Saturday, July 21

Serving Lunch


I had people in for lunch on Friday! That's not a frequent occurrence here, so it was special to me. The invitees were two bloggers; one local and one visitor. It was great to see one again and so nice to meet the other. I won't tell you who they are (at their request), but I can tell you about the visit, can't I?

My iris bed was full to brimming, and needed to be thinned out. I offered them to my friend who has a new home and she accepted. She also asked if she could bring someone to help dig them out of the ground and that was music to my ears! I decided to invite them to lunch as well. They arrived at 11 am, and the iris were quickly dispatched to a cardboard box, on the way to their new home not too far away.

We sat and talked for a while, and we noted how interesting it is to talk to someone you're seeing for the first time, but you already think you know them, simply because of the blog posts we read and share every day. It's a good feeling!

Lunchtime came, and I served the meal: homemade vegetarian white bean soup, tarragon chicken salad sandwiches on Italian boule slices, fresh cherries, blueberries and cantaloupe with Havarti cheese and fresh limeade, sweetened with Splenda (but not enough of it....ick). We brought up the rear with ice cream, which was surprisingly good, seeing as how it was fat-free and no sugar added.

After lunch I revealed what my daughter the lawyer said that morning. I told her that I was in the kitchen preparing for my lunch guests who were coming later. She asked who they were, and I said they were bloggers. She began to rail about how when they found me hacked to death and bloodied, she didn't want to be called about it. See, she has this idea that everyone on the web is a sinister person with no reedeming social or moral values. I have explained until I am blue in the face how bloggers have been meeting each other for years, and nothing bad has ever happened - at least not that we're aware of. It is, after all, a little different than chat rooms and personal dating sites.

It was good for mr. kenju to meet some of the bloggers too. He used to have the same attitude about blogging that my daughter has, until he began to read some of the comments I receive and then following their links back to and reading other people's posts. He mentioned that most of the people whom I read on a daily basis are intelligent and also good writers. I said, of course they are - or I wouldn't be wasting my time doing it!

I know that some of us have mentioned this before in our posts, but how do you explain blogging to your friends and relatives, especially if they are leery of it? Or do you?

Addendum: I bought my copy of Harry Potter at 11:00 am and promptly read 30 pages in the car. It is sooooo good! I can't wait to get back to it!



26 comments:

Anonymous said...

There's definitely some weirdos out there on the net, but in general they're great, loving people. I've made a few friends who I've met online and then in real-life, some have now been friends for years.

I generally don't explain blogging to my friends. One or two take an interest and will ask about it, that tends to be when I talk about it (I've managed to get one or two to start their own blogs).

Here from Michele's today - She says "Hi!". Take care :)

Lois Lane said...

LOL! So funny how much our kids turn into us when they grow up, isn't it?! How many times did you warn her about her friends? LOL And what if she had met "Killers from the Internet" while she was a teen? Oh you'da had her head. LOL So funny to me because my kids said the same thing when I met my blog buddies.

Mahala said...

Ma has no idea what I do and thinks everyone on the internet is an axe murderer. The Amazon has her own blog, but I don't link to it because she doesn't care to use her real name or say where we live. I can't tell her what to write, but I can't take a chance of co-workers finding my blog lol.

Lulu knows about my blog and I share it with her sometimes. I don't trust anyone else here. I don't really have any other friends here in town.

Anonymous said...

Well, I met my husband of five years on the internet and it was the smartest thing I have done.

Of course there are folks out there that we need to be careful of, but I am hardly afraid to invite my blogger friends of years into my home. They are like old friends.

I encourage my friends to read my blog and others whenever I can. Just wish my family would do so more often...sigh

Kay Dennison said...

I've been online nigh 20 years and have met a lot of friends from the net. I'd estimate that 99% have been pretty good if not wonderful experiences!

I don't bother to explain anymore. I just say "yeah, yeah, yeah" and keep doing what I please. I didn't live to be sixty by being a complete idiot . . . then again, maybe I did! lol

utenzi said...

Michele sent me to see you this time, Judy.

I know who the local is but I can only guess about the other. I'll give it some thought but given what you wrote I suspect it's a person on K's bloglist and maybe not yours. I do love a mystery!

Speaking of mysteries, Judy, I'm glad you have your copy of Potter as well. I'm going to post today about my copy just 'cause the packaging from Amazon was Harry Potter specific. I thought that was cute.

And speaking of meeting fellow bloggers, I think I've only met one in the 3 years I've been blogging--and now we're seeing one another in the romantic sense. You never know what blogging will bring...

Duke_of_Earle said...

Judy,

I got into blogging because my first (former, and so far only) literary agent, when trying unsuccessfully to sell my novel to a publisher, urged me to start blogging. It was, he claimed, a way for publishers considering my book to read other material I'd written, get a feel for my "voice" and if I was in fact a compulsive writer -- things like that.

As all continuing bloggers know, this blog habit can become addictive. Mine is a "public" blog; meaning I use my real name and location. I've received phone calls from strangers who've seen my blog and found my phone number (it's not unlisted).

Naive? Just asking for trouble? Maybe. But my friends, family members and people I work with all know I blog. Some read regularly, some never. Many keep up with what's going on with me and Carol be reading it. And I've met some really neat, smart, talented people through comments left.

I now communicate regularly through posts and comments with people in South Africa, Britain and Australia, not to mention some REALLY exotic locations (like Nort Carolina!) Pretty neat, I think.

John

BreadBox said...

Hi Judy! That was a nice little post there! Glad to know that a good time was had by all:-)
Michele says hello: she gave me directions today:)

N.

