Blog. I haz one. I’ve been blogging for over 2 years now, and even after all this time, I still quite enjoy it.

I started blogging once someone I knew had one. I’d heard of blogs, and some of my imaginary internet friends had them. but I just didn’t get how fun it could be until my high school friend Courtney got pregnant and used the blog to document her pregnancy and communicate with everyone about it. Actually, Court’s blog had two results – my blog, and more importantly, it allowed us to catch up with each other, since we had drifted apart after college. Double Bonus!

Anyway, I was doing my research and checking out exactly what this blog stuff was all about, and one day, when bored at work, I finally decided to go for it. My goal at the time was to journal my thoughts, much in the same way I did in my handwritten journal. I was curious to see if my thoughts attracted any readers from the great wide interwebs, and indeed they had. But my thrill was short lived. My first comment was a scathing attack by someone who refused to reveal themselves to me. Yep, an anonymous comment that was not nice at all. Even though I deleted the comment, I replied in this post. I figured that while the comment was a nasty attack, there were some points that needed clearing up, for the benefit of future readers. Eventually, I got more and more readers, and even made my first blogging friend. That’s it, I was hooked.

I started spending more and more time on my blog, learning my way around the template, html and css. I spent hours looking for resources to improve my blog and make it a place that I wanted to be, much in the same way one does to their home. I found widgets and other cool things to install, and I had a lot of fun doing it. I started thinking about everything that happened to me as a blog post, and posted about my innermost thoughts as well as the mundane happenings of my everyday life.

Over time, the novelty wore off. I started to regain some of the balance with my offline life, and even made a bunch of new friends here. That group of people eventually led me to meet FH, and now my life is so fulfilling that I sometimes have a hard time keeping up with the blog. Maybe I started blogging to fill a hole in my life, and it certainly did that for a time. But now, the blog is such a part of my life that I don’t know what I’d do to chill out, de-stress, escape for a bit if I didn’t have my blog and the blogosphere to keep me sane.

The blog has seen some changes since I first started. Template changes are always popular with new bloggers, and I sure had a few of those. Then I started getting into the css and did what I could to make it my own. Macoosh made me a beautiful header, and I got to a place where I was happy with the template. But there was always this voice at the back of my head, nagging me to see what I could do better. I knew I wanted more from my blog, more functionality, and more options. A big change was in order, and a few months ago, with Snoskred’s help, I switched to a self-hosted WordPress blog. I still have lots to learn about the new platform, and there’s this whole new language called php that I need to learn. I don’t have the time to devote to things that I did when I was single, but I’m managing. I started with one template, and soon found another that I like a lot better. I still look at the template to see what I can do, but I’m largely satisfied with it. But I have a favorite feature here that I couldn’t have at Blogger…

Pages! Lots and lots of pages! WP lets the blog be like a real website, with different pages for different subjects. Holy freaking cow! The possibilities are endless. I was able to take some things off my front page to keep that cleaner, dedicate a page to a mini-niche, and improve functionality with a sitemap and contact page. I feel like I hit the jackpot here. There’s even more that I want to do – I’m working on a Shopping page using my Amazon.com affiliate account, to keep all my favorite stuff that I recommend to all of you in one place. That probably won’t go live until after we move, but again, the possibility is exciting.

Of course, I’m not looking to make millions from my blog. Tens would be nice, just enough to pay my extremely reasonable hosting fees and perhaps buy a CD or DVD every now and then. This isn’t going to morph into a pro blog where I ramble incessantly about some subject I claim to be an authority in. No, this is a personal blog, first and foremost, and I will ramble on about me, a subject I am an authority in. I’ll continue to blog as a hobby, as an outlet, and as a way of networking and “meeting” new people (btw, Alyndabear, buffet in August, right? And Macoosh – Columbus Day in Boston?) This may be a coincidence, or not, but my personal satisfaction in my everyday life has increased tenfold since I started blogging. As far as I’m concerned, blogging is here to stay.

As you all know, I’m trying to remain calm through the exciting but stressful changes going on in my life right now.  I’m getting married and buying a house with my Future Husband.  This blog has taken a backseat to everything else in my life, specifically my sanity, which has been hanging by a thread.  But the bulk of the wedding plans are done, the house has been chosen and now we just take care of the little things while less than stellar service from our lender has us wondering exactly what the heck is going on over there.  No matter.  We’re closing on the house April 25, whether they’re ready or not.

Anyway, back to the title of this post.  I was reading over at Cherry Blossom Adventures, and Lulu has an Encyclopedia of Me series going on.  She read about it elsewhere, and it all started at Bella Dia.  I figured it would be a great way to try and get back in the blogging groove – a mini-series of sorts, and for a little while, I’ll have something to write about when I can’t think of anything else.  So, without further adieu, I present

Encyclopedia of Me – A is for All About Me

All About Me – And Then Some is the name of my blog.  I chose it because I couldn’t think of anything clever and this lame line popped into my head at the moment that I had to pick something.  I figured, at least it’s accurate.  As time went on, I realized that people tend to list their blogrolls aplhabetically, which put me at an advantage.  I was appearing at the top of everyone’s list, which, to be honest, is a place I’ve never been before.  Which brings me to

Alphabet.  My last name is towards the end of the alphabet, and in school it was rare that anyone came after me.  My high school graduation, in an attempt to provide anonymity to the mediocre students, graduated us alphabetically.  That meant that I was 2nd to last to graduate, on a hot humid day of somewhere around 90°F.  I remember my kindegarten teacher would sometimes call attendance by starting at the bottom, just so I could go first.  She said that I had to marry someone whose last name started with “A” so that I wouldn’t come last anymore.  And guess what?  I am!!! FH has an “A” last name!

Aunty.  I’m one.  Those of you who have been around here for awhile know that I am an Aunty to Bubba, Mia, and Messy J.  I was there in the waiting room when Bubba and Messy J were born, and got to see Mia in the NICU when she was just 2 days old.  Bubba is graduating 8th grade this year, which I’m sorry I’ll miss since my wedding is just a few days later.  Messy J is a redhead just like me, and Mia is an adorable little babe who looks nothing like the pictures that her mommy takes (big blurry baby head, anyone?)  Since I moved to Las Vegas, I don’t get to spend nearly as much time with them as I’d like to, and I really miss them a lot, but even with the infrequent visits, I try to be the best Aunty I can be from 2700 miles away.

Accounting.  I’m working in the accounting department of Big Company, and I’m liking it quite a bit.  It’s a change from other jobs I’ve had in that it’s a big company and I live in a cube.  But the people are great, and my boss is very supportive, so I’ve decided to go back to school to study accounting.   As a compulsive checkbook-reconciler, I think it’s something I’ve got a bit of a knack for, so I’m really looking forward to it.  I was going to get a jump start and take a class over the summer, but with the wedding and house, I think the summer will be crazy enough without trying to cram a 6 week class into the mix, so I’ll be looking to start classes in the fall.

There’s a bit about me, the first in the Encyclopedia of Me series.  Look for the next installment coming soon!