Before beginning this class, I had previously only read blogs, not participated myself. My assumptions, based on mainly my friends' blogs, were that they were basically a diary and often included information that I personally wouldn't want on the web. Many blogs include the blogger's crazy tales of their weekend- which often includes information that you definitely wouldn't want your parents or relatives to see. Blogs I have read have often included gossip and other pieces of information that sometimes can become overly personal and hurtful. To me, blogs seemed to be something that could be potentially dangerous- putting information out that perhaps should not be public. The only other type of blog I have read have been political blogs that were often angry rants and arguing. With this narrow view of what blogging was, I chose not to get involved. It just didn't seem like something I would be interested in.
Through the readings and looking at other blogs in the past 2 weeks, some of my assumptions about blogs have turned around. While blogging can include simply a retelling of personal events, it can include many other things. Ideas can be shared about topics such as politics, literature, currents events, music, movies....the list could go on and on. Most blogs serve some sort of intellectual purpose.
The reading gave me some ideas about how I want to shape my blog. I don't want to create a diary about my life, but I do want to create something that shares my ideas about things that interest me in daily life- such as music, movies and current events. I want it to be lighthearted and fun to read, and not too serious.