Interview: Meet and Greet Monday – Blogger: Owlbeblog

Welcome back for another Meet and Greet Monday and this week I am joined by Owlbeblog who has only recently joined us here in the blogosphere but who has already begun writing regularly and has begun collecting followers.  😊  Owlbeblog discusses all things from ADHD and Anxiety to Love and music and then all things in-between.  Our blogging paths crossed as we both have an interest in the blog subject category AUTISM and I noticed one or two of her articles which I subsequently read.  Owlbeblog writes with wit, silliness but always with grounded and unreserved honesty.  I enjoy her style of writing and predict she will, in time, become a popular blogger.

 

As ever, my interview was conducted via email so everything is completed electronically.  Regardless, it’s always really interesting to meet, greet and get to know new and interesting bloggers from around the globe as they all come to visit me here in my somewhat cramped, but traditionally quirky, virtual office here on the internet.

So, welcome Owlbeblog to my virtual office.  Yes, I know, it does smell of virtual paint I’m afraid.  I’ve had my Microsoft office’s background and screensaver painted recently so it’s still a tad pungent in here I’m afraid.

 

So, let’s kick off with my first question which is, Who on Earth are you?

I am a lot of different things. I am a pianist, ballet dancer, mom of two kids, wife of one husband (ha)…I do just about every craft there is and can’t say no to helping someone or some poor creature that is worse off than me.

Where on Earth are you?

I’m either in the middle of nowhere or in the middle of everything great. The Midwest of the U.S., not where I love or ever thought I’d be.  But life takes surprising turns.

When did you start blogging?

Just a few weeks ago!

Wow and here you are being interviewed within weeks of blogging off on your maiden voyage.    

If you were a Muppet, which would it be and why?

Statler, he’s with Waldorf but has the wicked cool moustache.  They sit up in the balcony and make jokes about everything.  It would be great to look down on life with a friend and just laugh and laugh…

(Exhibit A)

I could so play either of them in the live action movie.  Old, bald, miserable…the perfect type-casting!  Woah, hoh-hoh-hoh-hoh-hooooooooh.

What is your favourite sci-fi character and why?

I don’t know if he counts as a sci-fi character or not but Sam Beckett from Quantum Leap.  Not only do I find myself strangely attracted to him but the idea of going back in time to fix things sounds great. He gets to experience all sorts of lives, dress in drag, he can sing, dance, do that corny mirror trick where he sees someone else’s reflection. What more could you want?

Definitely he qualifies as a sci fi character.  I am not strangely attracted to Sam but I must admit, that boy sure can wear a dress.  Phwoar!  Those legs!

What were you thinking?

I needed an outlet.  I found myself with a constant dialogue in my head and no one to share it with.  My husband is on the autism spectrum, I am also, our children are…it’s a really different family dynamic.  Add into that 1200 miles to my family, 550 to his…we don’t have much support.  I started this blog as a way for my thoughts to mean something. To say them out there in the world and feel them heard and maybe even mean something to someone.

Trust me, your thoughts have always meant something…everyone’s thoughts do.  Having that confirmed by readers is always pleasing but trust me, they do mean something. 

What the heck are you talking about?

Honestly…I don’t know.  I talk about me-but that’s complicated.  I have touched on issues dealing with Autism (in both men and women because I believe it is different) depression, anxiety, raising a preteen girl, hope and despair and a little bit of music.  I hope as I go on I can talk more about music and how it can help people who are struggling.  There will be more on the pitfalls -and hopefully joys- of being married to an Aspie.

Blogging is a good way to connect with other writers too so, who knows, you may even find support from quarters you weren’t expecting.  There may even be fellow bloggers who live near you now.  Regardless, the more you interact with other bloggers (and that means both writing and reading other blogs and subsequently commenting on those that have meant something to you) the more your voice will be heard and the more voices you will hear that resonate with you.

Is blogging for you a vocation or do you do it just for fun?

Blogging, for me, is a means of avoiding my vocation.  (Insert snort) I am, most of the time, a stay-at-home-mom, which means my job never ends and the work is never done.  I do this, right now for fun and sanity (and to avoid the pile of laundry/dirty dishes/unmade dinner).

Man, I’m way ahead of you, I’ve been leaving dishes for years, I didn’t need to start a blog to find a reason to do that.

What is your favourite biscuit/cookie and why?  (Please be thorough in your answer with this as it could one day form part of a legal defence.  I’m just sayin’)

Favourite cookie…well the last cookies I baked are probably up there on the list.  You start with a shortbread recipe, I added lemon and orange extract.  Rolled them into little balls and flattened them into circles.  After they cooked and cooled I melted some dark chocolate and dipped the cookies about halfway into the chocolate.  They taste a lot like those Pepperidge Farm Milano cookies, which I usually buy if I’m super depressed or doing some hangry grocery shopping, only these were a lot more work and didn’t last very long (on account of how delicious they were).

Okay, honestly, I had to look up the Pepperidge Farm Milano Cookies as I’d never heard of them but, having the description of your batch, I was pretty confident I had gotten the gist.  😊

If you were stranded on a desert island and could only take one food with you, which would it be and why?

