Why Livejournal

A lot of people start their lj off with a declaration of purpose or intent. I didn’t really. I started it off with a loudly opinionated, stunningly inarticulate [for me] post about a political topic that I fell quite passionate about. I never really said why I’m bothering.

Unsurprisingly, for those who know me well, it’s a little complicated.

I’m writing about my life, about my beliefs, about the occasional thing that catches my attention for a few reasons.

1. To examine my life, and to have others include their observations. I’m all for a more examined life, and others can bring a more complete (if not necessarily more accurate) perspective. Through the examination and perspectives, I hope to build a better life for myself.
2. To practice my writing skills. I am articulate, at the sentence-paragraph level. But in the construction of larger parts, I lose place and sense of what I’m doing. So, I’m practicing.
3. To keep up with people far away. I have friends who are not in town (and for that matter, friends nearby who are pretty busy), and I would like to know what’s going on in their lives. If the feeling is mutual, they can know what’s going on in mine.
4. To share and to vent. To provide a forum for emotional expression that would otherwise get squashed or whatever. Several of these posts will be private or targeted to specific audiences (I realize this is far from a perfect medium for that).
5. To meet interesting new people. I’m listing this goal more as an observation (I tend to go out, find the journals of interesting strangers, and start reading them) than as a purpose or mission statement.