Are we blogging yet?

In my attempts to become a stay at home mom, I have searched and searched the web and decided after all that I have read, Hub seems to be the way to go to at least get started, maybe not paid because I still can't figure that out, but to at least get this whole online thing rolling. However, like many of us out there who have not ventured too deeply into the new realm of communication that seems to be popping up everywhere, I had one question.....

'What on earth was a blog?'

I had heard many people tell me, 'Oh you know, it's an online journal that everyone reads.', which was slightly horrifying in itself because let's face it, there's some things in a journal that needs to stay IN the journal and not shared with the world. Other sites seem to state it as a way to share articles and blogs about things you purchased or liked or read about etc. and somehow this all gets magically linked together and someone somewhere pays you. I'll be filling in a blog or two about that as I figure out that little path into the dark, but first things first..... blogging. I will not give up on figuring out how to get paid online by blogging and writing and as I learn so shall you, but the whole beginning seems to revolve around blogging and getting your written word out there so here it goes. My how to on 'Blogging with Hub':

1. The first thing you must do is create an account. It's pretty basic. Pick a name you want to have seen by everyone, make sure you REALLY like it because apparently it can't be changed, create password and give them an e-mail. Not so hard. Next part is a little scarier.

2. You must create a name for the blog and link at least two things to this. What this means is, if someone typed say.... blogging or blog in the search engine of google, Hub would like to be able to link your blog to this search as one of those happy little links that pop up and take people to the answers they seek. So, you want to write a blog about How to Make Fried Green Tomatoes you would title it 'How to Make Fried Green Tomatoes' and your links would be tomatoes, green, fried, how to... and so on. (Hint: it does help to have something worked up before you begin this process so that instead of last minute brain storming like I'm doing, it will be more like a fill in the blank.) You also get to choose a layout but no fear, you can add on to the layout in the next section and move things around if you so choose.

3. Click that you understand they will remove anything inappropriate so in other words... behave this is NOT your personal and everyone WILL see it and they don't want to label or attach THEIR name to your dirty laundry.

4. Here's where it gets really hairy. Here, you must actually create a blog. Da da daaaaaa..... don't run away screaming from it. If I can pass through this portal to get to the other side, so can you. I will say, let your nerves settle if you are new to all this and it seems scary or you will wind up looking 5 times and clicking on everything that says edit before you actually spy said edit button. Or worse, you start editing things you didn't want to and have no clue how to go back. This area is where you add your story, information, or whatever it is you choose to write your blog about, add some pictures if you have them, make room for a comment area and then add more pictures and text areas if you want. I'm sticking to the basics for now. As I learn and grow with my blogging, I'll make sure to fill you in so you know what to do as well.

5. Once you have finished writing your text, you click save and then suddenly, your words appear on the screen and suddenly you look at your page and think, holy toledo! It's beginning to look like a blog! Next, they recommend you put in a picture. Here's another area to maybe pre-think prior to blogging. Search online, but don't forget to put down source information if you know it, and add away! I'm assuming this is also where you can add links to websites but since that is a bit beyond my realm at this time, I'm going to go with a basic flower picture from my garden because it makes me happy and it's pretty. Hopefully you will like it too even though I am very aware it really has nothing to do with blogging other than, hey I added a picture. Again, once you add all the information in about the picture, if you so desire, you click save and the picture appears before your very eyes right next to that text you worked so hard at typing out.

And suddenly, you develope a new personna. You become.... a blogger! It looks good, it looks real, it looks..... like it actually belongs with all the other blogs you see out there. You suddenly become a part of something bigger than you and it's kind of a great and scary feeling at the same time. You have opened a door into a whole other world that you only read about or saw on tv or heard all your friends talking about and never could join in. You've earned that exclusive pass into the 'cool club'. When people make comments about blogging, you (a blogger now) can join in and ask intuitive questions and make smart statements about the latest blogging place and so on...... so ok, maybe not yet, but you will. Eventually this will become so easy that you'll look back and say, 'Why did I wait so long? I was scared of doing this? I must have been crazy!'. I know I will be.

So, if you are reading this, then I have blogged my first blog which means you can too. I hope this helped some of you. I am aware I am way behind the times but I am also aware that I am not the only one. Blogging can be a scary thing simply because it seems to have a wide range of definitions that fit it. A lot of us have seen Julie and Julia but not many of us understood what she was doing other than reporting her life on a daily basis to a computer where other people could read. In other words, she was blogging, but we still had no clue how to get there because we always hear how easy it is and numerous ideas on what it's all about, but no real consise way on how to do it. Hub made it very easy for me and I hope many of you out there reading my blog get the courage to take that first step and create your own. I hope I have helped teach you how and made it a little less scary. Let's face it, it's going to be scary regardless. It's the first day of school in a new state or school. It's the lunch room of your work place on the first day of the job. But, in the end, the fear goes away and we find a lot of friends and learn a lot of things. Good luck to all you bloggers out there and take that first step!