Like a Captain without his Compass

This blog was originally founded with a few clear goals 1). to serve as a sounding board for all of the various zany ideas I get in my head, 2). to allow those who know me personally another channel through which they could stay current on my activities (since I can often frustrate friends and loved ones with my lack of communication), and 3). to stand out from other blogs by avoiding all of the standard blog cliches. This blog was not going to become an online diary -I could never feel comfortable letting details of my personal life out into the open air of the Internet, no matter how obscure my little corner of it may be. This blog would not become mired in my personal opinions about politics and current events -aside from the knowledge that that's a sure way to alienate readers, I also knew I could do more practical things if I wanted to influence politics. Most importantly this blog was not going to be filled with short, insipid posts that meant nothing to anyone but the person writing the post. Seriously do these bloggers expect anyone to read a post that goes something like

"So i went and saw Thank you for Smoking Today . . . it was the most funny thing i ever saw . . . Katie holms is teh hottest woman EVAR . . . um, yea, that's all for now"

What the heck is that? This post raises more questions than it could ever answer. Why was Thank You for Smoking funny? Is it really funnier than every other experience this person has ever had, or is that just hyperbole? Does the writer not know there is such a word as "funniest"? Why would anyone EVER type "um"? This stuff makes me sick to my stomach.

I write all of this to introduce the topic of what I consider quality blogging vs. what the overwhelming majority of blogs actually consist of. I became concerned about this, because while I view this blog as my own online column, I recently realized how hard it is to maintain a consistent level of quality and post regularly. I had been going through some choppy waters in my life (ugh, a nautical reference I thought I eschewed those in my first post). I started to type up a whiney little post about how tough it is to blog, and apologize for not doing it more, and spew out my misery onto you. Then I remembered that's what every other blogger in the world would do. I respect my readers (both of you Hi Chris! Hi Stukey!) and I want you to gain something valuable from this. I should not be venting into the Internet abyss, that's what I have friends and loved one's for. Also I realize it's a long shot, but someday I would like to have a larger audience.

With all that in mind I am using this post for two things. First I wanted to make an explicit declaration of purpose for this blog (muddled though it may be) and let my readers have some standard against which to judge me. So much like Charles Foster Kane I submit my preceding rant about blogs as my statement on what I want this blog to be and to do. Second, I wanted to give those who do read this blog an opportunity to comment on what I should do next. It occurred to me that with all of the demands in my life I had somehow managed to force three straight basketball related pieces down your throat with no break. I want to show a little more range and so I thought I would give you the chance to opine. Feel free to suggest whatever topic you would like to see me write about, you can either post a message in the comment section, or for those of you with my contact info you can drop me a line directly. I'll go ahead and come up with a short list of some things I could do in case you aren't creative enough to come up with suggestions on your own and would rather just vote on whatever options I give you.

I could . . .

• write more about comic books, taking less of a fanboy perspective and trying to offer a more analytical, cultural perspective
• review movies, noting that while I love the artform dearly I have not been able to get to the cinema as much as I would like, partly do the aforementioned choppy waters, but mostly do to a general lack of foldin' money
• create some astoundingly haughty and cynical rants about pop-culture, trust me I have more than a few of these inside me
• take real questions from whatever audience I have and hold a real mail bag
• offer up my thoughts and insights into education and teaching now that I have more classroom experience
  
• provide samples of my own creative writing, you would have to accept that most of my ideas rarely leave the conceptual "rough sketch" phase and may only get to see a few completed or semi-completed works

These and other things can be yours, I humbly await your input, my cherished audience.