You might note that this is in a slightly different format, and the name is different, and hopefully it’s easier to navigate.

I learned the first rule about blogs.

The first rule about blogs is to talk about them a bit. In talking to just two people, I learned that it’s pretty important to pick a reputable website platform. I think that’s the right word. I don’t know. I should probably talk to one of those people again.

I picked simplesite.com on the first go-round, because I made colossal error number one, and assumed there is truth in advertising. It wasn’t simple. I had to get a friend to figure out how to take out the stock photo of the lady who looked like she wanted to explain “achievement” via motivational poster off the page. I also couldn’t find out how to read my comments, which, come on, who doesn’t want to see comments? God only knows what my dad had to say, and I needed to find out before anyone else did.

Not only could I not work the damned thing – which, I’ll be honest, could be partially due to operator error – but I started getting dozens of emails from companies and questionable individuals who wanted to help me run my site. Since I want to do this myself and I would never request assistance from someone advertising editing capabilities in language that resembles something you would arrange on your refrigerator in magnet words, I wasn’t interested. I also started getting phone calls from all over the contiguous US (Dallas, Newark, Philly, Berkeley) as well as some from numbers that were suspiciously over the requisite nine digits. Most disappointingly, when I answered one of these calls (because caller ID killed the prank call but the reverse prank is amazing) no one was there for me to toy with – just a dead line. Simplesite.com clearly does with your information what your friend in high school did with the knowledge that your period was late – promised she’d just tell her boyfriend but the next thing you knew you got home and your mom was there looking all concerned/crazy/confused.

I’ve learned to cut my losses, so mycrowdedhours.com is gone. Here we are, with crowdedhours.com. Long may she run.

 

This picture perfectly depicts the face I am currently making trying to figure out how to start this blog. In the picture, I’m making it because I’m 16 and it’s New Year’s Eve and I’m clearly chilling with my dad holding juggling balls, of all things. I’ve always been intrigued by blogs – is it supposed to be informative? Or like a diary for the public? I think mine is going to be just talkative. I tend to talk a lot. And I like writing.

I thought of a blog because I was trying to figure out if a certain brand of essential oils are a scam. Turns out it isn’t – it’s just a business model that’s definitely not up my alley. What I also found out is that a whole passel of people believe strongly in essential oils, which I previously believed were reserved for head shops and hacky sack groups. So I decided to do my own research.

I passed on ordering through the company I researched, because I’m a single head of household and I can’t spend $30 on 5mL of questionably useful oil.

(Quick aside – remember when we were taught that the metric system was going to take over? And we all learned meters and liters? Good thing about that. I use them when I speak all that high school and college French.)

I thought I would document my essential oil journey (it seems like you have to call it a journey), but I didn’t want to write that much on Facebook or Instagram, because it’s just plain not the purpose. And so here I am, attempting a blog.

I paid a dollar up front and found out that I signed up for something like $13 a month to be paid quarterly to somewhere in Denmark. To summarize, I have learned so far that starting a blog is like many things in life, you get suckered in with a small investment and good intentions and then shit gets real.