It’s More Fun in The Republic
This is not actually a fun read but I just used the new campaign of the Department of Tourism to get your attention.
With the great attention of the social media users, myself included, on the Department of Tourism’s new slogan earlier today, I almost forgot that today, January 6, 2012, is my blog’s second anniversary.
And as a tradition I learned from some of David Karp’s Cyber Empire’s sensible story tellers, here is an obligatory anniversary post from Juan Republic.
It all started on one hot morning of January 6, 2010. I was bored. And irritated. I quit my job in Manila as a researcher and I have yet to look for a decent, new job. I need to do something productive to keep my sanity.
And then it came to me. I must write. It’s productive. It will keep my sanity. And at the same time, I will learn in writing even after I graduated from College.
When I was still in College, we have an obligatory reflection notebook / journal. It is where we write our reflection/meditation for the day and how our day went through, the lessons we learned, and if there’s any, inspirational points that we would like to share with the world.
Also, most of our Philosophy subjects require a bi-semester reflection paper wherein we must apply what we have learned and write it as a reflection/ realization paper. (And I swear, it helped me understand the subjects more! Maybe I should do it to my future students.)
It would be a waste if I just keep those stuff with myself so I decided to share it. I have compiled some of my journal entries and most of my reflection papers and published it online via Friendster Blog and Multiply (during the heydays of the site). There, I met new people who share the same idea and who understand and like what I have written.
Fast forward to late 2009, Multiply is slowly turning into a market place and Friendster, yeah, the Friendster that we knew. So I started looking for another home. I tried Blogger but its interface is eating me alive. (My school locked us from technology and the internet so I was like, back to zero during that time.) And then I discovered Tumblr, who promised that it is the easest way to blog.
I already know that Tumblr exists back in 2008 but I thought that it is just a site for pictures, typographies, and more post-processed and vintage-looking pictures.
I created my Tumblr on January 6, 2010 during the last glorious days of Tumblarity but I did not immediately post my old entries. I tried to familiarize myself and imitated the posts of the blogs that I follow - photos, one liners, and viral photos from the internet.
A screen cap from my archves. My first month on Tumblr.
And I fell in love with it. I got hooked with it. The next thing I knew, I got addicted to it.
My first year on Tumblr marked numerous posts (1,047 to be exact). Maybe because I have more time. Maybe because I am more inspired to share. Maybe because Tumblr, back then, is more fun than the Tumblr that we knew today.
But on my second year on Tumblr, I began to post rarely. Or let’s just say, I would post a stuff but will immediately delete it after an hour or two.
Maybe because I want my blog to be organized? Maybe because I don’t want to see less sensible posts on my page? Maybe because I want my blog to be a serious blog? Maybe because Tumlblr is less fun in 2011 compared to 2009 and 2010? Or maybe because I have matured as a blogger?
From 1,047 posts on 2010, it went down to 150 (this one excluded) on 2011.
Do I regret anything? No. It is my choice. And reading my 150 posts on my second year, I must say that it was all worth the bandwidth and space on your dashboard.
As I begin another year of fun on this blogging platform, I promise myself to refrain from post-and-delete habit and be an inspiration to my followers with my story, my opinion, and my views on society, politics, current events, and pop culture.
I would like to thank the people who became a part of my journey - my Tumblr buddies, the eLBikada, my readers, my followers (Yeah, there’s a difference between the two of them) and my Idol Tumblristas who have inspired me here.
Coincidentally, I got my new antipara today on the second anniversary of my blog.
New antipara means an adjusted vision. I can see more clearly now.
Vision. The Former Archbishop of Manila, Gaudencio Cardinal Rosales once said that to live without a vision is a treason. I see my blog this year as more fruitful compared to the last. More stories, more opinion, more heckling, and more stuff that will let you see the lighter side of things (Nuks!).
I am not your usual komedyante and humor blogger here on Tumblr. But I will try my best to put a smile on your faces and not regret clicking the plus button somewhere up there.
If the Mayans were right, this year will be our last. Let’s make the best out of it. Tumblr may have declined from a fun site that we used to know but that should not stop us from sharing stories, right?
Brace yourselves, this is gonna be a fun ride.
Maraming salamat sa inyong lahat! Padayon!
Elsewhere:
- The Republic Turns One - My post during my first year here on Tumblr. This includes my first Tumblr crushes and the people I thank during those year. Yay!
- The Killer Adobo - My Photo/Photography Blog. I promise to revive it SOON!
- The Beatle Republic - My other blog dedicated to my obsession with The Beatles.
Source: juanrepublic
