Abandoned Blogs: Why Do They Exist?

"Embraced by Words" - Robbert van der Steeg via Flickr

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ghost-blog

A once frequently updated, searched, and visited online journal, now left abandoned by it's creator. 

by El Jay Terry January 24, 2009

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When surfing across the web, occasionally I come across a brilliantly written post, look at the date, and then realize that the post itself dates back to the dawn of the Internet era.

A dead blog, long abandoned by the writer who once filled it to its digital brim with posts.

Arriving at a party that ended a week ago. All the commenter-guests have left to who-knows-where, and the author-host is long gone. Flat soda and soft potato chips (never doubt the power of preservatives) sit on the table, exactly where the everyone left them. I decide not to dig into a bowl of fossilized fast-food french fries. 

There is a camera. And within, there are pictures and videos. The party is over, but I can flip through the photos to see what everyone did. What everyone said.

Now--back to the abandoned blog. I decide to linger, scrolling through their posts to see what they were up to, when, and who they were.

...Why did they stop? 

Sometimes there's a single post within a year saying, "I'm not gone! A lot of things came up, but I'm still here!" and no subsequent posts after that. In the older blogs that once garnered an active community of commenters, I wonder if their regular readers waited for them to come back...or if life just continued on like always.

...Where are they now? 

I scroll through their posts, particularly during their most productive eras. A few tentative initial posts in 2009. Abundant--hundreds of posts in 2010 through 2012, tapering off into a mere 54 in 2013. The blog had its good run...until whatever fueled the initial creation of the blog ran dry.

The author ran out of ideas. This is particularly true with some informational blogs in fields that lack the constant new this, new that. I came across a treasure trove in the form of a well-written frugal living blog that featured tips on how to save money in many aspects of life. Eventually, the author must have run out of ideas, or found a different way to supplement her income.

The author ran out of content. This is true particularly in blogs birthed by grief or trauma, sustained by the process of the griever/victim sorting out their thoughts and questions in their minds, before ultimately moving on with their life and leaving the messy emotions behind in the form of digital bits and pieces floating across the web. Sometimes the blog author leaves a goodbye message to his or her readers. I like to think that they are in a happier place now, one in which they no longer have to use a blog as an outlet to deal with pain.

The author got bored. These "digital graveyards" are smaller, mostly because the blog never made it into a "golden era" of productivity and sharply tapered off after one or two initial, lackluster posts. I, too, have abandoned several blogs soon after starting them, especially if I realized that I didn't want to carry this through to the end. The commitment was too great for the amount of enthusiasm I had when creating the blog.

The author had other priorities. Probably the most common one that I've seen happen, particularly to myself and this blog. School happens. Work happens. Weddings happen. Sometimes there is a hiatus due to life-craziness-schedules-etc, which can span a few days to...a year. Life intercepts, whisks the author from the chair, and that's it.

The author found a new and better platform. Not sure if I'd count this as a digital graveyard because the author is continuing the same project, only in a different space. These aren't as sad because the original blog author usually leaves a link to the new and updated blog website.

I like to think that the original blog authors have moved onto bigger and better things. Meanwhile, the blog functions as a digital time capsule of who they were and the era that once encapsulated these people. Some of you reading may be blog owners yourselves. Have you ever deleted or abandoned a blog, and why? 

Almost Done Listening to First Audiobook

When I found Passage to Dawn by R.A. Salvatore on Audible, I looked at the 11 hours of recording and thought, "Wow! That'll take forever to finish." I had never finished anything so big.

The audiobook replaced the radio on my morning and afternoon commute. I listened to it as I went on walks, as I cleaned the room, and thought about listening to it in the shower.

Now I'm 2.5 hours away from finishing the audiobook, and am stunned at how quickly the book went. Imagine that...At this rate I could finish the Drizzt series (and more books) by the end of the year!

As I brace myself for the long commute starting in June, having amazing audiobooks to listen to assures me that the commute will be a productive part of my day.

Naughty Reading On the Bus

Reading by Meggera-Hime

One thing I miss about public transit is being able to catch up on reading (whether academic or for pleasure) while someone else handles the wheel. I took the bus and trolley for about two years while going to community college, and I really enjoyed reading while the streets and trees and people flitted past.

