I’m sorry. I’ve been really distant with everyone, and I know that. I apologize. I’ve been busy, ill, running around to doctors, having icky tests done. But moreso than that, I just didn’t know what to write about on my blog. A lot of things have happened, but I didn’t feel it appropriate to talk about it. It involves too many other people, too many important things. So I decided to just stay quiet, rather than risk doing something wrong.
Plus, I’ve had really bad writer’s block.
So thank goodness for a tummy ache, a good conversation with a friend, and a spot of insomnia. I’ve been inspired. I won’t do a report of the non-touchy news from the past week. I’ll leave that for tomorrow, or whenever I’m in the mood. (A lot of good stuff has happened too that I can talk about, it’s just complicated and doesn’t fit my mood at the moment.)
Instead, I feel I need to thank someone. I don’t even think he knows what he has done, but he has done so much.
Guan. Thank you.
Guan used to link to my blog from his website, unicast.org. On unicast, Guan also published a lot of content, generating hundreds of pages, each with a link to my page. All of this linkage led to a lot of interest from Google, pulling attention to what I published daily in my blog. That is why so many entertaining search queries lead people to my website. But those links are worth more than just a giggle over “solution to rock star ate my hamster.” Its value is measured in relationships. I have met beautiful people through unimaginable ways, thanks to Guan.
One good friend happened upon my blog while searching for a picture of the Delta Airlines plane with the Powerpuff Girls on it, because his daughter liked it so much. Now he and I write nearly every night. I value his wisdom, advice, and friendship above so much else in my life. He has proven to be a true friend, someone I can rely on, someone I can relate to. To me, it is hard to imagine a life without his emails before I go to sleep each night.
The longest links-friend is Robert. I’ve known him for nearly a year now – so long I can’t even really remember what he searched for that led him to my site (I hope he remembers, or maybe I’ll remember in the morning.) I’ll be meeting him next month for the first time in person, after a year under the same email subject of “Re: Wow.” I love seeing that in my inbox whenever he and I talk: a nice reminder of his first email. I’m excited to finally meet him, to be able to laugh at his jokes in person, and to be able to thank him for being really good at responding to emails. Not to mention, I still owe him the largest cadbury cream egg in the world for handling all the technical responsibilities of expanding the Daily Prophet.
Another friend searched for ‘download “the follow” bmw movie”. After I only published four sentences on the subject, Google led him to me. He searched one week after I posted my message about finding that particular hard-to-get film on Kazaa. His original message is still in my guestbook. Through BMW, with help from Guan, I met a gentleman, a great friend, and my first kiss.
These three are now among my closest friends. It’s honestly quite scary to look back and realize that if I had changed just one small thing, if I had said a few things differently, or not said anything at all, I might not have ever met them. Then, to trace these small decisions back even further, it is strange to think of what my life would be without, for instance, the friends I met through PotterWar. Or, to go back even farther, what if I hadn’t been bored that morning on January 25th, 2000? Would I have nagged my brother to teach me HTML, and therefore start the Daily Prophet? No. I could have easily been distracted by something else, but that one curiosity led to so much. What would my life be like now without that one small change that morning? What would my life be like without these small decisions?
It’s a daunting thought, but in a good way. Even the small things that may seem insignificant now will have meaning in the future. This one in particular all comes down to Guan’s links. I will always be grateful for unicast.org.