Nearly 500!

I started blogging in April of 2006, primarily as an outlet for pseudo-scientific thoughts I had. Then I realized that I enjoyed writing more than I thought I would, particularly writing up about stuff that makes sense to me. Initially I read blogs just for the fun of it (and to keep up with what my good friend LM had been up to). Now I blog because I enjoy disseminating my thoughts to a broader audience.

JT2 equated my blog to Facebook. However, I indicated that I could see four types of people who read my blog:

1. Those who know me in real life, and who know that I have a personal life beyond work. Those friends of mine enjoy reading my adventures and my comings and goings. For them, my blog is a way to keep into a facet of my personal life that very few people see in my work life.
2. Those friends of mine who live far away and whose only method of knowing what I am up to. These friends really cherish seeing my "life abroad" through the lenses of my blog.
3. Local (Vancouver and surrounding areas) bloggers whom I've met through my blogging. These bloggers have become good friends and I really do cherish the opportunity to get to know them through the blogosphere (shout-outs to Keira-Anne, Rebecca, Paul, Keith, Jark, Erika, Jennifer, Darren, Tanya, Corinna, Meg, Marcela and Lino, Beatriz, Ana Laura, Carolina).
4. Random people who reach my blog by way of Google and then become hooked on my stuff. These are the ones I need to grow. I want more people who come to my blog and then decide "this kid writes good stuff" and then become hooked.

I am going to take a page of Meg's, Tanya's and Rebecca's books and do something fun for my 500th post. Not sure what just yet, but stay tuned. Since I'm not in Vancouver right now and won't be back until the first week of January 2008, I might not do an actual celebration, but I'll think of something.

In the mean time, I'll ask you all to tell me - what have you learned about Raul by way of reading my blog (and in the case of my outside-the-blogosphere friends, that you didn't already know)? Comments absolutely welcome.