OD Survey (yes, narcissism)

What does your online diary name mean, and why did you pick it?

I’m one of those people who goes to join a forum, chatroom, whatever, and then doesn’t because I can’t think of a name.  This would have been the same, so I just used the first thing that popped into my head.  When I found the "cloud" wallpaper later, I thought it was beautifully ironic.  Like having a name that only describes the wallpaper.

When did you first get an online diary?

2002

Why did you first start an online diary?

I had a circle of friends in Adelaide who shared online diaries.  Somehow I never had the guts to join in while I was there.  When I left I got lonely enough to try it.  Though I’d kinda lost touch with them. 

How did you find OpenDiary.com?

Through the Adelaide friends.

When writing an entry, do you believe you are writing for you or the reader?

Both, definitely.  If I wrote only for myself I’d write so much utter crap. 

When writing an entry, are you completely honest?

Yes, though not always completely comprehensive.

Describe your writing setting:

In my tiny studio flat, a little rickety desk, quite neat, in the corner between my bookshelf and the kitchen.

Is anyone that you know (in real life) allowed to read your diary?

No.  Well, that’s not absolute.  Alexander knows where it is, though I doubt he’d be interested enough to read it.  And I’d be happy to exchange access with any of my old Adelaide friends, if it came up.

Do you know anyone in real life with a diary, which you are allowed to read?

Not these days.  There were a couple of Adelaide friends I used to read, but they stopped writing long ago.  That was probably rather low of me to find their diaries and not identify myself and offer access to mine.  I was very new to OD then.  I hope I wouldn’t do that now.

Has anyone found your diary that you really didn’t want to find it?

No

Do you believe writing in your online diary is therapeutic?

Absolutely.  Not only for the emotional/psychological outlet, but for the creative outlet too.

How many entries do you have?

 175

Do you have any entries that are private?

Yes, one favourites only and one private.

If you answered yes to that, (without getting too personal), why don’t you want people to see them?

I wrote some rather angry stuff about my irritations with certain religious concepts.  I think if I made them public, I’d cop a lot of flak from religious folk who might be offended.  I don’t get a kick out of offending people, I really don’t like getting hostile notes, and I couldn’t be bothered getting into a religious shit fight.

How many favorites do you have?

Five.  Not many at the moment.  Time to find some more, perhaps.

Do you know who your first favorite was?

Don’t remember.

Have you ever written an entry while too intoxicated?

No

Do you feel accepted by the diary community?

Diary community?  "Community" is not a concept I really identify with strongly.  I’m not sure I’ve met a "community".  Individuals collectively though?  Yeah.  People are pretty nice here, in general.

Have you secretly fell in love (or had a crush on) a diarist?

Yes!  When I was quite new here, a diarist called Christchylde.  (A vampire reference)  He wrote beautifully, dark and brilliant.  I never saw his face, but I fell in love with him.

Have you ever read an entry that really moved you? What was it about?

I once followed the diary of a young man who had just left his boyfriend and moved to a small town.  In the first few entries, he had tests done and discovered his exboyfriend had given him HIV.

Has anyone written an entry that made you cry?

No

What are your favorite kinds of entries to read?

Honest, intimate writing that gives me insights I wouldn’t otherwise get.  I like writing that gets beyond the small talk and polite niceties that dominate the rest of my social interactions.  Break some taboos!  I also love writing that makes me think.  New ideas in philosophy, politics or sociology I eat like breakfast cereal at midnight.

After writing an entry, how long do you wait to see if you have notes?

Until I write another entry.

If you don’t have notes, do you feel let down?

Yeah.  It’s silly.  If I wanted to leave more notes and get more notes, I could do that.  Sometimes it’s hard to decide how much interaction I want with people.  If I had a lot of notes, I might feel pressured to respond to everyone, to keep relationships going.  If not, I can be lonely.

How many notes do you usually get?

On average, maybe one.  Or none.

Did you know the more notes you leave, the more notes you get?

Yes.  Writing and noting regularly makes a difference too.  I don’t write so often.

Do you delete mean or nasty notes?

I’ve only gotten a few in my time here.  I did delete one very abusive unsigned note, which I think was addressed to "people like you".  I considered going signed notes only after that.

Have you ever left a nasty note and not signed your name?

No, never.  Never will.

Have you ever left a note on a person’s diary just to make them feel better?

Yeah, sure.  What’s wrong with that?

Do you keep a paper copy of your online diary?

I keep a backup.

Do you go back and re-read your past entries?

The recent ones, I do.  Old entries, very rarely.

What’s the most interesting thing you can think of about OpenDiary?

We were here in the beginning, before it was fashionable; before the word "blog" entered the vernacular.