This lengthy first installment of a series of posts looking back at four years of operating The Terminal talks about the fun – or lack thereof – that seemed to be missing from life for a while. The curse of listening to the peanut gallery if you will…
There are tons of opportunities to join a community here in Birmingham, AL. This is just the newest one, though its hope is to expand the city’s already growing collection of bloggers and what they’re able to accomplish. Hopefully some folks will take advantage of it and come out on Wednesdays to Pale Eddie’s downtown.
It’s weird that despite all of the writing that I currently do, my mind still sees a difference between writing for an online publication vs. a print publication. Not sure there’s a right or wrong answer, but it’s interesting to think about what makes them different – and similar.
I’m sitting here through yet another day of not really wanting to run the air conditioner during “business hours” in an effort to save money.…
The Ramble: So why do I blog?
Published by Andre on January 3, 2008The past few months I’ve started to approach blogging as a profession with what some would consider my overly simplistic beliefs about the ability of a site to serve as a tool for change instead of just another receptacle for pundits and writers to save their thoughts. It’s led me to realize that some may in fact lose their soul while others cling to beliefs with passion that makes you wonder why they didn’t write as their first profession.
I’ve learned that while the idea of a community blog for the sake of moving a region forward is beautiful and idealistic in nature, the capitalistic nature of our society forces the notion into the structured boxes of the ordinary rather than allowing it to spread its wings and grow, serving as the virtual town square that the area so desperately needs. I’ve learned that viral marketing in a town that still clings to the past like Linus does to his security blanket is worth it, but much slower than I thought it would be. I’ve realized that as much as the city yearns to prove that it’s not stuck in its ways that at times it acts worse than what people expect it to, especially in the areas of race and crime.
I’ve also seen some of our region’s most beautiful moments, captured forever (or until someone feels the need to erase the cached image) on monitors around the world, providing a glimpse of the region’s promise and potential. I’ve seen people become moved with a person’s tragedy and cheer strangers on in their accomplishments.