Text itself, because of its nature as a code, lends a form of privacy to the reader. Unlike most images, a person has to decode and translate text in their heads in order to understand it. After many years of reading (or many hours of Hooked-On-Phonics), we've learned to do this fast in our dominant languages. Text, in its pure physical form, manifests as black marks across the page.

This is how I hid my naughty, inappropriate, and embarrassingly awful literary adventures from my mother for so many years--under the pretense of academic reading. Rip off the steamy, six-abbed cover of a Harlequin novel and you have an appropriate "literature" book... Anyway, I digress.

At first glance, a fellow passenger wouldn't really know whether I'm reading some high-brow classics, obscure hipster literature, or weird kinky stuff, unless the cover is extremely recognizable. And even this can be prevented by using an ereader.

Unless, of course, while I'm reading and having a great time, their rapidly-decoding eyes happen to land quickly on the words moan, caress, and thrust. Especially thrust.

To that poor passenger on the MTS back in 2011, I am sorry. :)

Someone I knew would take off the dust jackets of his books to read on the bus for privacy reasons. He said that with the huge tome, people just assumed he was reading the Bible and left him alone. I like seeing other passengers with books, and I was quite guilty myself of trying to catch a glimpse of the cover to see if they were reading something I recognize.

Nowadays, I drive to work, so I don't get the chance to read during transit. I tend to zone off when hearing audio books, even while on Zombies, Run! missions. But if you read on the bus, trolley, or train, kudos and happy reading to you.

The Bookshelf as a Fashion Accessory: Are We Being Pretentious?

Photo Source: Yarra Plenty Regional Library

During my short stint at UC Santa Barbara, I had an acquaintance who carefully procured and selected the books he had on the shelf over his desk. I had stopped by his dorm so that we could work on a project for Chinese class. Scanning the room, my eyes came to rest on a small collection well-known literary classics on the shelf. "A person's bookshelf says a lot about their personality," he explained.

Exploring the Forbidden Corners of the Library: The Day I Ventured Out of the Children's Section

Source: 1ms.net

It all began when I was a chubby kid in denim overalls with an androgynous haircut that my mother had made me get during our two-month trip in China because it was "too hot."

Winter Break and Free Time: Setting Goals

San Diego will never look like this.
Photo Credit: Nouse

So after two weeks of all-nighters (both failed and successful), stress eating, and final exams, I am on winter break. As someone who usually has something to study for, I am once again floundering around. It feels so weird to not have an essay to write, a passage to read for a lecture, or concepts to study for. Sleeping in is fantastic, and so is having the leisure time to meet up and have dinner with a friend, or to chat with my in-laws when I leave the bedroom. Lying on the bed and sleeping and dreaming and eating and lying o the bed some more is fun, but if that's all my break consists of then it will start to feel hollow. I need structure and goals to feel like I'm not wasting my time away. 

2013 Holiday Gift Guide for the Bookish Friend

Photo Credit: LiteratiClub

(Okay, I lied about the hiatus. I might not be able to participate in all the bookish memes, but I can still post my own material. But it will be sporadic until December 13. Hello again. :))

When it comes to book lovers, we can never go wrong with gift cards to their favorite bookstore. But if you're looking for something more tangible, try this list of gift ideas. 

2013 Holiday Gift Guide for the World of Warcraft Fan

Are you acquainted with an hardcore WoW fan in your life? Maybe they talk about the game all the time, or you just know that they play and love it. Or, maybe you're a fellow WoW player. Here are some awesome Azerothian goodies that would make great gifts. 

This is the first gift guide of a bunch that I'm planning to make. 

(Disclaimer: This is an educational guide. This is not my wish list!)

Top 8 Places to Read A Book

If I had a room dedicated solely to the purposes of a personal library, I would stash some love seats and blankets there and read there wherever I can. However, since that's not an option right now, there are other wonderful places to read, including the ones in public. A change in surroundings can be refreshing! 

1. Bed

Pros: I can read naked, read half-asleep without fearing my stuff getting stolen, rest my back, and get some precious alone time. Also, I can fall asleep right after or before I read.
Cons: The little room gets stuffy sometimes, and sometimes I need a break.