I bought Stranger Than Fiction because AWTM liked it. So much of Palahniuk's stuff in this book reminds me of blogging. Take, for example, You Are Here:

Okay, okay, so maybe weÂ’re headed down a road toward mindless, self-obsessed lives where every event is reduced to words and camera angles. Every moment imagined through the lens of a cinematographer. Every funny or sad remark scribbled down for sale at the first opportunity.

A world Socrates couldnÂ’t imagine, where people would examine their lives, but only in terms of movie and paperback potential.

Where a story no longer follows as the result of an experience.

Now the experience happens in order to generate a story.

Sort of like when you suggest: “Let’s not but say we did.”

The story—the product you can sell—becomes more important than the actual event.

One danger is, we might hurry through life, enduring event after event, in order to build our list of experiences. Our stock of stories. And our hunger for stories might reduce our awareness of the actual experience. In the way we shut down after watching too many action-adventure movies. Our body chemistry can’t tolerate the stimulation. Or we unconsciously defend ourselves by pretending not to be present, by acting as a detached “witness” or reporter to our own life. And by doing that, never feeling an emotion or really participating. Always weighing what the story will be worth in cold cash.

That is how a hardcore blogger lives. Every life experience is seen through the lens of how it's going to be blogged. Everything is a vignette, put out there for all to read. And while you're living the joy or sorrow of a situation, in the back of your mind you're also composing the blog post about it.

It's a way to process. A way, like Palahniuk says, to step outside the situation a little and view it as a "detached 'witness.'"

Because sometimes you need that.

Like today.

I'm not pregnant.

Posted by: Sarah at 02:04 PM | Comments (11) | Add Comment
Post contains 337 words, total size 2 kb.

1 Big huge hugs to you.

Posted by: Reasa at October 18, 2008 06:00 PM (2W7Iu)

2 Big hugs from this corner, too.

Posted by: FbL at October 18, 2008 07:22 PM (HwqvF)

3 Damn. Just, damn. Go hang with Carren. Her fertile myrtle genes should rub off on you. Of course, the fun is in the trying, as it doesn't involve diapers. Okay, there was that one time, but I'm not supposed to talk about that. After today, You could have one of ours, if you like. --Chuck

Posted by: Chuck at October 18, 2008 07:23 PM (q4psF)

4 Oh... I'm so, so sorry... *hugs*

Posted by: kannie at October 18, 2008 08:17 PM (f+LJo)

5 *hugs*, Sarah.

Posted by: Emily at October 18, 2008 09:21 PM (cZoqf)

6 So sorry, Sarah. big {{hugs}} your way.

Posted by: Susan at October 19, 2008 10:30 AM (IfQM3)

7 Crap. I wanted to be there this weekend to hold your hand & hug you. My presence honestly was needed at my sister-in-law's wedding this weekend...when you're ready for a good laugh I have some stories. Love you, chica.

Posted by: Guard Wife at October 19, 2008 11:42 AM (eb8pN)

8 i checked in tonight quick because i was thinking of you and wondering when you would know. apparently you know now and it's one more time for you to have to say "it's not my time". i'm so sorry. uh, and on top of it all, i forgot to say happy birthday

Posted by: Kate at October 19, 2008 03:23 PM (576n8)

9 I second the damn motion. I share your row boat on this. Oh how you know I do. I'm still sorry. btw that quote totally hits the nail on the head about us hard core ones too.

Posted by: DARLA at October 19, 2008 08:55 PM (hRWl6)

10 I'm sorry, Sarah.

Posted by: Anwyn at October 20, 2008 07:51 AM (dzxw9)

11 I'm sorry, Sarah.

Posted by: Deltasierra at October 20, 2008 02:21 PM (GWr7v)

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