To Blog or Not to Blog?

If you’re reading this, then the title of this post is moot: I’ve obviously given in to temptation and started blogging. But before I really begin (think of this as a pre-inaugural post) I think it makes sense to examine the rationale behind this blog--which in turn is a platform for examining the rationale behind everything else.

When I was younger, I used to keep a journal. Not a “dear-diary”, flimsy lock-and-key journal, but the real deal: a staid composition notebook that I would pull out when things needed dealing with. Back then (which, come to think of it, wasn’t that long ago) I’d write until my hand cramped and my pencil went dull, and later, when I would re-read what I wrote, everything would fall in place.

And then I got older, and the issues got more complicated, and something about that old black-and-white notebook didn’t do it for me anymore. I’ve learned to go without it, but I’m left missing the process of writing out what I’m thinking about, the feeling of seeing tangible words instead of grasping at abstract thoughts. Which brings me to the issue at hand: blogging—namely, to blog or not to blog?

Let’s start with the reasons against, although actually, there’s only one: loss of privacy. Having been religiously reading blogs since I started Stern (Bad 4 Shidduchim, Shades of Grey, Happy Medium) I’m all too aware of just how much information you pick up following a blog. Even when bloggers attempt to remain anonymous, the little tidbits of info, combined with the claustorophobicity (not a word, but should be) of the YU world make it all-too-easy to figure out who people are.

And then there’s the inescapable reality that when you write, you put a piece of yourself into what you are creating, and that can ultimately give you away. Case in point: it took me all of five minutes of reading the blog of a close friend to recognize it as hers, although the identifying details were scarce.
To be honest, the prospect of the same happening to me scares me. Not just because being outed as a blog-writer seems like a quick way to lose shidduch points (trust me, that’s on my mind a lot lately), but because for better or for worse, there’s something frightening about the vulnerability of opening up your thought process to the world.

So why bother? Because I believe blogging will give me the opportunity to formulate my thoughts, concretize them in writing, and have others (hopefully!) add their input, all on a platform of complete anonymity (for as long as that lasts). Plus, having a blog is the perfect way to encapsulate my time in Stern, which I have a feeling I will appreciate later on, especially since I’ve been lousy about taking pictures (more on that later).

And before you get scared away by the heavy nature of my blog-to-be, let me warn you: for me, having a blog is the perfect opportunity to share things of a more frivolous nature with the world. Like this, for instance, for all those who are dying to know what happens to a Smiley Face during sefira. Which reminds me: don't forget to count!