tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2281443754502891373.post894163669274441557..comments2023-09-16T09:09:18.691-04:00Comments on Kittywampus - now at kittywampus.wordpress.com: If Narcissus Had a BlogSungoldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02153155221248240952noreply@blogger.comBlogger6125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2281443754502891373.post-34262307256420115822008-05-31T18:34:00.000-04:002008-05-31T18:34:00.000-04:00Kochanie, you are absolutely right about our capac...Kochanie, you are absolutely right about our capacity for love. I wonder if we *ever* get past that need for our own reflection. I do think we become less insecure with time (if we're lucky, and if we work on it), but I doubt that most of us ever completely surmount that basic neediness.<BR/><BR/>Yes, blogs are protean. And so are our selves. We change at least as much as we stay the same - or I believe that's what happens if we don't just stagnate. So if we're blogging about any aspects of our lives, it *ought* to reflect our shifting selves.<BR/><BR/>And that's a *very* interesting observation regarding the MSM's interest in portraying us all as silly! I think that's all too accurate.<BR/><BR/>Thanks for a wonderfully thoughtful comment, Kochanie.Sungoldhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02153155221248240952noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2281443754502891373.post-54308680899373393122008-05-31T12:27:00.000-04:002008-05-31T12:27:00.000-04:00Sungold,Thank you for this well-written, thoughtfu...Sungold,<BR/><BR/>Thank you for this well-written, thoughtful post. I would recommend that Ms. Gould copy it out by hand, word-for-word. Perhaps not, since she may be moved to blog about the experience of copying word-for-word.<BR/><BR/>A few observations.<BR/><BR/>We rarely <I>love</I> another person for his/her true self. What we really <I>love</I> is the image of our own self that another person reflects back to us. And that image -- be it young, sexy, smart-- may have little semblance to our real self, who is insecure and anxious. In this regard Ms. Gould may not be that different from most human beings, and I say <I>may</I> because I have not read every word of the article or her blog. Personally, I don't think that the ability to truly love another is developed until we are well past our twenties. It takes a few more decades of life and learning from our experience before we reach that stage of emotional development.<BR/><BR/>The web journal has allowed Ms. Gould and others to create a snapshot of their emotional immaturity, which is accessible to all. Unlike Mr. Keats' famous urn, the blog is not the <I>foster-child of silence and slow time</I>. It is protean, like our desired self-image. Mercifully, it can be overwritten. I hope that Ms. Gould will return to her self-portrait after adding compassion and wisdom to the palette.<BR/><BR/><EM>Lately, narcissistic confessionalism seems to be mounting a takeover of print journalism, too. This is troubling insofar as it represents further degradation of journalistic standards.</EM><BR/><BR/>Interestingly, one commenter at <A HREF="http://www.writeslikeshetalks.com/2008/05/28/emily-gould-blogger-on-nyt-cover-may-feel-exploited-but-shes-no-miley/" REL="nofollow">Writes Like She Talks</A> offered this reason why <EM>The New York Times</EM> focused so much attention on this story:<BR/><BR/><EM>...that MSM (especially major MSM like the NYT) _want_ to make bloggers look silly, because they see bloggers as such a threat to them. Bloggers are daily gaining credibility with the public. We are a threat, not only to them, but to the neat, tidy, undemocratic, elite-driven society they want to foist upon us. It is in insult to everyone’s intelligence, but so far, they have been getting away with it...Obviously, Emily advanced their agenda very nicely.</EM><BR/><BR/>Very nicely, indeed.J.B. Kochaniehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03731276067288327319noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2281443754502891373.post-60829645864353598612008-05-27T13:37:00.000-04:002008-05-27T13:37:00.000-04:00Hi Jenny! I know your work and I'm pleased you cam...Hi Jenny! I know your work and I'm pleased you came by. Your questions really got me thinking, so I responded to them in a whole 'nother post. Thanks for pushing me harder on this. And best of luck with your new book!Sungoldhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02153155221248240952noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2281443754502891373.post-32998324311667996692008-05-27T11:22:00.000-04:002008-05-27T11:22:00.000-04:00This is really fabulous. I'm so glad I stumbled up...This is really fabulous. I'm so glad I stumbled upon your blog. The thing is, people wouldn't write it if people didn't read it. And people eat this stuff up. My question is, why? Has life just gotten too hard? Too boring? Too tedious? Too painful? Or are we just looking to connect? I write memoir and I often wonder if it's just TMI. But I get so many amazing emails thanking me for sharing my story and telling me that they feel the same way, I have to think it's a good thing. Still, a girl wonders...<BR/><BR/>Best,<BR/>Jenny Block<BR/>Author of "Open: Love, Sex, and Life in an Open Marriage"<BR/><BR/>www.jennyonthepage.comJenny Bhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11483027195875051631noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2281443754502891373.post-20633210160720312692008-05-26T19:50:00.000-04:002008-05-26T19:50:00.000-04:00Well, this dang post is so long, you'd have time t...Well, this dang post is so long, you'd have time to re-run the whole movie in your head. :-)<BR/><BR/>And you just inspired me to go to YouTube, which just has the music, but still so cool!Sungoldhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02153155221248240952noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2281443754502891373.post-14792654129503388722008-05-26T16:33:00.000-04:002008-05-26T16:33:00.000-04:00The whole time I was reading this, Aretha Franklin...The whole time I was reading this, Aretha Franklin was reprising her cameo from <I>The Blues Brothers</I> in my head.<BR/><BR/>SunflowerSunflowerPhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15069913788437731669noreply@blogger.com