“I have already settled it for myself so
flattery and criticism go down the same drain
and I am quite free.” – Georgia O’Keeffe
Why have I chosen to return to blogging on November 1, 2017?
Below are a few reasons (be sure to add a heaping tablespoon of ‘who knows why I do anything’).
- I follow my heart wherever it leads– this odd, digital record-keeper can show you that truth as I began blogging in March 2004 and it absolutely saved me– and for some reason in recent weeks, I have had it on the brain to commit to a regular blogging habit, et voila.
- I miss blogs. Back in the day, they were not commercialized. People were not brands. In fact, at the very beginning, we didn’t even know each other’s names or where we lived. Like letter writing of old, it was a spirit to spirit contact. It didn’t matter what you looked like, what job you had– we cared only about the voice and followed blogs that had stories to share. We read blogs to see there were people who had found a way to make it through this crazy world with kindness and laughter which, of course, made us feel a little less crazy. At least that’s how it was for me.
- I finally have time. For the past ten years I have built and run Squam which pretty much consumed my life. I could not make the space for anything, let alone the sweet indulgence of blogging which, for me, is a chronicle of my dog walks, life in Providence, friends and the ever present query of how to best live this life where it is upon each of us to create our own playbook.
- Instagram, which had been my most recent happy online habitat is now plagued with ads and feels like a platform for people to present their life as if it were a magazine shoot. What once felt like sweet glimpses of ordinary, daily life I now find such a profound emptiness. In it’s original incarnation, IG was a terrific tool to support creativity as a way of life, which is not just the tagline for Squam, it is my personal philosophy. And, not to drag you down into the depths of dark Irish brooding but I agree with James Joyce who defined something called “improper art” whose purpose was to elicit a sense of desire, fear or loathing. Although I don’t like the word ‘improper’ — it annoys me– I do get where he is coming from. He felt that an image or writing whose underlying purpose was to infect you with desire for the object (as opposed to the feeling “proper art” opens in your soul) and, he called this, wait for it, pornographic. Yep. All for sale. So, that’s kind of where I’m coming from. To quote Lloyd Dobler, “I don’t want to sell anything, buy anything, or process anything as a career. I don’t want to sell anything bought or processed, or buy anything sold or processed, or process anything sold, bought, or processed, or repair anything sold, bought, or processed.” I also don’t want to do it as a creative pursuit. When reality shows first came on the scene, I watched my fair share of Survivor (in my defense, I was deep in the belly of corporate America at the time and it felt like better training for what I dealt with on a daily basis than an MBA) but I am no longer willing to direct my attention to anything that feels disconnected from truth and beauty.
- I do love the sacred frame a photograph puts around a moment in time so I will continue to take them and share them– but in regards to why blog it’s because there is no place online that feeds me anymore and I have to believe I am not the only one. This reboot is an invitation to you, dear reader.
As for what I’ll be scribbling about, it will likely be influenced by my daily walks with Ollie, friends, travel, food, my passion for oils, play, artists I admire and books I am reading though, honestly, it will likely be mostly about walks with my dog as I am in the Kafka camp on where our wisdom comes from.
“All knowledge, the totality
of all questions and all answers
is contained in the DOG.”
– Franz Kafka
photos of me and the dogs thx to
Kaitlyn Bouchard (top),
Forrest Elliott (middle)
Jonah David (bottom)