Saturday, March 18, 2006

The Commonwealth row

Just so you know, I'm not the only person with beef about the Commonwealth Games. There were about four or five comments published in the Guardian just yesterday, people agreeing with me. One person pointed out that the whole thing seemed like a way for England to continue imperialism. Essentially it was like saying, "Oh, ok you little countries. You can come play, but I'll squash you."

There is even an anti-Games movement in Australia called the Stolenwealth Games. The organisation behind it appears to be highlighting the plight of Australia's aboriginal people, which as been largely ignored by the monarch and Commonwealth. And it ain't just aboriginals that the Commonwealth has shat on.

That being said, I have watched some events.

Well, the Boy is mad at me. He has been since last night when I called the Commonwealth Games 'pointless'. He'll probably be mad at me for writing about this, but it's being done. He gets irritated at me for being on the computer too much. He says that he has to learn about things that have happened to me from the blog. (Not always true, though it has been a couple of times.) This is even more irksome since we should be spending time together, as we did do that crazy declaring our love for each other and wanting to spend the rest of our lives together thing nearly three years ago.

Well, I've had a wee think about it. He is right, I do spend a lot of time blogging. One reason is cos I'm a super-crazy perfectionist. I want everything to look right and I spend a lot of time tidying up the blog, adding little bells and whistles, blah, blah. The main reason, though, is and isn't about that.

Sometimes, some thing, which I think is amusing, happens. I want to tell people. But then people want to GUESS the punchline instead of waiting for it, listening to the story carefully, enjoying the journey there. This way, no one can interrupt me to the punchline. Also, I can write, reread, edit or even rewrite as much as I need to. Conversations demand that you say what you want ASAP, or you've lost your chance. Conversations move on. Sometimes when I talk to people, I feel like I haven't contributed anything useful, cos I'm just trying to keep the conversation going. I'm treading water. But with the blog, I can reread something, realise I didn't really say what I wanted, or it didn't have the comic effect that I was going for, and go back and change it. You can make the words in your blog match the sentiment of your heart. It's hard to do that in a conversation.

That last sentence was a surprise -- an epiphany. For me, the blog is about control. You can't control others in conversation. They might not respond to you in the way you think they should. They could have their own agenda/topics they want to discuss. They can misinterpret you. All these variables and others make conversing a complex experience. Rewarding in most occasions, but nonetheless complex. But I have some control over those wonky variables on the blog, more than I would in a regular conversation. I can say my peace and wait for your comments. Then I can comment back, having thought about what you've said.

Mind you, this is still not a good excuse to be on the computer for ages.

1 Comments:

Anonymous Anonymous said...

I agree with "The Boy." Reading your blog takes time, so I know writing your blog takes even more time. How about just making 2 entries a week instead of the many that you do. Spend time with "The Boy" whom you shared those vows. Make memories with him. Time moves quicker than you know.

Monday 20 March 2006 at 22:47:00 GMT  

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