This blog's First Anniversary

16 September is a special day for this blog. Exactly one year ago, on 16 September 2004, I started writing this blog.

At that time, I was bored stiff from medical leave. I had to be on leave, because I had extracted two wisdom teeth and my jaws were swollen like crazy. I couldn't even speak clearly because of the swelling. Mystic advised me not to practise on the double bass because it would be too physically strenuous. I wonder why I was so obedient that I did not play on the double bass, but I think it must be because I was feeling the pain from the aching jaw to even have any mood to practise. So my main past-time at that time became surfing the internet. And while surfing, I came across this activity called blogging and started on it.

Blogging started as a way to occupy my time, and to self-express. Imagine a patient I was, with swelling jaws. Writing would be at that time, a preferred way to communicate with the rest of the world.

As days came by, I found myself writing in the hope that I won't have to repeat myself too much if friends were to ask me how I have been. Actually that was the intention, but I did not give away my blog's address easily. In fact, very few friends would have gotten my blog's address. But I must have lived in dreamland thinking that if one day a friend truely wanted to be updated of my life, he or she would have the powers to search and find my blog's address. It wasn't too difficult in my opinion, I have a link to this blog on my website. I tend to share with friends my website's address more readily.

Later when I was experiencing the downtimes, blogging became an outlet for expression, to get in touch with the feelings deep down.

It was a pleasant surprise that I could actually make new friends, some who even live miles away, through blogging. Thankful to these friends for they have helped gave me their support and encouragement along the way. I would not have thought that I would even be able to meet a few of these blog-friends who would have been strangers to me if not for blogging.

There was also a point in time when blogging was intended to promote people's understanding of myself. For I am quite a private person such that I tend to keep my thoughts and feelings to myself. Verbalising them have not be my preferred way of self-expression, and with blogging, that sacred and private side could be given a chance to voice itself.

Maybe the next thing I should give thought to is on how I could use blogging to contribute to making this world a little better. I have no clue, but I hope somehow this blog has already been working towards this.

Today is its first anniversary, so it is a day to commemorate. Thanks for supporting this blog for the past year.