OldLady Of The Hills said...

So true, Judy...How do you explain about blogging and the difference in "chat rooms" and blogging?...
Well, I guess the only way is exactly how you did it with Mr. Kenju...by having them read comments and link back to the blogs themselves....In all honesty, I didn't know what it was except for some political blogs until I began reading my friend Danny's blog...and started my own with his encouragement...

How lovely to get to meet a NEW blog person and see another one, once again.
I am going to meet Jamie Dawn, next Thursday, if all goes as planned...I truly look so forward to that....And as you say, you already feel like you know them very very well, as I feel I know her, too....
Your lunch sounds wonderful, including the ice cream! (lol)

Badabing said...

My family has no interest in reading my blog...even though I've hinted that I'd like them to :-(

BTW, I want to come to your house for lunch...that food must've been yummy.

Anonymous said...

How funny! My daughter also thinks most people I meet are going to behead me and leave a bloody axe between my body and my head ;)
Why do young people think that because you are over sixty (I am), you need to be protected? ;)

Jamie Dawn said...

We've got our Potter books too!! My son will read it non-stop, as he did the last one. I am NOT kidding about this. He reads it and only takes breaks to eat and go potty untill he finishes the book. He began it this moring and is about a third of the way through.
I threatened him with bodily harm if he spoils anything for me.

I believe we have to be careful as bloggers, but we choose with whom we wish to associate. After reading a person's blog for a year or two, I feel I become a good judge of them. It would take a lot of effort for a person to fake their life for that long just so he or she could meet up with a fellow blogger and do harm to them. Still, I would never meet a blogger alone for the first visit. One must be careful!
My blog buddies are friends. None of us are looking for a date. This isn't Love Connection. :-)We are just sharing stories and humor and life. It's a fun world to be a part of.
My hubby was very wary of my blogging at first.
He has come around and isn't so negative about it now.

brendalove@gmail.com said...

Tell your daughter she doesn't know what she's missing!

You didn't happen to make the white bean recipe that someone posted on the WVSR awhile back, did you?

Anna said...

I just put down my snickers bar and opted for a banana...

Thanks Judy! Miss you.

Moon said...

I have tryed to explain it to ppl who don't go on the net..and frankly, we can talk till we are blue in the face, they just DON'T GET IT! ...if some day they do start to read some blogs then they just may lol, Like your husband. It's the same with chatters...I have been chatting for yrs..made many life long friends because of it and met many for real...I am still alive and well to write about it lol.

Sara said...

Hello, Michele sent me...

I don't bother to explain my blogger friends to anyone - they would never understand the fabulous friendships we have made with people we many never in our lives meet.

Anonymous said...

I would love to meet my blogger friends but I don't have any in India. I seldom explain blogging tothose who don't understand the concept.

Fairly recently I got my eldest brother to blog but he is a techie and writes techie stuff.

Michele sent me here read about your lunch!

Travelin'Oma said...

I have stopped trying to explain the magic world of blogging to anyone. Either they get it, or they don't. I'm afraid of a lot of things, but not blogging. There are quicker ways to find victims than reading blogs!

sage said...

Glad you had a nice lunch and that your fingers weren't chopped off (I'm assuming that didn't happen as you can still use a keyboard). As for the picture, that's about the ugliest pig I've seen.

Shephard said...

You had me at Tarragon Chicken Salad Sandwiches...

I think the squeaky wheel gets the grease. We hear about the one in 1 million bad event, and so then worry about the other 999,999. Human nature, fed by the media.

When I met Wendy recently, it went off so naturally... yet we were both relieved. Human nature. And yet we all continue to be cautious. :) It's worked well so far.

I'm 350 pages into HP!
~S

Craver said...

I know who you're guests were, I don't know why I wasn't invited. :)
Just kidding!!!

I'm glad you had such a great time.
JC

Yeah, I've never made a habit of explaining myself period, so no one asks me about blogging or meeting blog-people.
I'm certain it would make my father crazy though!

Star said...

I am on pagee 269 of HP and taking a break. I am happy to anounce that I met Practigal today and am not hacked into pieces at all. It was quite civilized actually.

Cris said...

Oh Judy, now you got me curious are we going to have this mystery solved? I have met bloggers and we had so much fun, I have made virtual friends all over the world with blogging, and I would love to meet them one day, but I like the fact that we get to know a little about each other's culture and the views are spetacular huh, I love the pictures, and the way people reflect their personality in their posts. I have learned a lot too, so, what pen-pals did in the past with letters, we do now, but with the internet!

Biff Spiffy said...

Why oh why the pig?? Did your guests leave a, uh, strong impression?? The food sounds delightful, and Yay for meeting people!

I for one would be cautious, because you never know what kind of shovel-weilding crazy folk lurk out there. ;o)

OOLOTH mentioned chat rooms - an entirely different animal from blogs, I think. I used to frequent those places waaaaay before discovering blogging (I think the word hadn't been invented yet), and I'd guess that's where the 'internet weirdo' reputation was forged.

I've met 4 bloggers so far (not counting those I'd known before they started their blogs) and each experience has been wonderful.

kenju said...

Au contraire, Biff! My guests were delightful and I hope they'll come back again someday!

I tried to leave a comment at your place, but I couldn't get your box open today. What gives?

tiff said...

Heh - my soon-to-be-former husband was of the same mind with the "those blog people aren't REAL" thing.

Which is odd, because some of the bloggers I know work right around the corner from me. How very strange.

Utenzi - who would YOU guess?