Someone asked me the other day why I don’t have comments enabled on the blog. After all, he said, a blog is a conversation.

True. And for years, I encouraged and responded to comments.

But a while ago, after having spent way too much time online in various social media, I discovered I needed a break. Time away from the conversations.

So, why do I write publicly? For me the blog is a record of sorts. When I go back through the years, I see posts from my days as an instructional technologist, trying to get folks to explore new ways of teaching:

And then the periods of teaching 8th and 9th grade English:

When my 8th graders dressed up to read Romeo and Juliet aloud:

As a community leader for a team of Aussie teachers in Powerful Learning Practice:

Sharing my thoughts with my kids in Virginia while I was with my dad in a hospital in Boston:

The December I began to question my involvement with social media…

Pushing myself into new writing territories with National Poetry Month:

And buying my first drum…

Unfortunately, I’ve lost the posts from 2004 to 2007, which makes me so sad. I’ve no record of my early days online and then in Connecticut, working for finalsite (a CMS provider). [edited: I found a link to my old typepad blog!]

I write to learn, to think, to share, to reflect. I’ve been writing in one way or another nearly all my life. Like a miner seeking gold, I often struggle to find the words. Those nuggets are precious, but I find myself pushed forward by the possibilities.

Mostly, I want these posts, all the links, and all the connections to be in one place. Here. Easily searched and categorized. Just for me.

Something tells me I might be ready for some conversation, too.