A 'lil HooHaa

Messing with the blogging world since 2005

blogging challenge

30 Minus 2 Days of Writing: Haven (6/28)

Several years back, I was looking to go to college.

I had graduated from a local two-year school a few years before and had a decent job, one which paid OK but had no benefits and no guarantees from week to week. I figured it was time to start looking to go back to school as a “non-traditional” student.

I ended up selecting a state school in central Pennsylvania — Lock Haven University, or as it was affectionately known, The Haven.

In a life full of ups and downs, it was the place where I truly grew and where I really found myself. Not that everything after college has worked out perfectly, but it was a great place to attend college.

For a Pathtag mascot club, I created one of my alma mater.

The classes were good, the teachers — for the most part — were really good, and I enjoyed the area. I won’t lie, though. I haven’t kept in touch with more than a few people I went to college with. Though I got along with a lot of people there, I didn’t really look to make the “lifelong” friends that others did. I basically wanted the experience of college and know that I could keep in contact with a few people when I left.

Once I got over the first few weeks, I embraced the college.

I received a solid education, had some really good experiences and met a lot of good people. I enjoyed “dorm” life, despite being a couple of years older than others in the dorm. I liked classes and realized how much I enjoyed education. The layout of the area was nice and even “The Stairway to Haven,” the monster set of steps heading up to the dorms, was OK by me.

For the first semester, I didn’t truly like it. Maybe it was being stuck in Pennsyltucky. Maybe it was just the odd vibe of everything. But it took me a good semester to find my feel of the Haven.

The odd part of Lock Haven was, despite it being a decent-sized campus, it was basically a commuter school. I don’t mean a true commuter school, but a weekday one. The dorms were quite quiet and empty on the weekends. I learned how nice that could be. Only a few people stayed on campus, so it was nice to be able to chill out and do whatever without so many people being around.

I did find it funny, though, that RDs seemed to be a little more hard-ass on the weekends in regard to the rules. Made no sense to me.

During the course of the three years I was at Lock Haven, I truly felt I grew as a person. I enjoyed the college experience and never looked back with any regrets. Well, outside of choosing an out-of-state school, which made it way more expensive. I do wish I had done a few more things — such as looked into studying abroad for a semester. Alas, there’s not much to be done about that now.

Since graduating, I’ve looked back at Lock Haven quite fondly. I’ve applied for a few jobs there (no luck, unfortunately) and have kept tabs on as much as I can. One year, I was taking part in a mascot club with Pathtags (used in geocaching). I made one of Lock Haven and it’s one of the best pathtags I’ve ever created.

My time at the Haven was one I’ll always remember. It’s how I always wanted college to be and I’m glad my experience came there.

Feel free to leave a comment, or e-mail P.J. at hoohaablog [at] gmail.com. Also, please “Like” HooHaa Blog on Facebook!

30 Minus 2 Days of Writing: You better put out (5/28)

OK, folks, time to talk about blogging.

In this crazy thing we call blogging, you basically have only two or three “types” of blogs. You have personal blogs, niche blogs or making money blogs. Sometimes, the three can merge. Sometimes not so much.

I’ve been blogging, in some form or another, since like 2005. My blog is a personal one — a place where I might be serious, funny, or just have quick posts, such as a photo or a quite. I’ll dip into some niche things, but it’s all on a personal level.

This is my domain, so to speak.

In the years I’ve run this blog, I have 1,298 (including today’s) posts. In that time frame, my blog posts have also garnered 3,578 comments. That’s nearly three comments per post, if you do the basic math.

But there are many more posts on this site that don’t have comments than those that do. Sometimes, though, comments aren’t that big of a deal. I like it because it gives me reminders to visit others, or discover other new blogs. Or, it sometimes can be a fun conversation.

Blogging challenges are more than writing a daily post — it’s about experiencing everybody’s posts and being part of a community.

As you all know by now, I’m in this crazy blog challenge. It’s the second time I’ve done this month-long challenge, run by Nicky and Mike at We Work For Cheese.

I truly am glad I stumbled across it the first time. Because in that time, I’ve found some great blogs and people. See, for many bloggers, blogging is a community thing. It’s a way to read about others, know people in an online world and go from there.

When you run a niche blog or one that makes money, sometimes I think the thought process is different. I run a disc golf blog and there are times where it’s overwhelming. Trying to find things to post and all can get extremely hard, even with the group of great writers we have there. And I just don’t have the ability to answer every comment there because the stories are sometimes there to elicit opinions etc.

