I jumped up this morning and decided to check my email and read some journals. I have been reading a variety of journals lately and I may link to them. As usual the way people express themselves is as important as what is being said. As I remembered this distinction I went to a site that has articles about weblogs and browsed some of the links.
When I read an article by Meg Hourihan I felt understood. Hourihan writes:
if I visit your site at 4:02 p.m. and see you just updated at 3:55 p.m., it's as if our packets crossed in the ether. You, the author, and I, the reader, were "there" at the same time -- and this can create a powerful connection between us.
When I read a journal that has just been updated I feel a minor thrill. The feeling is even more powerful if the person has written about something I am familiar with or have recently experienced. For a brief moment I feel 'in sync' with another person or place.
One of the things I like about weblogs is their immediacy. I can learn about other people as soon as they write about themselves. There isn't even the minute time delay associated with email. When I used to send 'snail mail' I found that quite often letters were superseded by phone calls before they arrived. The power of written storytelling/communication was lessened because people had talked on the phone.
Online journals allow readers and writers to connect in a fashion that resembles both live conversation and writing. We connect with people we don't know and come to know them.
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