主播大秀

Two blogs in one night (spam fritter willing), almost as good as two guys for every girl.
However, I thought I'd shove in my thoughts on 'the end of blogging as we know it'. I was lucky enough to be included in the first group of islands to be part of IB, and mad enough to be one of the early bloggers. Mike from IB was very persuasive (and patient with my ignorant questions), and a dab hand at pool as well. To be honest I didn't see the point at all, but we had this new computer (courtesy of the Scottish Exec) and it wasn't getting enough exercise so I gave blogging a go and since then it has swallowed hours of (mostly winter) time, hugely expanded my idea of 'what a friend is', and been a bit upsetting on a couple of occasions. (Words don't always say what they were meant to) Meeting/discovering Gary from Tobermory Tales and Pondhead, both of Mull made Mull a real place instead of just a view (a very nice view, but very one-dimensional) and Island Wanderer added to my neighbourly feelings to Tiree. I can be very resistant to change and am ashamed to admit to a bit of jealousy when IB expanded, it was Argyll's and very nice as it was, but it got better. Flying Cat, Trevor, Tws (in all his guises), Arnish, Fred blog, Calumannabel - Lewis in blogland is so different to my perception of Lewis from TV. As well as more mad bloggers there were also even madder commenters, and a regular commenter is probably more of a mate than a blogger. Especially some of my staunch defenders. Back at the beginning Mike said Island blogging was about building a community. I didn't understand what he meant at all then, I do now, and I know it happened.
I could take my urge to write away to another site, and lost in the anonymity of the big world could probably write loads of stuff I wouldn't dare put on IB, and it might be very funny, in a cruel sort of way, but it would lack the friendliness, the 'don't lock the car' feeling of IB, which is the island way. And I don't want to stop being part of a group of people united in the way we a) criticise and praise Calmac in the same sentence (sorry Northern Isles, you have a similar cross to bear), b) get frustrated when Gail and Heather stand in front of the weather they are trying to forecast or c) know single track roads are normal, as are private water supplies and knowing all your neighbours too well for sanity. So if Barney or someone else can move us en masse out into the independent world count me in, and we will have become what we were supposed to be; an independent community not needing handouts any more. Thank you Mike and Richard, Carol, and all the moderators in between (daren't risk naming some in case of missing some out), you did it, job done!