Wow! It’s hard to believe that my “mom blog” is one year old. After writing 35 posts, I’ve finally learned the real meaning of making a committment and sticking to it. I’ve also managed to keep my family in tact despite exposing some of our laughable, but not so glamorous moments (I Love You, You’re A Fat Ass), memorable quotes (Be-Steel My Heart, How Do You Know When You’re “In The Elderly”) and addictions (Addicted To The “Q“). Though now, no new story is told in our house without a caveat like, “You’re not going to write about this, are you?” We all know the answer to that one, “Yes!”. And my husband keeps asking the eternal question, “What does this pay?”
It’s not about the money, it’s about the writing. I’m proud to report that I have a few followers who are humor writers whom I’ve never met and whose work I admire. A few of my stories have even received recognition in humor contests. Meeting with local humorist Dick Wolfsie (The Laughing Undertaker) was definitely the highlight of my year in blogging. All of which I never expected when I jotted down the first entry about seeing a hot fireman while volunteering in the school library.
That is, until today when I was offered a volunteer position on the reader Editorial Board of a local weekly publication.
That’s right, a real writing job with a real newspaper. Call me Lois Lane. Only, I don’t think Lois Lane wrote short opinion pieces and she definitely got paid. I’m afraid to admit that sitting on a reader editorial board reminds me of my father’s crazy (some might say, “spirited”) Aunt Lena who used to write letters to the editor of her local newspaper on a weekly basis. Whether the job is in the image of Lois or Lena, it’s an opportunity to exercise my First Amendment rights and write about issues that impact an entire community. That’s right, I’m trading in my toilet brush for a notebook and pen. At least, for one hour a month.
Dear God! This actually means that I have to be aware of the outside world for the first time in seven years. It may even be an opportunity for this stay-at-home mom to regain control of the television remote from my Disney Channel loyal six-year-old and my ESPN devotee husband.
It’s a new era of being in-the-know. I won’t be embarrassed at the election polls because I have no clue who is running. I think I can even give up my Better Homes and Gardens magazine for the daily newspaper. Think of all the time I will save by not getting lost in the Wonderwall vortex on MSN. I feel smarter already.
My mother has volunteered to keep me up to speed on local community issues in the event I cannot regain control of the television remote. She does call daily to give me weather reports and breaking celebrity news. While I appreciate her offer, I don’t think most of the community is interested in the QVC Values of the Day or Doris Day updates. Yes, Ms. Day is still very much alive in case anyone was wondering.
So, “Move Over Darling.” (I couldn’t resist the Doris Day movie reference for my mother.) I’m climbing up on my Soap Box for the good of the community and the good of my portfolio. Wish me luck!
Oh ya, and I’m also committed to another year of blogging. Wish my family luck!
Outstanding!!! Congratulations and have fun.
Thanks Beth. My post ended up on “Freshly Pressed” which are the hand-picked best posts of the day on WordPress. It’s been very exciting!
Oooh! I can’t wait to read more. Snarky humor is MY thing (about my life post-divorce…though my amazing kids are sometimes fodder), and I think I may have found a new snarky bloggy friend!
Congrats on the amazing accomplishments, Lois. Best of luck.
😉
Another commenter called us, “Blarks”. I guess that’s a good thing. Thanks for reading.
Have fuuuun 🙂
Look forward to reading more! And to think, now that you are FP, you will have more readers to entertain 🙂
Congratulations! Nice Job!
Choose Happiness!
Jennifer
Nicely said!
My partner now says the same thing–“You’re not going to blog about that are you!” And I aways do–my post today is proof!
Great fun and congratulations all around. Hand on for the ride that is Freshly Pressed!
Kathy
I think they secretly like being the stars of the blog!
I am echoing one of the previous bloggers here… a fellow snarky blogger! Congratz on freshly pressed, I checked out your blog right before it happened and subscribed I am proud to say 🙂
I see how you earned your name, Captain! I was at the Nordstrom coffee shop after making a mad dash to buy some clothes that don’t have holes in them. I was checking my email and your comment is how I found out I was on “Freshly Pressed”. I’ll always remember that moment. You should have played the lottery yesterday! You Obvious-ly have good taste. Thanks for casting the first vote!
Keep laughing.
(a) Congrats on the position. That’s awesome! (b) Yes, keep blogging. More please. (c) “You’re not going to write about this, are you?” I’m starting to get that now, too. Hopefully it will be more of a running joke as opposed to an actual concern. Only time will tell.
Thank you! Pretty soon, your friends and family will preface their story with, “This would make a great story for your blog…”
Congratulations! Honours for writing have always come unplanned, un-configured in my life, so I can imagine how this must feel.
Thanks! So true. It’s always when you don’t expect it. That’s what makes it so fun and interesting.
Snarky Blogger? Is that what they call us? Snogger? Blarky? Can you form a united word here like they do on TMZ with Brangelina?
I kind of like “Blarky”. It sounds a little more whimsical.
Congratulations on one year of blogging. Keep on writing and having fun.
