The Blogging Blog Meme

On Thursday, my SciBling Coturnix tagged me with this meme. So, here goes:

Why do you blog?

Since 2nd or 3rd grade, I've wanted to write. When I reached my teens, it became a compulsion. Then I became an adult, and finally learned how to write. So, writing became my craft, a delicate art requiring constant practice and attention. I blog, because it seems to be the appropriate medium for the craft in the 21st century.

How long have you been blogging?

I kept journals as a teenager, but filled them primarily with angst. Some pages were devoted to miniature essays, noting convergences or philosophical insights. Later, I tossed the angst, and kept the rest. Sometime in the late '90s, my husband started fooling with websites. By 2000, I was helping with the features. Eventually, I got my own site. At first, it was simply a place to put my essays, pictures, recipes, and links. Earlier this year, I saw the value of merging my daily journal entries with my website. On January 6, 2006, the Chaotic Utopia blog was born.

Self Portrait?

Why do readers read your blog?

I'd guess it would either be for the stories or the pictures. I'd like to think some of them come here because they're seeking the same sort of synthesis as I, but I don't really know.

What was the last search phrase someone used to get to your site?

kindergarten blues

Which of your entries unjustly gets too little attention?

This one. It's that synthesis, mentioned above.

Your current favorite blog?

Ouch. I have to pick just one? Can I choose a comic strip instead? Like, Sluggy. Some other day, I might have chosen a science related blog, but I really want to know what happens when Torg and Bun-bun (a knife-wielding bunny) catch up with the sexy but deadly Oasis... who might be an android.

What blog did you read most recently?

Weekend sex and drugs update from SciBling Abel Pharmboy. How could you pass up clicking a link like that?

Which feeds do you subscribe to?

I don't do the traditional RSS thing... I like visiting blogs "in person" instead. I do, however, subscribe to a few services, to keep my brain sharp and informed. They include:

• Riddles, brain teasers, and logic puzzles from Braingle
• Vocabulary words from Wordsmith.org
• Recipes from Better Homes and Gardens
• Daily news clips from Progress Now
• Weekly science news clips from Scientific American and NASA

What four blogs are you tagging with this meme and why?

I'll spread this around ScienceBlogs a little more:

• Retrospectacle (Because Shelley digs being at the top of the list)
• No Se Nada (because I'd like to know how Kevin can keep blogging with the gorgeous Flatirons beaconing out the window)
• The World's Fair (because I've become rather fond of Ben and David's answers to many of life's questions)
• Thoughts from Kansas (because Joshua is new here)