NOTE, 4/15/08: AAAAAGH! I carefully picked my way through this piece and corrected all the misspellings of Mark's name...except the one in the title. Now I've done that, too.
Mark Cour, Northeastern PA's oldest longest-running blogger, has posted his thoughts on the state of blogging in NEPA, including specific comments on five bloggers - including yr. hmbl. blgr.
Lu Lac comments the political goings-on in two counties, which is no small task. And he’s also the local political historian. His “1968” posts remind me every time that I was correct in ignoring politics until my thirties. Different time, different name, very similar results. He’s opinionated, but never mean-spirited.
Then there’s Gort. Frankly, he’s way too partisan for my tastes, but he can be objective when he’s not repeating talking points. He tries to make nice with those who visit his site and he demands some civility and decorum from his readers when they leave comments. He’s a dinosaur, in that, he’d have to be called a responsible blogger. But he needs to admit the error of his sporting ways and kneel before my New York Football Giants helmet.
Another Monkey? A breath of fresh air these days. Not limited to one or a few topics. Thing is, you have no idea what you’re getting yourself into when you visit this site. Today it’s politics. Tomorrow music. Then next day it’s the Carpenter Bees terrorizing him in the backyard. And the very next it might be how beautiful it can be when celestial bodies collide, or how his car sucks*. Very prolific and talented writer.
Things at Kings is almost indescribable. It’s eclectic, it’s memories on parade and it’s observations from the front window when the snow flies. Never controversial, but always there.
Kayak Dude’s site is devoted to Don’s passion--The Susquehanna River--and a few other related topics on occasion. He’s a smart guy, a tireless guy, a well-read guy and a very reasonable guy. Just don’t go throwing any sort of illogic at his beloved river, though. Ain’t gonna float.
Check out the complete post at Mark's Wilkes-Barre Online. Marc's site is always worth reading, even when you don't agree with him. Maybe especially then.
One point he makes in this post is that NEPA Blogs has become a collection of mostly-dead sites. This is true, and is my fault. Well, I didn't kill the sites, but I haven't been especially assiduous in pruning back the dead foliage. In part this is because I retain a glimmer of hope that these sites will come back. Mostly it's because I'm too lazy to get around to it.
It is sad that the best I've been able to manage for NEPA Blogs lately has been the official notice that Beal's Bites has become a zombie.
Has blogging's time come and gone? Was it just a fad, and the general public has now turned its collective energy to something else? I don't know. I'm not going to say that just yet. I think blogging has enormous potential as folk history, folk journalism, folk writing. Just because some people have moved on doesn't mean that others aren't moving in. We just have to keep our eyes open for them.
* * * * * * * *
Marc also does a bit on 10-codes in anticipation of his upcoming ride-along with the Wilkes-Barre Police. As with most things, 10-codes have not been far from the front of my mind lately.**
I heard a 10-45 call on the scanner last night and had to look it up. 10 codes are very nonstandard, which is one reason Homeland Security wants to see them abolished and replaced with plain English. (Or wanted to: it looks like they've backed off from this plan.) The call was for a D.O.A., but according to the entry in Wikipedia (which, while inaccurate, is at least definitively inaccurate) 10-45 can have these meanings:
- animal carcass
- pick up officer
- fatality
- Drivers License/Warrant Check
- fire alarm
- fueling vehicle
- all units in range please report
- traffic accident (injury)
- property damage/car accident (non-injury)
So with that in mind, here are the possibilities for what Marc is referring to when he mentions specific codes that may apply to specific bloggers:
Gort 10-47?
- emergency road repair
- disorders and family trouble
- missing person
- drunk driver
- blood run
- Paper Work
- request ambulance
Another Monkey, another 10-35?
- major crime alert
- confidential information
- suspicious person
- Child abuse in progress (New York City)
The Lu Lac 10-82 Letter?
- reserve lodging
- stop for interrogation/arrest
- traffic signal out
- cover assistance
- advise location and status
Not quite sure what Marc was getting at here. Go visit his site and see if you can figure it out for yourself!
* I object to this wholeheartedly. My car does not suck! It is a 1996 Toyota Tercel with over 286,000 miles on it that still gets between 35 and 40 miles to the gallon. Of course, it is showing signs of wear, and needs the occasional repair or overhaul. But at the moment it still makes better sense for me to keep it running than to invest in a brand-new car, or gamble on a used one.
**Someone got to witness my memory process in action during a fairly one-sided IM exchange last night. It was pretty frightening, I think.
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3 comments:
Two things. First, blogging may or may not have seen it's heyday. I think that, to some extent, it's being replaced by social networking sites and/or texting. For those who continue to blog, their sites may tend to be more online journalism than online diaries. JMHO. Second, around here, a 10-45 is generally an auto crash. If there are injuries, it's likely to be called out as a `10-50. Quite often, the use of the term DOA refers to a vehicle that was involved in a 10-45 or a 10-50 or that's pulled over/been left on the side of the road.
I tend to find that these things wax and wane. I have seen many bloggers vanish only to have a bunch more take their place. I have also seen slow periods in everyone's posting. I think some of it right now has to do with spring.
Mark's my cousin and I love his style. We come from a long line of writer's. Blogging is neither dead nor dying but will continue to morph with time. Those who first blogged discovered a way to share their thoughts publicly without cost or submission required for paper publishing. All writers get writer's block from time to time, we get busy doing other things or simply experience burn-out. No writer can ignore the urge to journal indefinitely. Twiddle and face-space sites will never replace the true art of writing. Blogging is not about interaction, although comments are a by-product. Blogging is not about net-working or connecting. It's all about expression. Period. And writing, pen/keyboard-wielding friends, will never be a lost art! My own blogs (too many to count) are stagnant because of lack of time and energy. But I will go back to them or write new ones when the storm blows over. Because that's what this writer does. That's two cents worth from this "penurious" writer...
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