DISQUS

Gavin Heaton · 1 year ago

I still get a thrill with every comment that I receive. It is like getting short, sweet, shots of love from half a world away. Well, it is when they are nice ;)

Jay · 1 year ago

Exactly! I did the pen pal thing too. Plus letter writing with friends. The latter is the origin of the Jay Solo pen name, in a themed exchange of letters dubbed Letter Wars.

Ann Handley · 1 year ago

Gavin -- Yeah, it is! I guess the day you stop caring is the day you stop blogging.

Jay -- Funny. Did you assume personas, too? Cuz if you did I'll feel a little less weird.... ; )

Toby · 1 year ago

Somehow knew Al Gore didn't invent the Internet .. but that Ann Handley did .. that I can believe :-)

Last week I met 2 teachers who were honored by the Woodruff Arts Center for their work in bringing their classes together - in Scotland and in Georgia - to write poetry on blogs. Puts a new spin on pen pals. By the way, my childhood pen pal was Gun from Sweden.

Bdot · 1 year ago

...how much I hated my brother… how can you hate such a loving guy? and for the record, he wasn't a rock star, he was a rodeo star until that horrible accident at Madison Square Garden.....Do you still hate pepper?

Ann Handley · 1 year ago

Toby: That's awesome. Social media certainly opens up the whole pen pal/connection thing. Of course, it was a LOT easier then to assume personas... now, this whole "transparency" thing gets in the way of creativity... sheesh. ; )

Bdot: It wasn't always so loving a relationship, you know. He's improved A LOT!!

Cam Beck · 1 year ago

What a charming story! I remember having pen pals in elementary school. Now I don't even remember where they lived.

Blogging is not only more enjoyable, but also more efficient!

Yvonne DiVita · 1 year ago

Is blogging so successful because we love to chat... albeit, online? Saw a great cartoon recently of a cartoon man hugging his computer (was this something from you, Ann?)... the caption said, "I love my computer 'cause all my friends are in there." Very kewl.

Dusan · 1 year ago

There's true passion in this post. That's why it is so easy and wonderful to read it. Perfect lunch time. :-)

Ann Handley · 1 year ago

Cam, Yvonne -- Blogging is definitely a more efficient way to have a conversation, to get feedback and input from people you wouldn't know otherwise, and connect with those who are outside of your geography. Kind of like... well, pen-palling!
Funny cartoon, Yvonne.

Dusan -- Thanks, as always. You rock!

Tim Brunelle · 1 year ago

Yeah, I'm definitely adding this blog to my Netvibes collection.

I never did the pen pal thing. But I like Gavin said, every time my inbox notes a new comment, a little burst of energy courses through my veins.

I'll have to reference this post for my class at MCAD when we cover blogging.

Godwinoo · 1 year ago

thank you, man

Jan · 12 months ago

Back in high school during the late '70's I so loved theme writing. My classmates despaired of this tedious task, but I just loved it so much I looked forward to writing each theme assignment. And who can forget the school paper? In my time, it was the refuge of the introspective, socially inept kids - I secretly rejoiced that the popular kids were into the more high profile clubs. There I held court in campus paper, "posted" stories and articles that held my readers captive because of my presumed erudition. Thus, I traced my blogging roots. While you have indeed "invented" blogging let me arrogate unto myself the claim of being one of its early adopters. :)

susan solomon · 10 months ago

Wow ... we do have parallel lives (sort of). I too started writing to pen pals in grade school. Today, my pen pal from fourth grade is still one of my very best friends. Chiara and I have been writing to each other for 35 years (oh gawd....). We've chronicled it all, first on paper and now on email. (I published a "Me and My Pen Pal" piece for Seventeen in the 80s, which mortified Chiara.) I just visited her in Milan in December. And now our kids are like super friends. So, I guess I need to get back to blogging cuz I was one of the "originals," too.

Devin · 2 weeks ago

Most people consider a queen size bed to be a sufficient enough space for two people to sleep on. There is enough room for both to have their own "space" and not be crowded. Queen sized beds generally have enough dimension and is most likely the reason for their popularity. One of the biggest mistakes of all times is when a couple buys a bed and didn't take dimensions into consideration. Many squeeze into a full size bed and end up miserable after a short period of time.