Hello everyone, thanks for dropping by; I know it’s been a while since I was in your feed.
I’ve been blogging since 2008, and this is my fourth blog. Like Sandy in Grease, I was ‘totally devoted’ for a long time, and relished my sense of community and connection here.
Some of you were with me from the beginning, when I holed up in an old Barn in the South West of France, blogging to stay in contact with my friends and family, giving my son ‘ThenOnly15’ a taste of life away from Australia (I wrote one of my favourite pieces there (please click that link), as the countryside changed around us).
Some of you have survived my many romantic adventures, from the highs to the lows (this blog evolved into an online dating report for a while…), and have been so generous with advice, support, and deep caring when I sank into the challenges of losing my Mum to dementia.
I thank all of you for being here; for being witnesses to my life in the written world.
So what’s happened? To all of us. There seems to be much less engagement here, and fewer comments. At least three-quarters of my favourite bloggers have either stopped altogether and disappeared, or else just post once a month or so.
My morning routine- a source of simultaneously great comfort and creative inspiration- was to sit in bed with my laptop and a pot of peppermint tea at least twice a week, reading/commenting/writing on WordPress.
Now I take a quick flick on my phone app if I’ve got nothing else to do, read a couple of blog posts, and perhaps comment… but I’ve noticed I’m watching a lot of compelling Instagram reels instead! Of course, I’ve also become super-busy again as the world has opened up post-Covid, with various gigs, shows, gardening and travel adventures.
What do you think? Have you too been seduced by the evolution of ‘reels’ and Tik Tok? Has WordPress lost its shine for you? I know so many of us here truly love words; can a clever catchy video REALLY replace a well-written blog post? Am I just being lazy?
I’d LOVE your thoughts in the comments below,
In gratitude for self-reflection & community, G xO