The anonymous folks showing up on my recently viewed page.
Whenever I login, theres a page that tells me how many views each post had that day and theres a little map showing me which country they’re from too. Most visitors only view the most recent posts located on the homepage, but every once in a while I’ll see that someone visited a random post from 2017 and honestly, it makes my heart SING.
Sometimes I feel like I’m writing to the void on here, but that’s also what allows me to be so honest and transparent. Most of these posts have been free-writes, or they were inspired a few words written in a notebook/note app. It’s day 14, and I’ve really enjoying being able to communicate these random thoughts with random strangers (or anonymous friends) on the internet. I didn’t expect to get through two weeks of daily writing, but I suppose I never actually tried to commit to a challenge like this. It’s amazing how much we’re missing out on because we don’t think we’re capable.
I’d usually make excuses because I “wasn’t feeling inspired” but thats the joy of free-writing. You sit down, type “I don’t have much to say today but I saw a cinnamon roll and that reminded me of this one time….” and then BAM you have a full length post. I work best when I’m not feeling limited to one idea, but sometimes it feels good to explore one because it allows you to actually sit with it. I think my favorite part about writing these has been the experience of navigating my thoughts and actually seeing whats underneath them. Why did that one cup of coffee inspire me on day 2? What about day 9 made me look at my corkboard of letters and write about missed connections?
Theres a George Orwell quote that goes something like “I don’t write to create ‘a work of art,’ I write because there is a lie I want to expose” and I think this idea has been the biggest inspiration over the past two weeks. If I sit down with a single idea, I imagine myself getting an A before deciding how the paper will even start. The ego starts to kick in and I worry about the results before I even open the document. Sitting down with these free-write lets my brain work through whatever it needs to get out. They all start out like rough drafts – a giant compost heap of questions, associations, and weird incoherent sentences – and eventually, I’ll write one line down that just… works?
So if you’re reading this, I’m happy that you’re here and that you’re interested in my daily musings. I’ll always smile when I see that a few people read my latest post BUT theres someone special out there… I opened up my app this afternoon to see that someone read every single one of my posts in the last 24 hours. Whoever you are, I’m smitten over your desire to read through 5 years of random anecdotes. You probably know me better than most people in my own personal life by now and I appreciate you!!
Anyway, 3/4 of my final papers are due on Wednesday and I’ll be completely done with the semester on Saturday WHICH MEANS I’ll have an associates degree in Psychology by the end of the month *toots my own horn loudly and obnoxiously*
I’m hoping to set aside some time tomorrow to write a cute lil free-write thats not related to school.
ATTN restaurant/food service workers: Non-slip Crocs are a game changer. I finally invested in a pair at the age of 27 and I’ll never go back.
Aimee the Ramblin’ Woman 