Well done! Enjoy your new adventure.
Laughed out loud when I came to the line about your mom’s daily updates. Had just hung up from an important call made to my eldest at work-I had just seen the preview for a new Big Bang episode and saw that there might be severe weather next Monday. Both things I felt he should know about immediately.
Congrats on your new “career move”.
Go Dawgs!
That’s hilarious Betsy! I’m sure I’ll be doing it too! I’ve actually drafted a post about her daily updates. Just need to finish it.
Congrats on getting the newspaper gig. Blogs really can be the springboards to amazing things. 🙂 You have a great writing voice and sense of humor too!
Thank you Elli. I totally agree with your philosophy on blogging. So many people think “blog” could be George Carlin’s 8th dirtiest word. It’s a powerful outlet and pretty damned fun to boot!
How exciting, out of the frying pan and into a flyer, eh. Real pen and note pad work. How strange and awesome this new technology age is, where total strangers can read the word of your thoughts, instead of just your nosy older brother. Fond, fond wishes for you on your way into journalism and may all the success of Lois’ career follow you. Cheers!
Very well said! Thank you so much.
Congratson your job and being FP! And when you find out what is going on in the outside world, let this long-suffering stay-at-home mom know.
Thank you! It’ll be interesting walking that sheltered/well-informed line. Kind of like a field trip everyday. Thank you for reading.
Wow, congrats to you! A job & FP’d! I shall follow you, haven’t read your blog before but I love the idea of another snarky writer! You go girl!!!
Thank you for reading. I keep hearing the word “snarky” used today. I’ve only ever heard that on the Real Housewives of New York. To another reader’s suggestion, we’ve using “blarky” now. Short for “snarky blogger”.
I think that with your new job your family must be worrier than before!
Have fun and go on!
Yes, my family is living in greater fear! My husband was afraid my first editorial was about a recent shopping trip for undergarmets. Doesn’t he know that is an Op-Ed piece, not an editorial?! Thank you for reading.
Congrats on the job, I’ve been writing for 6 months now. Really loving the experience
Congrats on the job, I’ve been writing for 6 months now. Really loving the experience.
Thank you. Keep writing. There are far worse addictions out there!
When I was raising my three tots, my only outlet was licking peanut butter handprints off the walls. Had I a blog, life would have been sweet and I wouldn’t have gained ten lbs. Best of luck to you with your blog and many congrats on being Freshly Pressed.
I totally get that. I still think I could find a way to juggle a keyboard and a dozen cookies at the same time!
That’s rocking. I’m glad you got a job out of your blog.
I’d like to think it’s my winning personality, but that’s not the case. Starting a blog definitely gave me the confidence to put myself out there. Thanks for reading.
We’ve heard for a long time that women are better than men with words because their brains develop earlier and differently from men’s. But now, after reading your blog, the real reason has become obvious to me: women are better with commitment! LOL.
Only time will tell. I’m notoriously bad at sticking with things so this is quite the milestone for me. Coincidentially, I do have a big head but I still think I hear some jiggling up there! I don’t think my pea-sized brain takes up that much room.
That’s super cool! I hope you enjoy it. 😉
Congratulations! What a wonderful opportunity for you — volunteer or no, who knows what the future will bring? I just stumbled upon your blog and I’m so happy for you I can’t stand it! Your writing is humorous and makes me laugh — Thanks for that!
Thank you so much. I’m pretty excited too. I just wrote my first little piece. I’m both anxious and scared to see it in print! Thanks for reading.
That’s awesome, and now you’ve been pressed too.
Congratulations and good luck!
Congrats on FP….great post, maybe this 1 hour a month gig could lead to something that does pay & keeps the husband from asking that question! Everybody always asks me that too..”You have a blog, what does it pay”? Nothing, but it makes me feel good & could lead to pay.
I couldn’t agree with you more. It’s one of the best hobbies out there.
I admire your courage to get out there and do something unfamiliar and I do plan on reading more (I’ve only read this one). I wish you the best of luck; I’m sure you’ll do brilliantly 🙂
Thank you. It took me a long time to work up the courage to actually start and then share my blog. You just close your eyes and push the “Publish” button and sometimes cool things like being on “Freshly Pressed” happen. Good luck!
I want to be one of your admirers congratulating you and wishing you the very best!
Bright beams!
Cheers,
Lena
Thank you Lena!
Well, congrats..on your first yr…..if your lois then where is clark kent hmmmmm….look fwd to reading about it..zman sends
I hit your “Fat Ass” post and laughed so hard I almost fell on the floor. We must have been to the same Weight Watchers meetings! Thanks for making me laugh at one of life’s most humiliating experiences.
My mom and I have so much fun at those meetings. Our leader is actually really hilarious – in a good way. So much material, so little time.
Congrats on your first birthday!
I’d say something inspirational and awe-inspiring, but who in the hell needs that tacked onto their comments section?
Keep writing, keep posting, someone will keep reading.
Cheers!
Thanks for not being sappy! And, thanks for reading.
