Work! Travel! Princess! I have been remiss in stopping by your blogs, replying to comments, etc. I am behind the Redwood Curtain today. If you think San Francisco is Northern California, well, fahgetaboutit. Keep driving up the coast for about 5 hours until you are about to lose your mind . . . then the world opens up to mist and ocean and giant redwood trees.
It is nice to be back here for a few days. Getting here was another story. Snow! Accidents! Mudslides! Mr. Toad's Wild Ride.
Now I need to prepare for a meeting (and why, exactly, am I blogging instead?) I will return tomorrow night and come around to say hello by Friday, promise.
In the meanwhile, I have a little thought on blogrolls. My apologies to those who have already weighed in on my other site.
For a while, a lovely new (to me) blogger had Jayne Says on a very short list of "blogs that make me laugh" then, when I returned a few days ago, it was no longer on the list. Quel Horror! Poor dear blogger must have read a little more of my site, when I got all gloomy then hopeful and nostalgic (but not so funny.)
Good God do I wish I made people and myself laugh every day! But no, there's this pendulum thingy. Darn.
Anyway, I didn't take it the least bit personally. I get that people have different blogroll philosophies. I think there are at least 5 options (I like making lists, in case you haven't noticed):
a) No blogroll on site
b) A carefully and frequently pruned blogroll reflecting current interests and where you wouldn't mind steering your readers. I call blogroll pruning "linkscaping" (because, damn it, I AM FUNNY)
c) A loosely linkscaped blogroll.
d) Link only to those who link to you - pure reciprocity.
e) Link to every blog you've ever visited, and let the page roll, roll, roll down the block.
Then there are those who have a lot of rules if you want to link to them and vice-versa. I came across this one from Bricotrout a few days ago. It is funny! I don't necessarily subscribe to his philosophy and rules for myself, but his post is food for thought.
I'm more of a c) gal myself. I link rather quickly to people, or to those who link to me, it's not a big deal at all to me to add you to my sidebar.
But if you're not posting what resonates with me for a while and I don't find myself over at your place that much anymore, or if you frequently post things I don't endorse and don't want to steer my readers astray, I will linkscape you. It is nothing personal. I'm just a fickle bitch, easy come, easy go, what can I say?
And I won't take it the least bit personally if you linkscape me for the same reasons. (But I am fucking hilarious, damn it.)
Incidentally, I took my kids (6, 4 and 2) on Mr. Toad's Wild Ride at Disneyland last week. Someday I hope the night-terrors will end.
Posted by: Pops | January 04, 2006 at 10:53 AM
I have to say, I was in the middle of reorganizing my blog and got frustrated and stopped halfway through it. Now I've gotten shit from you and Stella, and by God!, I'm going to go right now to Blogger and fix the damn thing!!
Posted by: Melissa | January 04, 2006 at 01:11 PM
Have a lovely trip. . .
Posted by: Popeye | January 04, 2006 at 02:04 PM
haaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa.
we got melissa's panties in a wad!
teeheeeeee. good post jane!!! i was beginning to get a damn complex!
this is an interesting subject though that miss hillary and I have spent many o minutes over. as we have nothing better to talk about these days than fucking BLOGS! blah.
i think there is some etiquette. i feel if someone blogrolls you, you should blogroll back. unless the site just sucks ass and you can't bare the thought of promoting it. its like, if the neighbor brings you an apple pie, you have to do SOMETHING!? (not that i have ever recieved or given apple pies...but you get my point).
oh the politics!
Posted by: stella | January 04, 2006 at 03:46 PM
I just removed someone from my blog TODAY! How weird....
I felt kind of like a bitch doing it, but I dont read it that often...even though its a good read SOMETIMES and the blogger was REALLY unwelcoming to readers...I think maybe it was a blog for a certain circle of friends...and I just haplessly happened upon it? Anyway....I nixed them. Bacon Grease got their spot.
I dont think I'd link someone unless I thought they really were good...and I wouldn't expect someone to link me unless they liked my blatherings. Not that my ego can take the rejection, but I guess I'll have to suck it up!
Posted by: V | January 04, 2006 at 06:16 PM
You are damn hilarious, Lady! And you're also loving, thought-provoking, inspiring, and sexy as hell. I'm afraid you're a permanent fixture on my twisted-linky-list.
Posted by: Theresa | January 04, 2006 at 06:58 PM
I second Theresa's comment.
Could not possibly fathom a reason to de-link Ms Jayne.
Hysterical. Introspective. Real. Honest. Fabulous.
Posted by: Hill | January 04, 2006 at 08:21 PM
Jayne, you *are* fabulously funny. I laughed at least twice. If I'd had false teeth, I'm sure I'd have spit them out.