But a personal blog…

I love when people visit this blog. I love comments. I love all that. I try and respond to each and every comment  though sometimes it takes longer. (And, to be fair, I usually don’t comment on my Snapshot Saturday posts because it’s usually all family having fun with one another etc.) But, truthfully, this blog isn’t ever going to have a month with 20,000 page views. I’m just not that interesting.

That’s why challenges, such as the one I’m currently involved in, are important.

See, when you have a blog such as this, you hope to get people to come visit once or twice, like what you have to say and then keep coming back. In turn, I look to try and find interesting people and want to keep returning to their blog. Especially if they comment. I always try and make it a point to go visit a blog of somebody who has commented on my site.

I’ll admit I can get lax about things, but I try.

After the last challenge, I kept up with visiting blogs for a while. But then time gets in the way. I still try and check several, though. And I try and comment as much as possible.

When I’m in a blog challenge, I go out of my way to visit every blog and comment. If I haven’t commented, it means the blog was either linked late or I couldn’t leave a comment one way or another.

Or, it means it’s later (time wise) in the challenge.

See, here’s the thing about challenges like this — if you are part of it, you better put out, too. By that, I mean if you expect people to come by your blog, you need to return the favor.

These challenges are nice because you get to see different styles of writing, different ways of interpreting a theme and some really good posts. The comments can be just as fun. But there are some (not all) people who don’t seem to visit (or, if they do, they don’t comment) too many other blogs. And that’s their loss as they aren’t getting the full experience of the challenge.

For the first 10 days or so, I’ll visit everybody. I’ll comment on most, though I’ll start backing away from ones who don’t seem to visit back. Why? Because if they don’t want to be part of the challenge, why am I worrying about being active on their part of the challenge? I want a sense of camaraderie  not just me visiting a blog and commenting. I do realize that there are days people just can’t get to all the blogs. And that’s understandable. It happens. I don’t penalize people for missing a few days. This is more about people who do the challenge as a way to have things to write about, which is fine, but I think they miss the overall experience of the challenge.

This is a community. Be a part of it.

It really is a shame, too. Because I’ve been lucky enough to find some great bloggers over these two challenges. I wonder if I’ve missed a couple because I’ve gotten to the point where I just have to do it the way I feel is right.

So you better put out. Or you might not get anything back in return.

And the best part of this post? Those who don’t put out won’t even know it was posted!

Feel free to leave a comment, or e-mail P.J. at hoohaablog [at] gmail.com. Also, please “Like” HooHaa Blog on Facebook!

30 Minus 2 Days of Writing: Friendship (4/28)

The past two years of my life have been some of the toughest I’ve been through.

My world shook hardcore on Feb. 11, 2011 when my position was cut at my job. At that point, I was arrogant enough to think I’d have a job quick enough. Not so. Fast forward to February 2013, I’m in the same situation. No job. Savings taking a beating and wondering what’s going to happen.

I know I’m not the only one in this situation. I know some people, in my field and out of it, have been out of work longer. I’ve applied for jobs in and out of my field, including employment doing just about anything. No luck. Maybe for some I’m “overqualified” (I hate that term — in this economy, nobody is overqualified), maybe in others I wasn’t what they were looking for. But in the end, I have nothing.

Over this time, I’ve discovered a lot of things — both about myself and about friends and family.

If this had happened to me thousands of miles from my home area, I’d have been truly screwed. I don’t know what I would have done or how I would have lasted. The support system has been amazing.

Here’s one thing, though. You truly see what friendship is about.

I’m sure, at times, I haven’t been the best person to be around. I don’t want to make excuses, but sometimes I can’t be blamed. After all, it really is tough to watch people your age, a bit younger, or slightly older, being highly successful and doing well. It’s not jealousy, rather a reflection of how your own life has unfolded.

Believe me, I’m not a happy person. Not with where I am in my life or the direction I have gone. I wonder why I spent so much on the education that is preached one needs to get ahead. I wonder if I am ever going to get out of debt. Hell, I wonder if I’m ever going to be able to pay my student loans.

So, at times, being friendly is hard. It’s hard seeing all the cheery and happy things online in places such as Facebook. Going to events around here is tough because it’s rare to not get asked about the job situation.

That’s where you really find out what friendship is about. And you know who your true friends are. I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t blessed.

