Hi, Zoeyjane here. Maria was piteous enough to ask me to add some filler while she is sleeping at BlogHer, so I give you the following to ponder…
How many readers feel like they really know us bloggers? Reading here for a while, on my blog, on a few others’, you might think that what you see is what you get. Zoeyjane=me, Immoral Matriarch=Maria and so on, right? But what self-censorship do we engage in, if any?
Who doesn’t want their husband to know exactly how much they spent on the new pair of shoes and who is fond of feeding their toddler McDonalds on a daily basis? No one, from what I can read.
We, the ones that could be sub-classed as the bitchy mommy bloggers, put it all out there. We bleed, ponder, opine, and rant. Our kids can be occasional dwellings: their attitudes and vices, say. But for the most part, we’re talking about our world – and the people and news that touch it. And how it pissed us off.
But we don’t often blog about the things that make us cry, or stab us deeply.
So, the thing I want you to consider is this: if you know us, is it us that you really know, or the us that we let you see? Are we above self-censorship, as well, since we tend to speak of the things other mommies won’t? Or do we speak of those thing because the rest, well, it’s too real?
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Excellent post.
I’d like to think that people who read me know me. But I think you’re right to an extent. I allow out what I want to be seen…which is a lot…but it’s not everything. That being said, there are people in real life that don’t see that stuff either.
The latest from Alison…The Me of We
July 19, 2008 at 1:48 am
I am me but I don’t blog all of me. I can’t. For sooo many reasons the potential custody battle that may ensue. Bleah.
I have the inability to blog about the minutiuae that tear my heart open most of the time.
But I’m trying.
The latest from Loveyh…On The Eve of Your Wedding..
I think that if a person were to read my posts, blogs, and conversations online, they may end up knowing me better than some of my peers. if only for the fact that it is often the only way that I can stick to a topic. in RW I’m quite the spaz. lol. I’m distractable. I look like I have ADD, but I don’t…..well, I don’t think I do. I’ll ask my therapist. lol :)
The latest from illegitimateAngel…in a manic state he said I have "no social filter"
I self-censor mainly for the protection of others, but yes, occasionally for my own as well.
The latest from April…Weekend Wrap-Up
i wish i censored myself a bit *more*…
no actually i don’t. maybe he’ll just go. . .
The latest from holly…my mom’s annual cake-eating day
You’ll get to know a PART of me, but not all of me. I do keep some things to myself, but honestly…i keep those things to myself in “the real world” as well.
The latest from Lynette…2001 Things to Do before I die
I just want to believe what I’m reading, not some made up shite just to keep people clicking.
This week I’ve become a bit of a Zoeyjane fan.
The latest from Xbox4NappyRash…The croc board speaks
I intend to blog more sad stuff in the future. but sometimes if i get on a sad kick, i stay on it. So I try to keep it happy. Also, you totally stole my post day. 8)
The latest from Shamelessly Sassy…4 random sentences.
ZJ your brilliant. I personally tend to write from the heart. I write sad stuff when I feel sad. But I do tend to try to write a happier one after because I feel bad for other people reading it. I don’t want to depress them, make people feel sorry for me, or worse, have people say to themselves “whatever”. Ugh.
The latest from Mrs. Kitty…Does this count???
If you’re like me, real life isn’t worth writing about.
Funny thing… my wife just told me that it may be interesting to other people but to us it’s just life.
The latest from Barry L. Atkins…HEADACHE
July 19, 2008 at 9:06 pm
Yeah… My mom and MIL read my blog. WHAT WAS I THINKING telling them about it?
The latest from A Whole Lot of Nothing…Photohunt: What IS That?
I think even in everyday life, we only let people see what we want them to see. It’s human nature. Some people are embarrassed about feeding their kids McDonald’s – some people aren’t.
Diff’rent strokes, man. Different strokes. (Although I often prefer the REAL people over the “my kid only eats whole grains and sushi” types. Because those types are just too anal, anyway.)
:)
The latest from Sybil Law…Trolls
I’ve shared a lot of really real stuff on my blog. Not all of it, but someday. maybe. Some stuff I kind of don’t want to share…the stuff that can bring me to my knees is the stuff I only let a select few know…in real life or otherwise. It’s awkward for me to bear EVERYTHING when I don’t always get that back, you know? And it hurts like hell when I bare my soul and nobody speaks back. At least IRL, I can walk out. Online, not so much.
The latest from Ashley…Proof of her necklace fetish (at 15 months)
Very nicely done girl. How am I going to follow that??
The latest from Miss…The Evolution of Love
I only put out what I want people to know. But, that is how I am IRL, too. I’m real, but there is something always brewing underneath.
The latest from LaskiGal…SWEDISH FISH ARE AWESOME!
funny. i just finished a big ol’ thing that was pretty freakin’ revealing.
of course, having done that, my blog promptly broke. so i guess i should know better.
or something.
The latest from the planet of janet…Weekly Winners: July 13-19
I am me on my blog. But it is a small piece of me. I don’t put it all out there for fear of scaring all with how crazy I really am.. hahaha
The latest from Kim…BlogHer – Part One
I don’t see the point of being anything but real… for the most part ;). On occasion, a situation might call for a slight attitude adjustment… sometimes there’s a need to play to the audience.
I don’t know how many people are 100% real on paper though. And I don’t know how many are 100% real in person.
It’s important to have goals… :) Besides, real is always more interesting.
Loved the post!! You did Maria proud!
The latest from Kristie…Not Music to MY Ears
you know…it’s funny because i was thinking about that. while we know each other on the surface…basically…none of us really get down and dirty and really, truly let anyone in. why? so…i’m going to. to hell with anyone who shouldn’t be reading my blog that is…family. excellent post!!!
ZJ, what a post.
To say I’m reserved IRL is putting it mildly; on my blog you see a little more of me, but it is, to coin a phrase, sometimes all about “sunshine and rainbows”. Because some of my family and IRL friends read. My infertility story(ies) are the most real I’ve been and it’s been a huge step for me.
It’s scary to let your real self shine through… if you even know who your real-self is. I applaud bloggers like yourself, Huck, Mr. Lady and Maria (and so many others braver than me) who let it *pretty much* all out there.
The latest from Karen MEG…My So-Called Second Life