The Sacred and the Profane

If you take a casual stroll through the plethora of blogs that exist in cyberspace, you will find that the greater majority of them lie in relatively private spheres. That is to say, despite their globally accessible nature, most blogs seem intended for a particular audience. Published comments are generally from family and/or friends, and many blogs are devoid of comments altogether. While it is unlikely that someone keeping a blog is completely against the idea of having their innermost thoughts perused by the general public, I always wonder what they would think if they knew that I was reading. In fact, I have stumbled upon a few blogs that, unknown to their respective authors, I now read on a regular basis. Personally, I would find it flattering to know someone read my blog regularly (aside from those of you that I know read my blog regularly, mainly because I pester you in person to do so). And, on occasion, I have had wandering strangers leave their comments. I have never minded this. I am honored. Yet, for whatever reason, I have never dared comment on someone else’s blog. I have thought about it, but I always wonder if this would be an intrusive thing to do. I can’t shake the feeling that, at least for many, a blog might be a highly personal—perhaps even sacred—thing. To make a comment, I feel, would be akin to interrupting a stranger’s personal conversation. Similarly, I have hesitated adding links on my page to other blogs that I enjoy (other than those of you I know in person). I’m going to break that tradition, ever so slightly, right now. The main reason is that the blog I am going to share is, apparently, defunct. Its most recent post was made 30 July 2004. I don’t expect another posting anytime soon. Nevertheless, those who enjoy language will enjoy this short-lived blog, entitled Armchair Linguist. Perhaps I will contact other people whose blogs I enjoy and see if they would want, be indifferent to, or hate me for posting a link to their sites. What do you, my readers, think? Would strangers on your blog make you uncomfortable?