Hay is for Horses...

and rules are for mules?!  Eh?  It rhymed and that's about all I got for you on this sweltering Monday so to begin, let's just jump right in.

I think about blogging a lot.  Why do people do it?  Why do I only have 21 followers after posting almost daily for a year (and thank you, thank you, thank you to those faithful twenty-one who do)?  How do I get more followers?  Who made up the "rules" of blogging, anyway?  And how did they get those clicky tabs across the top of their page?  WHATDOESITALLMEAN?  Agghhh!

Not long ago, I read a post about the do's and don'ts of blogging which set my mind into questioning mode.  I've seen similar posts over the past year.  Heck I'd even googled articles on how to increase my traffic (who hasn't?).  But this particular post made me uncomfortable.  I thought about it and asked, "Why? Why do I care so much?"

Then I quickly began writing this post AND THEN I saved it as a draft and didn't touch it again.  Until today.  Today, I read Michael Lee West's post about "Finding time to Blog." and decided that I should just put my thoughts out their because, "Hey, it's my blog!"  One comment in Ms. West's post was chiefly responsible in my decision to say, "the heck with it."  She said, "Blog because you love it."

That simple.

Some may tell you not to have music playing on your page because it will turn readers off, but if you love it and it bespeaks the essence of you, I say, "Go for it!"  There's got to be other readers out their who love that music, too.

Some may tell you not to get political.  I say, "Whatever floats your boat."

Some may say not to clutter your page with wall paper.  Cutest Blog on the Block cravers, yeah, I'm talking to you.  I say decorate your blog like you'd decorate your home.  If plain white walls don't show your personality, then let that sparkling personality shine through.

To heck with those rules.  Do what you love to do.  Don't feel guilty if you skipped on a blog-hop or missed a week of posting or forgot to link back on a swap.  Don't let it become a chore or else you're blog will become a bore (I rhymed again...like how I snuck that one in there?)

I may not have all the answers or hoards of followers, but I'll tell you what I do...I have a love for my little blog with no stress and strings attached.  It's not the best-for-you gourmet food and riveting commentary.  Shoot, half of the time, the pictures are skewed, but I'd be writing anyway whether here or in a spiral notebook or two.  I'm glad to see when someone has popped on my page and maybe even left a comment, but that's not the reason I blog.  I simply blog because I want to.  Somehow, sending my thoughts out into the world excites me, like anything could happen.  Anyone could read it.

What's your point of view?