I'm afraid I'm with you. I linkscape when the weather is right, and try to be respectful. If I stop reading something, it's because I encounter "too much baggage and not enough content." It's a personal thing.
Sometimes, I think people can be a bit naive about the internet being the contemporary version of the Wild Wild West. They can have all the rules they want, but good luck enforcing them.
Never got a pie from someone. But the lady across the street made us brownies when we moved in (isn't that great?!). I did not make brownies for her though. I sent her a friendly little thank you note. So in keeping with the metaphor, I think if you go thru life expecting to get back exactly what you give from exactly whom you gave it to, then you're limiting them, you and the universe.
~S
Posted by: Shephard | January 05, 2006 at 12:00 PM
I have been reading your site for a while and never commented, although I must admit that it is is one of my favorites. Your hilarious about 90% of the time *smile*. When I first started blogging I linked to EVERYBODY whose page I visited cause I wanted to have a long blog roll like everybody else ( yeah, I know, please make no comment to the aforementioned statement) but now I've started pruning my roll to only link to those that I read on a consistent basis. I figure my roll is for MY personal convenience not anyone elses.
In-e-wayyyyyyyyys, Im gonna link to you cause I think you make interesting reading.
And please do not feel like you have to link back to me cause then I REALLY would feel like this is one of those high schoolish things ( "I'm your friend so please be my friend too?", kind of things).
Lata
Posted by: SmartBlkWoman | January 05, 2006 at 09:41 PM
Pops: That ride is scary! Jeez, in the movie version of your life, you will be played by Billy Bob Thornton. Bad Pops.
Melissa: HA! It worked! This post was a desperate (though HILARIOUS) plea to manipulate you to reinstate me to your site. I have no shame. : ) And yes, I'm going to go check, and then only link you if you link me. Because I'm as mature as I am FUNNY. ; P
Popeye: Thanks! I did, nothing like face time with a dear friend who is too far away. And oh yeah a little work to pay the bills . . .
Stella: HA! I think it worked and I flushed her out (just kidding, Melissa!) Yeah, it is a goofy topic but I felt I needed to articulate my philosophy.
V: That is too funny. I think I have taken it all way too seriously lately. I think I'm over it : )
Theresa: Do you want to get married? I think T will be totally up for it. ; )
Hill: Awwww, you, too! We can have a big group cultish wedding and the irRev. Jayne will officiate. (That's not creepy or anything, right?) ; )
Shephard: Good points! And of course your philosophy is perfect (because I share it) : )
SmartBlkWoman: I am so excited! I am going to check out your site right now and if you linked me I am linking you and there's not a DAMN thing you can do about it! : )
Posted by: Jayne | January 06, 2006 at 10:18 AM
Ok, is it just me, or is "prune your roll" not hilarious? That's a blogger-specific phrase if ever I read one. I'm going to borrow that, Lata! Love it. ~S
Jayne, hope all is well is your world. Thinkig of you. :)
~S
Posted by: Shephard | January 06, 2006 at 05:30 PM
one final thought, well, it's my final thought, the rest of you can dwell on this to your heart's content. I link to more blogs via comments than I do blogrolls. An insightful, witty, sexy, bewildering comment is much more likely to attract my attention than the blog's name in a list with other blog names. I find very few reads through blogrolls, lots from comments. I'm done now.
Posted by: Edge | January 07, 2006 at 07:00 AM
Jayne, thanks for stopping by my place, and for the comment!! As a result I've now found your place... and you're right, you are funny!! I'm kinda in between a "b" and a "c" myself... I try to keep it 'pruned' but much like my yard, it gets away from em at times!!
Posted by: Bill | January 07, 2006 at 11:09 AM
thats good! delving into the different approaches to blogrolls. if yours is too long are you a slut? if you only have 2 or 3 are you conceited? interesting. thanks for the heads up.
Posted by: bricotrout | January 08, 2006 at 06:18 PM
Shephard: Yes, that is very blog specific. And it sounds like food. Or something nasty. Or both.
Edge: Ooooh, who was that mystery masked man with his witty, insightful comment? I am compelled to go look at his blog right now! ; ) Good point, thanks for adding it. I have found myself doing the same thing.
Bill: Hey, thanks for stopping in! I know what you mean about having it get away from me sometimes. Like my yard. My papers. Dogs. Clothes. Blog comment sections . . .
Bricotrout: Well, it's not exactly a fascinating or earth-shattering topic but it was good for me to discover and articulate my philosophy because I'm such a dork about proper etiquitte in social relations . . . and I liked your post/perspective to add to the fray.
Posted by: Jayne | January 08, 2006 at 08:19 PM