And no, I'm not talking about schools. I'm talking about blogs.
When one decides to create a blog, they decide how much or little information to share with the world. Some people feel comfortable with sharing every detail about their life including their names, locations, where they work, and tons of pictures. Other people only share some of their life using pseudonyms for the people and places they are blogging about.
When I first started blogging, I decided on a happy medium. I would share some things, including pictures, but I wouldn't share specific details, such as our real names. In part because I didn't want to be found via a quick google search 15-20 years from now and also because I didn't want IRL (In Real Life) friends and family finding my blog.
And for several years, this has worked. I have shared my blog address to a few close IRL friends, but as far as family went, I wanted to avoid that as much as possible. The IRL friends who knew about this blog, knew not to discuss it in front of family.
Over the last few months, I've become a little proud of my blog. I've made a few comments to friends or family both in conversations and on F@ceb00k that has alluded to the fact that I do have a blog. If someone ever asked what the address was, I avoided it. Then, my mom's friend at work decided to try to find me after hearing I had a blog.
I wasn't worried though. After all, I don't have our names on this blog. But, after telling NYEBoy about this, he did a quick google search using very basic information and found the blog. We took it off Google, in hopes of me tweaking a few things, but I haven't had the extra time to do it. I checked the incoming information for every visitor for this site for a few weeks and thought I was in the clear, except I did see several visits from someone in the same town as a relative of mine. So, I don't think we were quick enough.
This person probably thinks because my blog is public, that anything they read here is up for the discussion with others. And while my blog is public, I would like to remind them that I didn't give them the address to this site. If I wanted to share the details to this blog with my IRL friends and family, I would have shared the link to them.
I know I have three options, keeping this blog up as is, making the blog private with invited readers only, or shutting the blog down completely. I prefer to keep the blog as is, because I've spent nearly five years of my life building my blog the way it is. All I ask is that if you're going to continue to read my blog, that you keep anything I write to yourself. Just keep in mind that if you continue to read thig blog, that this is my side of life as I see it. I hope that by keeping this blog public to my readers, you'll respect my privacy.
4 comments:
I walk this fine line, too. I have an IRL blog that includes day-to-day stuff about our lives, but my IF blog is just not something that I want to share with IRL friends or family. Mostly because I think it will impact the way that I write, and I feel like I'll edit myself.
I've mostly worried about my MIL finding my blog, not because she's nosey so much as she's curious. I think that it's good you put this message out there. If they're reading, hopefully they'll respect the fact that you're blogging about personal things and won't share your information. And maybe they'll learn something, too, which can't hurt.
Fine lines, we walk!
happy iclw!
This is something for me to think about. I follow your blog because I found you through the IF community. I hope that's ok with you. I enjoy reading other peoples journey. I just started my blog and was hoping it would only be for IF community. I need to be sure not to tell my family...
Have a great weekend!
Very well said !
Well, as a new reader I am just selfish and biased and want you to keep your blog public. ;)
But kidding aside, you really need to do what is best for you and what will make you comfortable. If you start editing yourself out of fear that a certain someone is reading it, then your blog will have lost a lot of its meaning and effect.
In my own personal experience, there are personal blogs of acquaintances out there that I've stumbled upon and read "by accident." I usually find it humbling to be let into the intimacies of their lives, and I do work on being discreet with the information if I'm around them. I'd like to think that your blog readers will be the same.
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