People who know me can likely attest to me being a proud person. Sometimes, my pride can probably get the best of me. I know this. For example, despite my financial situation, I still don’t like people buying me a beer, or not letting me pay for gas on a road trip. Or buying me lunch when hanging out.

Friends still insist on doing it. They don’t let your pride get in the way. Whether it’s something I mentioned above, a round a disc golf, a day of geocaching, or just sitting around and having a BS session on things not related to the job hunt, friends know what to do.

I try and show my appreciation and I hope I do. Believe me, when (yes, when) I dig myself out of this hole, I’ll be the same way.

I’ve had some emotional days over the past two years. Some have been anger, some have been sadness, some have felt like full emotional breakdowns. I’m sure everybody goes through these emotions in these situations.

But I’ve learned a lot about friendship in these two years. Whether the best of friends or casual acquaintances, you get to see who is true and who isn’t.

I have a new appreciation for friends and friendship and it’s the one positive I can take away from the past two years.

Feel free to leave a comment, or e-mail P.J. at hoohaablog [at] gmail.com. Also, please “Like” HooHaa Blog on Facebook!

30 Minus 2 Days of Writing: The next thing I knew (3/28)

Three days in and I’m already stumbling on these themes?

Really?

I had been excited about this challenge again for a while because it was going to be a way to get the creative juices flowing again. The next thing I knew, Nicky at We Work For Cheese was posting them and I was staring in disbelief.

What in the name of holy hell was she thinking?

The last time this challenge happened, I breezed through it. With a mix of true-life stories, thoughts and other things, it was easy.

Not this time.

Today’s theme had me bouncing off the wall. What was I going to write about?

There was this time I was once in Florida. It was 2007 and I was there for a friend’s wedding. Quite a fine time. One day, a few of us started talking about parasailing. I’m not a fan of heights, though. So I wasn’t sure. Well, the one other person said he’d pay for it. And we’d be going up in pairs, so it’s all good.

Yeah, right.

Unless you are two smaller people, you aren’t going up as a twosome.

Regular-sized people need to be with a kid or something like that because the weight limit isn’t astronomical. So, I got stuck going solo. I wasn’t interested in it because of my height fear. No way, no how. Sorry that it was paid for, but I’m not going up, then crashing into the water. Nope. Not going to do it.

The next thing I knew? I was taking this photo with a point-and-shoot I purchased for this adventure:

Way up there.

Turns out it wasn’t so bad after all.

See, the point of this post isn’t just about the parasailing, rather realizing sometimes in life, you’ll do something, overcome fears and realize you enjoy something. I’d definitely be up for some parasailing again, sometime.

These are the things in life that can really be wild.

The view from the boat of others parasailing.

Was I nervous? Scared? Sure. Especially when the guy told you where to put your hands and not to hit certain spots, or you could be looking at a long fall.

That wasn’t something I really was interested in.

But when in the air, I stared at those carabiners and kept thinking about what would happen if those suckers gave out.

Next thing I knew…

Nah, they didn’t bust off. But I relaxed. Took in the sights and smells of being above water like that. And it was quite an experience. One I didn’t expect to have, that’s for sure. I figured I’d be white as a ghost when I came down. Alas, not so.

After all that worry and everything else, the next thing I knew, I had fun. And that is what it’s all about.

Feel free to leave a comment, or e-mail P.J. at hoohaablog [at] gmail.com. Also, please “Like” HooHaa Blog on Facebook!

30 Minus 2 Days of Writing: Hold on (2/28)

Saturday’s are tough when doing a writing challenge because it’s always my “Snapshot Saturday” feature. So as with the last time I did a writing challenge like this, I’ll be doing Snapshot Saturday in the morning and then adding the challenge post sometime in the mid-t0-late afternoon.

Today’s theme is hold on.

I had some grandeur thought about blogging about going to an amusement park and having a friend talk me into going on just about every roller coaster.

Talk about holding on!

Then I thought about getting deep and talking about life and how it’s the wildest ride any of us will take and that is often requires holding on.

Or for those of you who have kids and how you should hold them at any chance you get.

Maybe I was going to post about having one of the most amazing craft beers you’ve ever had and how you should hold on to it to really savor everything that is amazing about it.

No, there was no chance I was blogging about holding cheese.

In the end, I figure the best way to do this is post this —

Hold on for one more day. Things will go your way.

Yes, I went there.

Feel free to leave a comment, or e-mail P.J. at hoohaablog [at] gmail.com. Also, please “Like” HooHaa Blog on Facebook!