogging.

    Isn't it something how emotionally attached we become to the people we blog with? Which is why it concerns me when one of my blogging friends suddenly stops blogging without any notice or explanation. I find myself getting worried.

    Again, great topic!

    Have a terrific week!
    X to you and Joe

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  7. Ron, I too miss Herman but as you say he did take the time to say goodbye. I often wonder if he came back under another name.

    I'd like to say if he or Valance ever look in they will know I think about them.

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  8. Jenny, I think you will always wonder what happened to your blogging friends.

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  9. Brian, I looked at my 'followers' list and wondered ... whatever happened to him/her. No way of knowing and that's the hardest part.

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  10. Cuban, thanks for your comment. whether we know or not what happened to our friends we feel the loss. don't we?

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  11. BC, it's a pity we can't penetrate space in order to check up on them.

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  12. A lot of truth in this post that I can identify with. We really do become attached to people we have never met. I have been writing to a group of ladies I met in a pen friend group for 20 years now. I hadn't met any of them but I feel as close to them as I do to my other friends I see in person.

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  13. I go missing from time to time... as you know. lol I think the post before my latest post was a catch up one having been gone awhile. I don't know why I don't always keep up to date here because I definitely do think of certain bloggers at different times and do consider these to be treasured connections. Yes, friendships even. :)

    I do have my current email listed in the 'about me' section of my blog, and it's also in the profile section, but I have only ever gotten a couple of people checking in with me that way though. Occasionally, someone will leave a message on whatever my last post was, just to check in.
    So I guess if I thought anyone was that curious about how I was, there would be ways to get in touch in other than waiting for an update via a current blog post. Also, I'm on FB and have offered to add anyone I blog as a friend there if they want to share their addy with me. Some bloggers don't FB and some FBer's don't blog anymore. It's hard to keep up with where everyone is and what they prefer.

    If I wander away from my blog again... please feel free to send me an email. Absolutely. Anytime!! I'd love that. :)

    That's my story, I'm sticking to it. LOL

    Great post.

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  14. Hi Mary. I actually did check on your email address and was going to make contact... but then the thought crossed my mind that you might not like it. Some bloggers don't, you see, and once bitten twice shy. As for Facebook, I don't go on there very often. Strangely enough I feel, perhaps wrongly, that a blog is more private than Facebook. At least I don't get bombarded with requests from unknown people to be my friend.

    Am popping over to read your latest... smiles.

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  15. I don't blog nearly as much as I used to but I still count the people I met through blogging as friends and it's nice to catch up. xx

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  16. Hi Pearl, you haven't done a complete disappearing act so I don't count you as missing... smiles.

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  17. Hi Valerie..Apology, and I know you will understand why. Never thought it this way. Overwhelmed to read this post. will never happen again.

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  18. Hi Ranita. Great to see you back again. Yes, I understand your absence and sincerely hope you and the family are now okay.

    It's odd that you should post at this time because one of my 'absent' friends has just done the same, to explain the absence and why another post can't be expected in the near future. Although I am sad about the state of affairs it is good to know the reason.

    Take good care of yourself.

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