Great Blog, Congratulations!
Congrats! So nice to read. I’ve only been blogging since January myself, but I am loving each and every post! So nice to see that your efforts are being recognized. Way to go!
Congratulations on being freshly pressed, and for reaching your one-year milestone, not to mention your new position on the editorial board. So many achievements! Very cool. My hats off to you!
Thank you. It’s rather ironic that this is happening on April Fool’s day! I hope everyone doesn’t cancel their Subscriptions on April 2nd! Thanks for reading.
Congratulations! I look forward to reading more.
Congratulations on your blog’s first anniversary! And you made it to FP in the process- cause to celebrate!!!
Congratulations on the anniversary! I’ll use you as inspiration to “keep at it” in mine!
Nothing like putting more pressure on me to post! It’s pressure in a good way. Thanks for reading.
Congrats on completing the first year of blogging.
Congratulations! And I am thinking of you as a Lois.
Thank you…though I really lean the Lena way!
Congratulations- I can’t wait to be a year in blogging (if I last that long) :). K
Stumbled on your blog on Freshly Pressed; I like the content and your style of writing 🙂 Keep it up and all the best for the future 😉
My mom is like your husband. She tells me to blog to get paid, don’t blog for free because it eats time.
Tell her it’s your hobby. You use a pen instead of a ball, racquet, glove, television remote…Keep writing!
well done!
Splendid! My blog is about 3 years old and is still performing lower than your mom’s.
http://bizplusnews.blogspot.com/2011/04/britney-spears-in-trouble-again.html
I soooo related to the first paragraph. My men, too, are constantly asking with a tone of dread, “Surely you’re not going to post this?!”. I think the dread of publicity has improved the behavior of both The Spousal Unit and The Teenage Morose One. Great blog!!
I agree. I also like having the ability to “rewrite” their actual behavior to create my own little Utopia. Thanks for reading.
Congratulations, nice job! Perhaps the fact that you are in it for the passion rather than the money speaks volumes of your success. Keep going!
Congratulations! As a former newspaper columnist in Fort Lauderdale, I know the giddy rush of having a public face and connecting with honest to goodness real people. Go get ’em. I’m just starting my blog and hope a year from now I, too, can celebrate a year of volunteer insanity. Please come by my place, at sherriwinston.wordpress.com
Good luck to you! I’ll check out your blog.
.. wish my mom would have a similar blog ; thanks for sharing your story nice read wordpressed africasieuro
Are you implying I’m old enough to be your mother?! You’re probably right. It is cool to have a fun mom. Thanks for reading.
I wish you the best!
Excellent post and congrats on the latest venture, I’m sure you’re going to be fabulous 🙂
I can wait read more too
visit me at :
http://www.toolsforyourprofile.com
Wow! You are an inspiration to bloggers everywhere. I agree that its not about the money…(what money?). It’s about writing for readers and hoping for a following. Money may come later or not at all. With that attitude, writing from the heart is much easier because the intent is totally different. Thank you. Kerry Daley – songbirdgold on Twitter.
Blogging is addictive. I do it every time my human wanders away from the keyboard. The Geezer, that’s my human, isn’t to excited over having a bloggin’ -doggin’. Exposing some of the old farts failures to comprehend upsets him when the rusty mechanism he calls a brain half functions so I understand how some of your family can get their nose joints seperated. Liked your blog a lot and I’m surprised I haven’t run across it earlier. I’ll to the Arnold thing – “I’ll be back.”
Sandy
http://www.sandysays1.wordpress.com
Congratulations on One Year! I just started blogging, and the task looks daunting! But it is nice to see you can come out the other side still smiling. Best of all, you get to expand your media and voice. I’m glad I found your blog.
★★★★★
Yep. The pay ain’t great but you meet all the cool people.
Dr. B, author, “The Mandolin Case”
So true. I didn’t realize there was such a great sense of community among WordPress authors until I gained exposure through Freshly Pressed.
Frankly, you had me at the name you chose to represent yourself to all the rest of us in CyberLand! The Laughing Mom. How great is that?
I’m a laughing mom, too. My Littles make me laugh every day and they humble me every day. I’ve often thought that an important prerequisite to being a Mom is to have a solidly great self-esteem and the all-important ability to laugh at oneself. A story – from my repertoire of countless – that illustrates my point: I was filling out a meme. In an effort to enlist some help, I asked my five year old to provide three adjectives that he felt described me best. His enthusiastic and disconcertingly immediate response was, “Big! Shaped like a mountain! Plus you smell nice.”
That description of you by your little one is hilarious! I agree, ya gotta have a great sense of humor. They benefit as well!
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Congratulations on making it a year. Sometimes I wonder why I started my blog (a collection of short stories) when I feel like it just takes valuable time away from my manuscript (my main project). Then I realize…I do like it. And it makes me laugh. So…worth it, right? I think so!
Thanks! It is so worth it if you like to laugh at yourself, and our family in my case. I may have to switch to fiction if they all abandon me! Good luck with your manuscript.