Blogging Is My Hobby

p.s. I designed this image on Canva which is soooo great!

I don't know why I've been so hesitant in the past to name "blogging" as a hobby or interest.

Oh no wait, I totally know why. It's because bloggers get a bad rap. It's because saying I "have a fashion blog" can make me sound like a vain, narcissistic person. It's because I have literally heard feedback from haters about how it makes me seem "too into myself." (To which I say: I'm not actually a model, but you "are", so...your logic makes no sense. Also bye forever.)

And now when I got on dates in 2017, I've had the experience where my date has already come across my blog (I mean, it's not a surprise I guess) and I always cringe and find the need to rationalize. I'm always like, "But wait! There's more!" I guess I want to be able to control the way I come across, and this seems more doable in person? Then again, if I feel like this blog is not an actual accurate representation of me...that's probably on me.

Whatever! I'm done with all of that! I want to shout it from the rooftops! Hi, I'm Priya. Blogging is my hobby. I really enjoy it. And not that I need to justify it, but can we all agree that people have WAY stupider hobbies? Like hunting?

Now that I've allowed myself to claim blogging as my hobby, I've realized that it is literally the perfect hobby for me!

Me, frantically trying to rationalize blogging as my perfect hobby:
+ I get to write about whatever I want, and share it on a platform that anyone can access!
+ I can spend literally anywhere from five minutes to five hours on it!
+ I am obsessive about keeping track of things, and blogging is the perfect way to do this.
+ Ask someone I know if they've heard me say "let me check my files." Truly! Blogging is my online companion to my journal. Maybe this is why I love history so much, too? Interesting.

+ I have a job that I love, but let's be real, I don't get to be super creative. Blogging is a great creative outlet.

If there's one thing I'm proud of about 26 year old Priya, it's that I'm truly in a place of no judgement for anyone. You do you! And trust me, growing up as conservatively as I did, this is a big deal! I guess I wish everyone would adopt that mindset. Especially when it comes to bloggers! Goodness this post is really going off the rails huh?

I'll conclude with a haphazard paraphrase of a quote I recently heard from Aziz Ansari (whom I adore) on Fresh Air. Terry Gross was asking him about practicing stand-up material, and what he does when he gets a bad response. He said something that really struck me- basically, if you're only getting positive feedback...your jokes are too safe. I've been thinking about that a lot- when I get dressed, when I blog, and sure, when I write stand-up material.

To be fair, I might still get a bit bashful if someone springs it on me at work, you know, that "I'm a blogger?!" (I swear this is a running gag at the office.) I hope you'll forgive me for that! 

I can't be the only one that feels this way- when did you "come to terms" with being a blogger? Have you had a funny experience when an IRL someone comes across your blog? I bet you have, and I would love to hear about it!