Thoughts on Blogging

I used to dislike blogging. I thought it was simply a venue either for endless whining or shameless self-promotion. Some provide blow-by-blow accounts of their private lives, interesting or not (I’m guilty of this myself); other focus on their interests such as music and food; not surprisingly, there are blogs designed to creatively divest you of your hard-earned money.

I came across a Fil-American who decided to make it on his own and undertake a “homecoming” journey touring the Philippine islands. In exchange for writing about his experience, he has a bank account number in his blog where sympathetic readers can “donate” any amount to support his adventure trips around the country. Duh. For all we care, he’s only blowing his readers’ money on booze and having the time of his life.

There’s also this college guy who writes about his quest to find the right girl. The guy looks like he could easily find one, given his matinee idol looks. But no, he wanted the readers to believe he is having a hard time finding dates. And so, he blogs about his search and what happens during his dates. Readers, in fact join in the fun and send their pictures and profiles for him to consider. On his website, however, appears the logo of a popular toothpaste brand and a link to the corporate website. Uhm, yes, that is the catch.

But I support blogs that have worthy causes. Carlos Celdran’s manner of presenting history and culture is almost like a performance art: he combines theatre, music and visuals to make it come alive. He is extremely knowledgeable about history and you know that he is sincerely passionate about preserving what remains of our cultural heritage. His walk tours are highly popular, and rightly so. I always see him in Quiapo conducting his tours and discussing history to foreigners and students and I can hear his lilting English from afar. If ever you have foreign visitors coming in for the week-end, I recommend a half-day walk tour of Intramuros with this guy for a fresh take of Philippine history and culture.

I read Jessica Zafra mostly for her cats. She obviously adores and spoils them, a far cry from her anti-social persona. She makes it sound like her life with her pets is action-packed with excitement, even if all they do is sleep the entire day. I remember she devoted an entire column about her battle with a single cockroach in her apartment. She made it sound like it were an epic event and –gasp!—I read the entire thing.