John Perry Barlow during his session referred to disembodied presence: people with whom he had interacted through his blog, people who didn’t have a voice or face or body.
Attending a conference or meeting about blogging means putting a face to the name. A body behind the blog. It’s an act of bravery. For if writing the words is risky, attaching yourself to them in the flesh is more vulnerable. It can be an act of courage to publish. And another act of courage to show up in person and talk about what you wrote.
I think it’s cool to see how what we post pulls us together: what comes from the inside results in outside actions and relationships. How what is written in isolation by two hands typing can create community of many people talking (and sitting beneath the sun in a brick courtyard on an April Saturday in Boston…).
The blog may be a human voice. Yet I found that there are qualities that don’t translate through text. Dimensions are added when we meet face to face. If there’s disembodied presence, there is definite bodied presence. What is communicated without words. Bridges built by being together. There are links that we type. And there’s linking that happens from living. There’s no substitute for visiting with people in person. Being flesh and blood in a circle of chairs. Sharing the same air. Or plate of fries.
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As an epilogue here I’d like to say thank you to everyone who was there and especially thanks to those who put BloggerCon together.
Thanks to Lisa, Sooz and Wendy. I stayed with Lisa. I didn’t talk much with Sooz but I did spend some time with Wendy and her musical beau: it was fun.
Thanks to Jay McCarthy for all his work. If he had been compensated by the conference budget, I’m sure he could take another trip to Italy or two 🙂
Thanks to “Mom” Betsy Devine who lived up to her title and looked out for me. I’ll have to send her some pictures of sweet peas this summer. Thanks, Betsy, for being Sacajawea.
Thanks to Dave Winer. He was friendly, kind and had a bit of teddy-bear aura about him. Thanks to Dave for all he’s done to build community and to encourage us to continue what he started…and have fun! It’s not that serious.
