05 September 2010

blog-a-versary.



this is us.

four years ago we stood smiling in the hallway of our apartment in southern california and snapped this photo. we lived a few blocks from huntington beach and i went there to soak up that sun every saturday while dan studied law. monday through friday, i worked a tedious graphic design job that pushed every button in me. who knew i would be so thankful for that job and all that it taught me four years later? the summer of 2006, we moved home and planted our feet firm. we were in the midst of finishing law school. dan put in long hours and i was bringing home the bacon. it was just the two of us and i can vividly remember mornings of slamming peanut butter and jelly slices together and running out the door to work. and doing my mascara at the bus stop. we were busy but blissful. four years ago we were still in the figuring things out mode. i thought that mode would soon end. a tiny part of me thought graduation would be a stamp on my passport of life and it'd be smooth sailing from there. little did i realize that so-called figuring it out mode is called life.

one afternoon while sitting at my desk, i started a blog, with the help of pete, my brother and lifelong confidant (happy birthday, pete). deep down, i wanted it to be cool. i wanted it to be different, but kinda the same too. suffice it to say, my original goals in blogging started out a bit weak and pathetic. at the time i was still worried about getting out there. i was worried about what other people might think. i was worried about putting my bare words in the palm of your hand like a piece of raw sushi. (later i'd learn–only by practice–that what i put into it is what i get out of it.) but the name was (and still is) important to me. i called it marta writes because that's what i've always hoped to do, write more. create more. see more. do more. be more. from there it spun into a new hobby, a new diary, a new way of expressing the ins and outs of my daily life and, in a sense, saying it aloud into the world wide web and waiting for someone to hear it.

i had no idea people would actually read it. without my begging them to. so i must say, no matter how you got here, i'm glad you are here. the audience here feels like a fabulous group of friendly people, the same sort that would come to a poetry reading in a coffee house and clap at my efforts. clapping for pure encouragement and support. the magic is in the clapping. comments mean more than i once thought them to. at one point i thought it would be best to turn them off forever. but i'm glad i didn't. comments have turned into great clients, email discussions, creative projects and true friends. a lot can come out of the comment box. so thank you to those of you who take the time to say hello every so often. the blog world inspires me endlessly and more importantly, being a member of it feels like this awesome incentive to do something creative / worthwhile every day. and that is why i am still blogging four years later.

archived. read a few fan favorites.

43 comments:

stephanie from texas said...

happy blogversary! thank you for your inspiration and fun. may you have many years to come with Marta Writes!

feather said...

this is one of the most amazing posts about why we blog and the meaning of comments i've ever read. i love everything about this post. i think all of us bloggers feel the same way about our own blogs. it's a bit of ourselves, and whether we want to admit it or not, the gentle applause at the end is what we live for. and you are so right about the friends and discussions that come from that comment box. i think it is the most important part of my blog. even more important that my content.

Laura said...

I also love this post! I love blogging, and it makes it so much better when I know people enjoy reading it, and gain something from it. Not nearly as many people read mine as much as yours, but hopefully I get there ;)
Thanks Marta!! keep on blogging!
-Happy Go Lucky

Anonymous said...

I'm glad that you a) started blogging even though you were afraid--you've been inspiring me for years; and b) didn't turn off comments so we can be a part of what you share here. If you gave a poetry reading in a coffee shop, I would so totally be there.

Bebe McGooch said...

Thanks so much for your blog! I really enjoy it.

Diane said...

Thanks for starting it, and thanks for writing (and creating all your other wonderful stuff).

[eeny] said...

Happy blogiversary, Marta.
I am glad that you are still here after 4 years. I love visiting your blog every day and read your lovely writings and see your pretty pictures.
You have always been a big inspiration for me. And your blog has been one of the reasons why I started blogging almost a year ago.
I am also glad that you haven't turned off your comments because how else could I tell you now that you are fabulous - well, I could write you an e-mail =)

Hope you are having a great long camp out weekend and ejoy the "wilderness"
xo

Ginny frm New York said...

Thank you for the wonderful blog. I enjoy it and I wish you well on your personal journey to figuring it all out.

brooke said...

Happy Blog-a-versary! Great photo of the two of you--you look like babies!

I've enjoyed your blog so much. It is colorful, creative, fun and real. Your writing makes me smile. Keep up the good work!

Amy said...

i'm not sure how i found your blog, but with each new post you write I am soooo glad i did!

happy anniversary, blog!

Jamie said...

Congratulations - and thanks for giving me such a wonderful place to drop in each day.

Turn Dreams Into Plans said...

i wrote something about your wonderful post on my blog: http://danisaphotoaday.blogspot.com/2010/09/inspiring.html
happy blog-a-versary!

Anonymous said...

Congrats! I can't even remember how I first came across your blog (now at least 3 years ago), but I do know that I love reading it every time marta writes pops up in my google reader. Thanks for keeping on and sharing your wonderful thoughts with all of us!

Ann in the UP said...

Happy anniversary! I found you today by following advice to read your phototgraphy tips done last October. Good advice. I write, too, but photography doesn't come naturally to me. Even when I haul my camera around, I forget to use it. Doh!

talesofahummingbird said...

so glad you decided to create this place to share your life, your inspiring ideas and your insightful messages. its a favorite part of my (blog) day.

dragonflydreamer said...

