Today, I Celebrate 10 Years of Blogging

Today is So About What I Said’s 10th birthday!!! Can’t believe I’ve been blogging for an entire decade, friends!! It’s all gone by in a fast flash — and yet, thinking back to when I was just 27 seems like such a long time ago (maybe even a different lifetime ago)…

So, what does 10 years of blogging actually look like? How can I even begin to quantify something that, at one point, I couldn’t even wrap my head around? When I started blogging in 2008, this medium was still relatively young. People were just starting to hop on this newfangled thing called Twitter and they wouldn’t be posting selfies and photos of their breakfast on Instagram for another two years! And there was certainly no such thing as “influencers” back then! Yes, it was a different world on the Internet!

In a quick blog snapshot, things now look like this…

*6,123 published posts

*606 post drafts (those are all the ideas that I’ve saved over the years every time post inspiration struck!)

Just looking at those numbers is a good start, don’t you think? It takes something incredibly abstract like blogging and puts it into simple data — heck, at the very least, it’s a record of what I’ve been doing for the last 10 years. From the serious series like Letters To My Future Husband and My Father’s Suicide to the fun fare like Etsy Love and fashion commentary, this blog has been a chronology of my life. It’s grown and changed as I’ve grown and changed, and it’s helped me through some of my darkest hours. My blog has led me to my own domain on WordPress, which, as I’m constantly telling my mom, was THE BEST blog move I ever made!

Yet, as things changed (and I got older!), my goals for this blog have remained the same: Write and create a community that’s all about being honest, real, smart and funny. I like to think I’ve succeeded — or at least had fun stories to share about my failings and foibles!

But the abstract, hard data isn’t the whole picture. I mean, it’s not the whole story because so much of my blogging journey is hard to quantify and put into words. Trust me, I’ve been thinking about this anniversary post for months and I kept telling myself, “What if my 10th anniversary is anticlimactic? What if there’s all this build-up and then…it’s just over?” At its heart, this journey has been one of self-discovery, meeting amazing people (like YOU!) and plenty of laughs along the way.

By now, I’m sure you’re probably wondering, who is that redhead in that illustration up there? That’s none other than Yours Truly!! Earlier this year, reader Laura asked if she could contribute her artistic magic to the blog! She’s an amazing illustrator and I screamed with joy when she sent me the finished product — just like I did when Illustrator Melissa sent me this! You know you can officially die happy when see yourself in cartoon form!

I’d also be remiss if I didn’t give a great big thank you to my mom and Janelle! They’ve both encouraged me and kept me going, even when I’d get down on myself. Their support and love means the world to me, and I hope they know just how special and wonderful they are.

Did I think my blog would still be around in 2018…? Heck no! Would I be who I am today if I never started blogging? I sincerely don’t think so. This has been one wild and life-affirming ride, and I look forward to the next 10 years! Please say you’ll join me. We make a great team, don’t you think?!? I love you, friends! Always and forever… xoxo

[Photo via Unsplash]