Do I have the time for all this?
I do not want a blog. I have enough problems writing a monthly column (and I want to write that column). Why would I even consider a format that requests, almost demands, updating on a day to day basis? When I write a monthly Boidem column I give myself enough time (or almost enough time) to reflect on the topic at hand. More often than not, a finished column reflects what I've discarded more than what I've left in. This sifting process takes time, and is perhaps in almost direct opposition to the ethos of blogging, which is much more similar to stream of consciousness writing.
But we're not dealing with the Boidem here. What we're dealing with is a personal web site. Perhaps under those conditions blogging would be a logical tool. Even though it might demand almost daily attending, it could offer me more time rather than less, simply because I wouldn't have to devote as much time to editing, either in my head or on the screen.
For me, however, a personal web site fits more of a traditional mold, and that presents me with time-related problems as well. I tend to grasp things in a hypertextual context. That means that almost every sentence I write can serve as a jumping off point for yet another digression. If, for instance, I mention Hila, does that mean that I have to tell about her latest birthday? Perhaps that connects to baking a cake, and the cake links to other recipes I like. The obvious question is "where's the cut-off point?", and the answer (if you're me) is that it's better to try and avoid getting into situations such as these.
Time is also a major factor in the ultimate design (perhaps even non-design) of the finished product. I admit that the personal web site that I've finally posted has a distinctly retro look to it. It look as though it could have been posted five or more years ago, and by a ten-year-old at that. Perhaps on this count I've gone against the business-card model. But I tend to think that texts have to speak for themselves, and within the time framework I've allowed myself I've tried to let them do so.
Go to: the previous big question, or,
Go to: On regaining a cyberdentity.