Happy Blogaversary! Although I am kind of a new reader, I've read from the first post to the current post and I love your blog! I am very isolated where I live and do not have anyone irl who shares my love of writing, blogging, being creative, and other loves. Your blog kindly shares lots of goodies and it is infused with your wonderful personality. So glad you decided to start blogging. Happy Birthday, Pete and thanks for helping Marta get started!

SewSara said...

i really loved this line: "little did i realize that so-called figuring it out mode is called life."

too true, my friend. too true!

thanks for a great blog :)

Erin {pughs' news} said...

Happy Blog-a-versary, Marta! Yours is one of my favourite little places to visit on the internet. Thanks for a wonderful read and such lovely things to look at all the time. Here's to many more years of Marta Writes!

kylee said...

this is precisely why i love being a blog stalker. your blog is fantastic. and your words are so well written. you make me love the blogger world.

summer said...

happy 4 years, marta!!
at this point i'm asking myself, what in the world would i do without this spot? my most treasured minutes of reading out the whole day exist right here, within these archives. i am just SO glad that you started, and that you stuck.

thank you for bringing 'writing' back into my life. real writing. i think i had forgotten what that looks like, until you. seriously, thank you. you've taught me the beauty of in-the-momentness. (and even though that is not a real thing, i'm sure you know what it is that i mean to say.)

you are a joy.
and you are forever my favorite.

Unknown said...

since I'm not the "poetry reading in a coffee house" attending type of girl, I'm so glad you decided on a blog instead ...so I could see it and read it too. :) Happy Blog-a-versary.

Sara said...

Yay for 4 years! I should definitely comment more often, as I read your blog everyday and love every word. Thanks for sharing your life with us. Here's to many more blogaversaries! :)

Jocelyn Lord said...

I really really enjoy your blog. When i am scrolling through my reading list in the mornings and sometimes in the evenings I never skip over your posts. Keep it up!

Season said...

Congrats on your blog-a-versary! I am glad that I stumbled upon your lovely blog and have been visiting now and then, ever since. Keep writing Marta. :)

Desiree said...

Wow! Congrats ^_^
Four years is so fabulous!!

Lisa said...

You've become a part of my morning routine, Marta. So glad you're still blogging. Thank you.

Janet Dillon Robinson said...

Wow, congrats! Your posts are so much fun, I hope there are many more anniversaries to come :] As a new blogger myself, I often get lost/confused/unsure of myself.. I can't wait to have more experience under my belt and figure this whole thing out! Thank you for this post, it gave me hope.

shopgirl said...

Congratulations Marta! You have a truly wonderful blog! And it's a joy to read!

Keep on writing!

Rambles with Reese

Mrs Abbott said...

hello!

Skyes Scribbles said...

Happy 4th year blog anniversary! I love your blog, It always makes me feel at home and smile. If i am having a bad day it can usually always turn it around. So thank you!

kami @ nobiggie.net said...

Happy 4 years Marta! so glad I found you.

Katriin said...

Happy blog-a-versary Marta!
And thank you for your lovely mini diaries, they arrived today :)
PS My great aunt was named Marta :)

Katriin

MarjnHomer said...

you can tell you and your hubby are meant for each other..you two resemble each other..soul mates :-) happy blogaversary

Tiffany said...

Happy anniversary! Still here, still reading, and still adoring you! Forever and ever.

jularun7 said...

happy happy blog-a-versary marta. :) i am so happy to be in ranks of "i read marta writes" and am so grateful for the work we've been able to do together. xo

whit said...

Marta I LOVE this post..so dear to my heart. You are the raspberry in my jam along with the pb on wheat. Thank you for letting people in and for being a inspiration to not only me, but to so many others..Love you

Michelle said...

Happy blog-a-versary! I am one of those daily readers who rarely comments but I love your blog. Thank you for sharing and inspiring us all!

Jen Holtkamp said...

your writing is so refreshing! happy anniversary! :)

jodie said...

Happy blogiversary! I am a long-time reader but don't comment nearly as often as I want to. (I blame the convenience of Google Reader.) You are an inspiration and a very welcome mix to my sometimes plain and simple days. Thank you for your uplifting, clever, and always fun posts.

Jordan
thecountrychronicles.blogspot.com

ellen said...

happy blogiversary to one of my very favorite bloggers!

Ryann Pinnegar said...

Thank you for this post! I'm still a kind of a newbie blogger and I relate to some of the things you said here.

Matti said...

Well, since you said you like comments...I thought I'd put one here on this post. I don't remember how I cam across your blog a few weeks ago, but it's been fun roaming around your old posts to see what you have been up to. Your boy is adorable. Keep up the fun writing. And I just may go out and buy me a g11 camera. Mine needs to be replaced, and I'm like you. I like nice photos, but don't need a fancy slr because I already have 2 kids to keep up with. Anyway, fun to see you! Matti

emilyf said...

what's one more comment to 42, more than a year after its original post date? oh well, doesn't change the fact that i loved it. hello, i'm a visitor from six random clicks away. nice to meet your blog :)

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