I didn’t write this, but it does sound like something I’d write (except for the 4 years part. Don’t I wish!) Duncan really sums up the strange lifestyle that is blogging, and what it sucks out of the rest of your life (which is why you should give him a few bucks if you can - and me, too, if there’s anything left over):
Long time readers may remember that it’s been about 4 years since I’ve made a fundraising request, though since then plenty of generous readers have hit the tip jar which has always been much appreciated.
I’m not poor. I’m not asking for charity. But this blogging thing takes an immense amount of time, and will take even more as the election season progresses. It’s the first thing I do when I wake up in the morning and the last thing I do before I go to bed. Much of the time “blogging” isn’t actually writing posts, it’s reading the immense amount of email, reading an immense amount of news/other blogs/etc…, corresponding with various people, and various other activities which have become a necessary part of the “job.” I wake up to 80 new emails, and if I leave the house for a couple of hours during the day (lunch, an errand or two) I’ll come home to 200 more. It’s become rather impossible to take a break because a break is simply deferring work.
Keeping this thing running, combined with other related obligations and activities, really is a 14 hour/day 7 day/week thing, and it makes it difficult to do anything else.
I prefer the advertising supported model to the extent that it works, but ad revenues, while not horrible, haven’t been stupendous over the last few months either. Doing this blog is fun and rewarding in plenty of ways, but it isn’t compatible with doing much else and I do have to keep my financial future in mind.
Anyway, if you’re feeling generous consider hitting the paypal button below. If your personal finances are less than stellar, please don’t and don’t feel guilty about that. If you think this blog is a sucky one, consider throwing some change to a superior blogger instead.
