Tomorrow marks the one-year anniversary of Strictly Autobiographical. Last May, I dazzled readers across the globe with my award winning first post, My First Post! Even back then on day one, I knew that it was going to be the start of something big, something tremendous. And so as soon as I finished writing that first post, I immediately started writing this, the 365th post. I got a little confused, like, I started on May 21st, so shouldn’t I be celebrating tomorrow? But that would be the 366th post. I’m confused. Did we have a leap year this year? Whatever, I’ll celebrate again tomorrow. Here’s what I wrote:
Hello everybody! Thanks for reading. I can only imagine that by this time next year my life will have changed so dramatically that anybody I currently deal with on a day-to-day basis, you’ll all be forgotten, out of sight, out of mind. Whatever I found in common with you back then I’ll struggle to think about now, to make any connection as to how I could have ever even been talking down to your level. But don’t take it personally. Just because I’m not speaking with any of you anymore doesn’t mean you can’t still keep up with me, with my writing, with this blog.
I figure that the runaway success of my writing will have changed me initially, I’ll quit my job, burn all of my bridges, and embark on some sort of a massive writing tour, but after a couple of weeks I’ll get my wits about me, I’ll hunker down, and I’ll write even more, propelling myself to as of yet unreached writerly achievements.
What was it like to know me before I single-handedly beat the Internet? Were you a witness to my ascent to superstardom? Are you jealous of everything that I’ve accomplished? Did you ask me for money? Did I say no? Listen, I’ve thought about this, but just because I’m definitely going to be making ungodly amounts of cash, it doesn’t mean I’ll just be able to hand out donations to all of my former friends and family members. Sorry, it’s just that, you know once my writing really takes off, what are we going to have left in common? No, I’ll be on the lookout for new friends and family members, intellectual equals, people who truly get what I’m writing about, not just mindlessly consuming it with neither the intelligence nor the sense of humor to actually grasp what it is that I’m doing.
Future generations!
OK, I’m going to stop it right there. Maybe I got a little carried away on day one. It goes on like that for another two or three thousand words, but it’s all getting at the same stuff, your typical delusions of grandeur.
But now that I’m somewhat grounded back to reality, I’ve got to say, I’m having a lot of fun putting this nonsense on the Internet. It gives me something to do every day. Through the daily practice of writing, I’ve found my mind is almost constantly trying to find subject matter, looking for tiny bits of humor or observation in the most mundane of activities. And through this process, I’ve noticed myself becoming more aware of my life, of the world. Even if nothing comes of this little project, it’s definitely been personally rewarding.
And it’s also like, a year ago, I was definitely more self-conscious about what I’d post. I would scrutinize all of my ideas, being way too critical of myself and my writing. But now I’m almost totally desensitized. I’ll just write about whatever and it feels natural. So in a way I’ve gotten past something, some sort of unwillingness to put myself out there.
That’s it. I know it’s really cheesy, but I thought I’d give myself a little pat on the back here after making it through an entire year without having missed a single day. So that’s what this is, a nice victory lap.
I originally started this blog as a hundred year project, and I’m assuming that science and technology will progress to the point where I won’t have to worry about surviving through to its completion. Part one is behind me. I’m one percent there. Year thirty-seven is going to be pretty lame, but it’s going to pick up steam around years forty or forty-one.
And mom, thanks for reading.