Fifty reasons why I blog

May 27, 2012 by Addy 4 Comments

This is my fiftieth post since I resumed blogging a short few weeks ago. Inspired from a recent post on the Daily WordPress blog I challenged myself to write a ‘fifty reasons why I blog’ list.

So, pour yourself a glass of mead and pull up a chair, we are about to begin:

1. Because it makes me happy and anything that makes you happy should be enjoyed as frequently as is possible. Unless torturing kittens makes you happy, in which case you should seek help immediately.
2. Because I wish to spread the word that discrimination against mental illness is wrong. This was, after all, the reason I began blogging in the first place.
3. Because it gives me something to do, and when you’re alone, it’s always best to have something to do otherwise you’ll find yourself planning world domination.
4. Because I always wanted to be a writer and this way I can at least pretend I am.
5. Because I love words, like ailurophile, ebullience, flibbertigibbet, insouciance, somnambulism and spanakopita.
6. Because it’s fun and anything that’s fun should be partaken in as frequently as possible. Unless you find force-feeding squirrels chunks of bacon fun, in which case you should seek help immediately.
7. Because I laugh in the face of statistics whilst simultaneously weeping at my half a dozen page views a day.
8. Because there are so many things wrong with this world the more people who speak out about them, the more likely they are to change.
9. Because even if I help just one person I feel all fuzzy and warm inside.
10. Because it’s healing. Who doesn’t want to heal themselves of pain?
11. Because if I didn’t blog I’d be writing sanctimonious comments on news sites and the world doesn’t need another arrogant tit with a (un)funny pseudonym.
12. Because it makes me excited and anything that makes you excited should be undertaken as frequently as possible. Unless you find dressing pigeons in superman costumes exciting, in which case you should seek help immediately.
13. Because I can’t afford to buy my parent’s birthday presents so I write them a blog instead.
14. Because in the internet world I’m more confident than in the real world and being an introvert really sucks sometimes!
15. Because I like setting myself challenges no matter how insane they are. Such as why didn’t I chose to write this post to celebrate my ’10th’ post? Madness!
16. Because if I didn’t I wouldn’t be able to say “It’s a blog. I write a blog now. Blogging is cool” when asked what I’m writing.
17. Because sometimes I need to make my own entertainment, such as the ‘how many pop-culture references can I slide into this post’ game,
18. Because it makes me feel like I’m making a difference to the world even if I’m not.
19. Because by writing a blog you get to discover other blogs and some of them are wonderful places full of magic and merriment.
20. Because this way it gives me something to tweet every now and then, and who doesn’t like the ‘look, I wrote something on my blog, go read, now, make me feel validated and worthwhile’ tweet?
21. Because how else can I vent my frustration at the world? Throwing eggs at politicians is so old hat.
22. Because it’s important. Not just to me, but to the world. The more people who speak out about mental health and homelessness, the better the chance we can change things.
23. Because it makes me sad and without sadness there is no happiness.
24. Because I enjoy it and anything that you enjoy should be experienced as frequently as possible. Unless you enjoy poking sleeping water buffalo with inflatable mallets, in which case you should seek help immediately.
25. Because if I didn’t I may be forced to watch Transformers: Dark of the Moon again and that’s just wrong.
26. Because it challenges my emotions and mental wellbeing. I could easily bury all of the trauma I’ve been through but until I heal myself I will never be whole again.
27. Because if I didn’t I would spend the entire day at the local library and if this were to happen the usually friendly librarians may chase me out of there brandishing bar code scanners. Yes, I learned the hard way that you never antagonise a librarian.
28. Because blogging allows everyone to have a voice, and all voices are important.
29. Because we learn from experience, whether they’re from our lives or the journey’s of others.
30. Because it keeps you connected to people faraway that you don’t have the chance to see all the time.
31. Because it keeps you connected to the world in times when you feel most disconnected.
32. Because it arouses me. Not in a sexual way but in an evoking or awakening an emotional response way. Ok, maybe a little in a sexual way.
33. Because there are only so many times you can read the Herald Sun without wanting to bludgeon the editors with a rolled up copy of their own publication.
34. Because I can’t afford to go to the movies so I have to make my own fun, for example, I absolutely dressed up as Thor whilst writing this post that mentioned The Avengers.
35. Because I lack the extraversion to share my views in a place that isn’t of my own creation. A little sad, I’ll admit, bit I’m working on it.
36. Because I blog, therefore I am. Or so to speak.
37. Because it makes me cry and anything that makes you cry should absolutely not be done all that frequently but should be done occasionally in order to release any pent-up emotions. Unless you cry chilli sauce, in which case you should seek help immediately.
38. Because I admire people who have the bravery to put themselves and their lives into the world. The thought that someone out there may admire my bravery gives me the strength to keep going.
39. Because if I didn’t blog I would resort to obsessively cleaning my unit and thus accidentally poison myself with bleach fumes. Which would be bad.
40. Because it makes me smile and it takes less effort to smile than to frown like a grumpy person.
41. Because I like reading the random search terms people have used to find my blog, such as: “does someone with depression eat fish”, “www enter femail body spream grow” and “i love my husband with all my heart, mind, and soul!even when i am cranky , even when i am upset, or a bit mad !my heart still belongs to him!”
42. Because sometimes 140 characters just isn’t enough, especially when you prefer communicating using proper written english and not some bastardised contemporary version.
43. Because of the thrill. For example, when you see the little orange ‘you’ve had someone pay attention to you’ symbol pop up in the top right hand corner.
44. Because if I hadn’t started a blog in the first place I would be dead. Thus, blogging has saved my life. I’m going to put that on a T-Shirt!
45. Because writing a blog has opened my eyes to all the pain and suffering in the world and how important it is to understand this and fight for a better future.
46. Because if I didn’t I would eat far too many chocolate chip cookies out of sheer boredom I would begin to resemble this tasty snack food.
47. Because sometimes it’s just amusing to see what random pictures Zemanta suggests. For example, in a post about being homeless and suicidal, it suggested a photograph of a rather attractive woman in a bikini. Although, thinking about it, perhaps it understood my pain and was suggesting a possible reason to live ;)
48. Because it gives me hope, and anything that gives you hope should be embraced as frequently as possible. Unless you hope to see Julia Gillard naked and covered in Vegemite, in which case you should seek help immediately.
49. Because it helps make academics look good. There are far too many academics writing far too many well brilliant articles you need random badly written blogs like mine to sustain a balance. And where would life be without balance?
50. Because if no-one wrote a blog all the hard-working peeps at WordPress would be out of a job so I’m just doing my bit to sustain employment figures.