Starting a new blog is never easy. The first entry holds power and mystique like no other. What tone will one set? How does one grab a reader with a blank slate? What, pray tell, should the overall theme be? None of these questions can easily be answered. Hopefully this first entry doesn't die a horrific, flaming death. Always start with a positive, eh?
The reason for this blog is actually fairly unspecific. I used to have an LJ account where I pretty much just rambled on about various things that popped into my head. Sometimes simple updates on my life, sometimes massive universe-altering questions, sometimes politics, sometimes silly things. That is probably what this sucker is going to end up being. In fact, it's that old LJ that inspired me to begin anew. A friend I hadn't heard from in ages randomly messaged me saying they'd found the link while bored on Facebook and had thoroughly connected to some of the entries. So I went back and checked them out and, lo and behold, I'm not a total moron! Some of my entries were kind of witty, in fact! I'd been thinking about blogging for a couple months, anyway, and here was precisely the impetus I needed. And so, dear readers, Pseudobelge was born.
The name may be a bit strange to those of you who don't reside in the dark corridors of my brain. Some explanation, then: I am American, born to parents from the Buffalo, NY, region while they were in Belgium as my dad did his Ph.D. I was ripped from small-town continental life when I was 9, moving to Jacksonville, NC. Then I went to high school in Buffalo, NY, while my family moved to Rock Hill, SC. My first year of undergrad was spent there, going to Winthrop University and living at home. Undergrad was then finished at Canisius College in beloved Buffalo. Then a year in Lille, France, teaching English. Academia continued to seduce me, though, and I moved on to Middlebury College, VT, doing a Master's in French over 6 weeks in VT and an academic year in Paris. Then, broke, spent a year living with my parents, working for Starbucks and trying not to lose my mind. Now I'm finishing up my second Master's in Intellectual History from the University of Edinburgh in Scotland and my Ph.D. begins in September - glutton for punishment, holla!
That's the bullet-point biography, but it's useful as background for the fact that I feel strong connections to Belgium without actually being Belgian. It is the place I have spent more of my life than any other. And, as you can see, I have actively sought out living in Europe as often as possible. And one of my life goals is to revive (or begin?) interest in the Belgian Revolutions of the 1780s/90s. So, Pseudobelge.
I suppose some house rules are in order to finish off this introductory entry. Feel free to get in touch with any questions or comments. Feel free to comment directly to posts. I'll do my best to answer in a timely fashion, unless the comment/question is inappropriate, which I will point out and then use as the reason for ignoring you. Suggestions for topics are always welcome, too.
Alrighty, that about does it for me this Saturday morning. See you next time - same blog channel, same blog time!
I'm glad you're starting blogging again. I kind of wish it was on LJ so I could just go to my friends page and see what you were up to, but this is good too. It gives me an extra site to visit every day. :)
ReplyDeleteI love the background for this page!! I assume that's Belgium?
You are a great writer so it's going to be fun to read what you have to say. And I miss talking to you all the time (we were going to Skype, we still need to do that soon) so I'll be a faithful reader here in order to feel involved in your life again. :)
I love you and I hope we can talk soon!
Aw thanks! :D I'm on skype all the time, so it shouldn't be too hard to manage, let's hope. Hoorah!
ReplyDeleteAs to the picture, it's actually Edinburgh! Taken from the North Bridge with my very own camera.