... a little internet, all to myself.

What is the point of this blog?

I've had several times where I started some kind of blog on my website, wrote 3 posts, and abandoned it. I hope this doesn't add one more to that pile. I'm doing one thing differently this time that will hopefully make the difference: writing for myself. In the past I would write for an imaginary audience that I hoped would crop up to read my thoughts. That's not only a little arrogant, but also not a good way to build a habit and have a consistent voice. Instead, this time I'm writing for my own benefit. Getting my thoughts written down and in plain language usually helps me clear my mind, and sometimes a blog is a lot easier to share than a page out of my notebook. The stuff I find myself wanting share usually has to do with privacy. So, if this follows my plans, this blog will become a resource of easy-to-understand posts about privacy.

I love allusion, so I couldn't help but title this blog creatively. Since this is a blog that will center around privacy, I thought referencing Walden by Henry David Thoreau would be appropriate. A quick trip to WikiQuote later and I found this excerpt:

But for the most part it is as solitary where I live as on the prairies. It is as much Asia or Africa as New England. I have, as it were, my own sun and moon and stars, and a little world all to myself.

from which I took the end and swapped "world" for "internet". I like to imagine that the core experience anyone has opening a browser tab could be the same: common across cultures and a solitary experience, save for the glimpses of the neighbor's fence and the friends you invite over.

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Benjamin VanderSloot, 4 April 2023