W is for Writing

I've written elsewhere in this A-Z Challenge about social media and what it means to me. As I said in that post, I'm pretty certain I would never have taken up blogging were it not for the fantastic bloggers and writers I met on Twitter. Let me tell you, there are some exceptional bloggers there. I think the fact that they were very encouraging and generous towards me when I first floated the idea of blogging is what really made me take the first steps.

The first thing I had to do if I wanted to stand any chance of survival as a blogger, was to make up my mind that it is not a competition. I'm not trying to write something that is as eloquent or as knowledgeable as someone else. The fact is, I couldn't. That acknowledgement led me onto the second thing I needed to consider - what would I write about? I quickly made up my mind that my blog would not have a specific theme or subject matter.

Therein lay my first challenge - without a subject matter, I would have to dream up topics to blog about. I'm a somewhat dispassionate person, so it takes a lot to get me ranting about something, or at least feeling strongly enough about something to 'put it put there'. I thought about combining my blogging with my photography - and to an extent I have done that by, most of the time, including one of my photos in my posts. But I wanted to avoid it becoming a pure photo-blog.

I think the best piece of advice I received was from my Twitter friend and blogger extraordinaire - Barbara Scully (From My Kitchen Table). She said, simply, "write from the heart". This has stood me in good stead during both the fruitful and the barren times (take it from me, they happen!) of blogging. The only problem with writing from the heart is that it requires a certain amount of baring your soul, your inner thoughts, and as you know if you read my 'T' post recently, that is something that does not come naturally to me.

This probably raises the question in your mind - why? Why did I decide to start writing a blog? There's no easy answer to that. However, I have long had an interest in words - puns, limericks, etc. For example, I delivered most of my best man's speech at my brother's wedding in limerick form! So, to some extent my interest in starting a blog developed from this. But on a more serious level, life is too short - if you have an inkling to do something, then go for it. So I did!

I've turned out to be a bit of a hit and miss writer. Until recently I've barely managed a post per month on average. This is hardly going to set the blogosphere alight! However, on March 31st this year I heard of the A-Z Challenge for bloggers. Initially I said 'no', not for me. How could I possibly find time to write a post a day for a whole month. My track record was certainly against me. But I woke up on April 1st and played the biggest April Fools trick on myself - I signed up for the challenge! Life is too short - remember!

I don't know where my blogging will go after this challenge reaches it's conclusion next week. One thing I do know - I will continue (though definitely not at the rate of one a day!!). I will continue to incorporate my photos where possible. I will mostly steer clear of discussing the great issues facing us as a nation - there are bloggers in my circle of friends who address these things far more eruditely than I ever could. I won't promise to stay away from religion - too much invested in that for me not to express an opinion. There may even be the odd rant. But above all, I will be trying to stick with Barbara's advice and 'write from the heart'.

PS: if you would like to sample some of those fantastic blogs / bloggers I alluded to above, just scroll down on the right to the 'Blogs I Follow' section. They are all linked there. Enjoy.

V is for Variety (is the Spice of Life)

You will have learned from my T post, dealing with my Enneagram personality type, that I am a No.5 - I observe and I think. I drink in information and I analyse.

I typified this in my student days. I wanted to know the deep minutiae of my subject matter. I would research the latest and greatest books on my chosen topic and in many cases actually acquire them. If you read my ‘T’ post, then this may come as no surprise to you. I remember wanting to go to the deepest level of understanding how computers worked. Outside of my studies, I developed a great interest in classical music. I subscribed to the best music review periodicals and took up singing in my local Choral Society to turn some of the theory into practice.

When I started work, I firmly believe my personality type held me back, or at least got me off to a slow start. I was afraid, yes, afraid to offer opinions or to challenge the views of others lest I was found deficient in the knowledge and understanding. Pretty pathetic, when I reflect on it now.

But experience has changed me. I'm still basically a No.5 - in fact, they say in the Enneagram that you never change your basic personality type - once a 5, always a 5. But your personality develops and can go along both healthy and unhealthy lines. My healthy development path is towards a No.8 - which is self-confident, decisive, willful, and confrontational in nature.

For me, the key to this has been variety. These days, it is more important to me to have a wider range of interests rather than to be deeply knowledgeable in just one or two areas. For me, this is what adds colour and interest to life. I no longer crave the isolation or reclusiveness that can come with being an unredeemed No.5. This is not an overnight conversation - it has taken years to realise, for me, the real meaning of 'variety being the spice of life'. That realisation has opened more doors, more friendships and more possibilities than I could ever have dreamed possible.