Food…eh…does gin and tonic count?  That’s what I would take.  Being stranded on a desert island doesn’t sound like much fun and I’m thinking the G&T would help the whole ordeal go down a little more smoothly.

Okay well, I’m going to have to say that G&T doesn’t count but, since this hypothetical question is based on an island on which you are stranded alone, you obviously won’t be bothered by the local Police about this matter as there aren’t any.

Do you think that your blog has changed or evolved since it began?

You’ll have to interview me again in a few months to really know 😉 I’m definitely more comfortable with the program now and adding pictures, links and tags are easier.  It was a learning process for sure.

Okay, I’ll hold you to that.  Get back in touch again in six to twelve months or so and we can try this again.  😊

Do you think that your blog/s are making a difference to your readers and/or do you feel as though you are connecting with them in any way?

I hope.  I know it is making a difference for me.  I have some followers that have similar experiences or life situations as I have and each time they comment I feel less alone.  I know when I reach out and comment on their blogs I feel less alone too.  I don’t feel like I can speak for my readers to say “Yes! this has made a difference in my life!”  I can only hope that their experience is the same as mine.

What are your inspirations or interests outside of blogging?

Owls.  Music, crochet, paper quilling, piano, dance, nature, chocolate, my children…

If you had to share an ice-cream with someone who would it be?

I don’t share ice cream.

Haha, no…seriously, which ice-cream?

Haha-haha, er…oh…okay…why are you looking at me like that?  *GULP*  Okay, backing away…backing away…no sudden movements anyone.  I’ll just leave this ice-cream here then, shall I?

That’s probably for the best.

Have you found other bloggers that you would recommend?

Divorcinganarcissistblog.com has been great.  She manages to be funny in the face of darkness.

 Also zaraspeak.wordpress.com  She has great ideas and insights.

Without using names or blog titles, have you ever found blogs/blogger that you would now avoid?

I felt like one time I posted something and then another blog used this idea and made a big fancy post about it…I might be paranoid but it left a sour taste in my mouth.

Yes, I know that feeling.  I’m pretty sure that’s happened to me once or twice.  That said, if it’s inspiration rather than a rip off then I say good luck to people.  However, if it’s a blatant carbon-copy of your original work then that hurts.  That said of course, there are so many bloggers and blogs out there that I’m sure people may have looked at mine in the past and thought “Hey that looks like something I wrote four years ago about…” so, who knows…

Have you changed the format or way you blog since you started out, if so why?

No.

No-no, don’t hold back.  And will you be releasing this response in a summarised version? 

Donald Trump, real person or poorly made animatronic?

If only Donald Trump were an animatronic.  Someone could hack him, pull the plug, throw water on him or something.  But no.  He is real.  Real is full of flaws and mistakes.  Real is ugly, and he is all those things.  This country has made a terrible mistake that will impact the entire world and I am scared for us all.  That is real.

Honestly, I don’t even know why I ask that question.  There’s clearly nothing about him that’s fake.  Let’s face it for example, if his hair was fake then who in their right mind would buy a wig that bad?

As for his actions, we can only hope that other people’s common sense prevails in these uncertain times ahead. 

 Do you use any other forms of social media?  If so, which and how do you feel they compare?

I do. But they are separate.  This blog is my real life, my real thoughts. My other social medias are censored to be socially correct, not embarrassing to family or myself.

I must admit I used to write about my family and some of it was embarrassing.  However, one day the janitor caught me doing it and I then had to repaint all of the cubicle doors.  Ahem…   

Is there anything that annoys or disappoints you about blogging/bloggers/readers?

Oh, like writing a masterpiece and then checking every 5 minutes for a “like” or a “comment” only to find out you’re the only one who’s seen it? That…

Otherwise it’s just dealing with toggling screens and typing on my little iPhone.

Trust me, the desperation for a “like” does ware off eventually…so I’ve been told at least. 

Are there any hints and tips that you’d like to share with people who are interested in becoming bloggers or even for existing bloggers?

I feel like I’m the one who needs the hints and tips here…

The only thing I would really say to anyone is be yourself.  Make it your blog and don’t ever write for other people or just produce what they expect to read otherwise you’ll never surprise them, never push them, never challenge them. 

What is your favourite Movie (or book)? 

The Pianist is a movie that sticks out for me.  The depth of emotion is incredible.

I just finished the book “I Liked My Life”.  I think it’s one everyone could get something out of.

Is there anything else that you would like to say to any potential new readers of your blog?

Give it a chance…I know not all of my posts are winners.  But I hope you’ll stick through. There’s a lot of variety and if one doesn’t resonate with you another one might.

I know it is difficult for most people to do but I’m going to ask you to please advertise your blog.  Why should people check you out and what might they expect to find on your blog?

They’d find truth.  I write from my perspective about difficult things.  Honestly, I’m going through a tough time right now but not all of my posts are written by Eeyore.  I try to be positive sometimes, maybe even funny.  Hopefully my blog will grow to encompass all of the things that make up this world, beauty and joy included

 

As ever, any questions or concerns re this post or any other, please feel free to contact me at ned@thewayofthesquirrelbooks.com