A Well Thought Out Rant

A few of you have emailed me, in a rather rude manner, and asked why I don’t often write about my son. On this blog, he seems to be the invisible child, taking a second seat to his sister. He’s not less important, nor do I favor her, he’s just….older. And therefore, I tend to be more careful in the stories I share about him.

Does he do things that make me crazy? Totally. Does he make me laugh? On a daily basis. Is he every bit as important to me as his sister is? YES.

But most importantly, do we have some embarassing, yet entertaining, stories about what goes on around here?  Absolutely.  Is it anyone’s business but ours?  NO.

Here’s the thing, and this is something that has been bugging me for a while. Mr. C is at an age where he can find my blog. I’m quite sure he knows how to get there and I’m also equally sure some of his friends know about it as well. We haven’t really had any incidents yet, but that could change in a heartbeat. And I don’t want that.

When I was at BlogHer a while back, I attended a panel called something like, “TMI, How Much Is Too Much Information”. Don’t really remember the exact title because once I got in there, I needed a brown paper bag to help me through hyperventilating at the subject matter.

According to the panelists, EVERYTHING is fair game. Your kids real names, embarassing stories about your spouse, your kids, your most intimate details….all fair game.  Because it’s all about you and your freedom of expression, right?

Oh honey, no.

It’s taken me a while to digest this, but it’s been bothering me, and then when I got a few emails suggesting I don’t pay enough attention to my son…well, I got pissed.

There are a few things to keep in mind here:

• You are not blogging in a vacuum.   Keep in mind that EVERY. SINGLE. THING. you say may very well come back to haunt you.
• Talk smack about your husband on your blog and prepare for the fall out if his workplace somehow stumbles upon your “personal” blog.  It could happen.  Consider the consequences.
• Talk smack about your kids and brace for the fallout when they are old enough to google you….because they will.  And unless you have been totally diligent in hiding your real name from the world, which very few of us are these days, your kids will read the stories you write about them.   It’s best for you and them if it’s done from a perspective of love and sometimes light and funny stories…nothing that would cause them to be bullied on the playground.
• But most of all…remember your blog is not ALL ABOUT YOU.  Because it’s not.   Sure, it’s your venue and possibly you are very well read.   But all it takes is one person finding it, and passing the hurtful venom or shameful stories you have shared to ruin someone’s life you really love.

If you choose to ignore this advice, well be my guest, but brace yourself for fall out because sooner or later, everyone figures out who you are….there is very little anonymity anymore.  You reveal your hand to one person, and it’s all over.

All I’m saying is this, share stories that aren’t hurtful.   Record the things you want your children and your spouse to look back on and laugh.  But keep the most intimate details of your life, and that of your family, to yourself.

Because you owe them that much.

***This rant courtesy of stupid emails I have received recently.  Email me again and I’ll show up on your front porch…because odds are, I can find you.