Intimacy of Blogging

Here is one of the posts I have been working on in my head for a couple of weeks now.

Recently someone told me that they thought computers were making the world more impersonal. I understood their point to a certain degree. I probably spend time on the computer that in the past maybe I would have spent out and about around other people. I do communicate more through email now than phone calls or in person, mainly for the convience factor of busy lives.

To me blogging totally blows this reasoning out of the water. Through blogs the whole world is given a more personal and yes, intimate view of each of us bloggers. I go to park day, and other in-person events with our local hs group, but in general I have no idea how they homeschool, personal beliefs, what hobbies they might have or personal struggles they might be going through.

When I click on a new homeschool blog to read, I can read about all of this and more. Through a blog I am welcomed into a person's living room to sit and visit and get to know their family. I come to know the children, I read about school methods, I find out about struggles and learn new ideas for schooling. Hobbies, books...it is a treasure trove of information. I feel as though I know the people whose blogs I read.

Yes, I understand that people on blogs, like in real life, can present the persona that they want other people to see. Words are weighed before typed, thoughts are considered before given. But what is presented cannot be all that different. Unlike when I get to know someone in real life, the privacy of sitting at a computer invites people to give more information than they might in person.

This is why I believe that personal blogs are intimate -

Peace,

Amy