What the hell is blogging and why would anyone do it?

A fitting kick off to a brand new blog, don't you think? "What the hell is blogging and why would anyone do it?" was a question posed by my mother. And though she was asking it in a very literal way, even though I know what blogging IS, I have also asked myself at least part of that profound question: Why would anyone do it?

I explained to my mother--who, by the way, saw Blogging as a cheap job opportunity in one of many spam emails on how you can do simple tasks and easily make a gazillion dollars WORKING FROM YOUR VERY OWN HOME. I've seen this myself: Become a blogger and make money part time. Now, I'm not sure how THAT works but if anyone can tell me how I might make some dough keying in these words, do tell.

I digress. I explained to my mother that a blog is essentially a public diary. That was my best simple description. You jot your own personal thoughts on anything under the sun and you post them online for the world to read as it chooses. The reasons why someone would do this must number as many as there are blogs in existence. I've read blogs by people whose clear purpose is to catch their own family up on the comings and going of their personal lives. Nice but not exactly riveting stuff that would make strangers in, say, Lincoln, Nebraska, check in daily for an update. Some folks have very specific reasons for blogging: maybe they're part of a group that's experiencing similar life experiences and they share details to help others going through the same thing. Like online counseling from non-professionals. Divorce, infertility, adoption, jello shooter addiction, etc. And then there are my favorite bloggers: they're simply funny and entertaining while commentating on their lives in general. I've followed blogs of people I've never met and never will meet because reading their stuff made me laugh and I could relate to whatever they were saying. That's the category I hope to fall into.

Let me set the stage: I am already a writer by trade, having worked as an Editor and then a Publisher/GM for the nation's number one trucking magazine, Trucker's Connection, for nearly 15 years. For me, writing is therapeutic and I enjoy writing "off the cuff." I have two print columns that I have the liberty of writing this way and it seems natural that I would now add an electronic version to my portfolio (which I don't actually possess, but it sounds good).

A blog is a lot of what a print column is not: it's much more timely since I can write this morning and you can be reading it in about 5 minutes, as opposed to about a two month lead time with monthly print. And since this isn't technically sanctioned by work, it's gonna be more of a free for all. See? The craziness begins: you could never say Gonna in a magazine. I know, I know. Calm down. Too much excitement before 9:00 a.m. is a health hazard. I'm lucky to be functioning at all this time of day. Let's just say I'm not a morning person.

So here we go--thus does commence the public diary of Megan Cullingford Hicks. For friends, family, truck drivers, Trucker's Connection readers, and, well, perfect strangers. I've got stuff to say and I can only hope you find it worthy of reading.

Check out my day job: http://www.thetrucker.com/. Look left and find the Viewpoint link to find my specific contribution. For the print version, venture to your nearest truck stop--you know you're there all the time--and grab Trucker's Connection or my sister pub, Downtime.