L.L. Barkat, over at Seedlings in Stone, recently tagged me for a meme. She created this meme herself, and I have to say, I really like it.

Here are the rules:

1. Write about 5 specific ways blogging has affected you, either positively or negatively.
2. link back to the person who tagged you
3. link back to this parent post (I’m not so much interested in generating links, but rather in tracking the meme so I can perhaps do a summary post later on that looks at patterns and interesting discoveries.)
4. tag a few friends or five, or none at all
5. post these rules— or just have fun breaking them

So here we go…

5 Ways Blogging Has Affected Me

1. Blogging has allowed me to show another side of myself (or maybe just more of who I am) to friends and family. Being an introvert, I know I can sometimes seem aloof, hard to approach, or downright grumpy in real life — even though those aren’t very accurate representations of me (well, maybe the grumpy thing…sometimes). Through blogging, I can better communicate my sense of humor, my “deep thoughts,” and simply more of what is on my mind and heart.

I’ve had friends, family, even my mom say things like, “I never knew that about you, Katrina, before I read about it on your blog. I really had no idea.” Since I’m generally more comfortable using written words than the spoken variety anyway, I think this is a win-win situation.

2. Blogging has caused me to become permanently attached to my laptop. Of all the items in my list, this would be the one negative. In my early days of blogging, I think I became downright addicted — to writing posts, checking my stats, reading comments, reading articles about blogging, emailing friends about blogging, etc., etc. Though I’ve achieved some measure of balance, it seems I’m still on the computer all. the. time.

I read a wide variety of blogs, I’m still interested in reading about blogging, and I’m trying to maintain a consistent posting schedule. While these things may not be “bad,” in and of themselves, I’ve realized that it is so easy to fritter away hours and hours on the computer every day.

I’ve had to become more intentional about using my time. I’ve had to examine my priorities and figure out how to live them, not just claim to have them. Maybe that’s actually a good thing — being pushed to make more conscious decisions about how I will and will not use my time. It’s definitely an area I’m still working on, though.

3. Blogging has created an opportunity for me to share my love of reading with a whole community of readers. Pre-blog, I read books all the time and just silently acknowledged other bookstore-browsers as kindred spirits of sorts. But in 2006, six months after starting my blog, I hosted my first Fall Into Reading challenge, and things have continued to blossom. I’m about to begin challenge #5 (Fall Into Reading 2008) and expect well over 100 participants — people who love books and love to read. It’s been a very cool experience.

4. Blogging has introduced me to some “virtual mentors.” There are some amazing women out there who share their hearts and wisdom on their blogs, and I feel blessed to have found them. In particular, I have learned (and hopefully applied) much about parenting from Katherine at Raising Five; I look to Lisa at Lisa Writes… for much-needed spiritual encouragement and exhortation; and it seems Bev at Scratchin’ the Surface is continually imparting wisdom in all areas of life. In addition, I’m constantly coming across nuggets of truth and wisdom in tons of blogs such as those written by Jennifer, Ann, and Amy.

5. Blogging has alleviated my guilt over not scrapbooking or consistently journaling. Though I certainly don’t blog about everything my kids do, I’ve managed to capture many of those precious, funny, adorable, embarrassing, or otherwise treasured moments. I back up my blog somewhat regularly, so I will have those memories recorded forever. Definitely a good thing.

Now, who will I tag, for better or for worse? How about…

Susanne at Living to Tell the Story
Lindsay at The Whitcomb Family
Beck at Frog & Toad Are Still Friends
Karen at Simply A Musing Blog
The Queen B
…and anyone else who’d like to do this one.

[As always, if I tag you and you don't want to do it, no problem!]