U is for University

Well, I had it all planned out as of 6pm this evening. My U post was to be about University. I was going to wax on about how I didn't really enjoy secondary school, lost the knack of studying right in the run-up to the Leaving Certificate but subsequently found my academic mojo in University College Dublin. Those were days I would gladly live out again. There was so much I enjoyed about it, from meeting great people, making great friends to finally figuring out for myself how to study effectively.

Yes sir, I had the post all planned out. Then, about an hour ago, a friend from our Folk Group posted on my Facebook wall. That's when I realised there is far more to the humble 'U' than I had thought. The background to this post is that, for the first time in many a year, I am missing practice tonight due to being in London. So, in honour of it being the day for U in the A-Z Challenge, Maria kindly posted this to let me know what I was missing. So, as a 'thank you' to Maria for her thoughtfulness, here is her post:

"Well John I'm not long home from choir practice and I thought I would fill you in on the night in a suitable way! Tonight's practice was Unusal in that U were not there and it was slightly Unnerving not having piano to accompany us. In saying that Stephen was a great Understudy for you in his own Unique way and we coped quite well but we won't let him Usurp your position!!

I do hope you aren't too Upset at having missed our tea party. Jacquie's lemon drizzle cake was Unbelievably good and was Utterly demolished by everyone, (I Understand if you are a little jealous!). I think Jacquie is going to make one especially for you. Poor Teresa and Mary G were too Unwell to join us so Undoubtedly you will have to share it with Teresa :).

I hope work is not too hectic and you get a chance to Unwind in the evenings. I have the Urge for a cup of tea so I'll finish now. I hope you don't think I'm a bit of an Upstart writing this and I have no intention of trying to Upstage you, I certainly don't have the talent you have for writing!! So I'll say goodnight and see you on Sunday as Usual, Unless something Urgent or Unexpected happens in the mean time. Have a safe trip home :)"

Many thanks Maria. Fantastic stuff. I think you should start your own blog and take on the A-Z Challenge in 2014. To get you even more in the humour for it, maybe you could write a V post for me tomorrow? :-)

T is for Thinker

I've referred elsewhere in this blog to the fact that I am a procrastinator by nature. Rather than leave it at that, let me use the opportunity of this post to explain that a little bit more.

Have you ever heard of or experienced the Enneagram? The Enneagram of Personality, or just Enneagram (from the Greek words ennea [nine] and gramma [something written or drawn]) is a model of human personality which is principally used as a typology of nine interconnected personality types. The Enneagram is not commonly taught or researched in Psychology but is widely promoted within business management and spiritual contexts. Of many such models I have encountered, for me the Enneagram has much merit. I won't use this post to describe the concept or it's background in any more detail (indeed, I could not adequately do that in a few paragraphs), but I strongly recommend you look it up on the Internet where you will find many resources and even tests to help you determine which of the nine personality types best fits you.

Long before I ever did a test myself, others who had studied the Enneagram told me with great conviction that I am a Number 5. But what is that, exactly? Well, a No.5 on the Enneagram is summed up as a Thinker, an Observer, an Investigator, a Sage. It may come as no surprise that based on this description, the animal associated with No.5s is the owl. At first I was a little dismissive and sceptical - and although I did not fully dismiss these labels I did wonder how could people with knowledge of the Enneagram really sum me up so quickly. After delving into a bit myself, I have to say they were spot on.

No.5s are private and solitary by nature. Studious and scholarly, they develop expertise in any area that is of interest to them, often in more than one field. They think things through before offering their perceptions and insights regarding systems, people or how the world works. That's pretty much me to a tee. You'll never catch me, whether at work or at play, waxing on about something I feel I don't know much about. You will find me, though, listening intently to those who know something. That said, people who waffle on because they like the sound of their own voices tend to annoy me just a tad!

The greatest strengths of 5s are clear objectivity, instinct and penetrating insight unfettered by emotions. Underneath what appears as shyness and reserve, they are kindhearted and giving people, very loyal to and supportive of those they trust. On the flip side, they also possess a certain avarice. They can greedily hoard themselves, their time or things. They have a tendency to withdraw into their ivory tower of ideas (is it any wonder I named my blog as I did!!). Others may see them as arrogant and unfeeling. Being dispassionate and ‘cool as a cucumber’ is good in an emergency but hard on relationships.

I could go on but I'll leave it at that. My main purpose was to introduce the concept of the Enneagram using my own personality type - The Thinker - as an example. Despite the private nature of No.5s, I hope I've shown through my blogging that we can redeem ourselves too (as indeed can all the personality types) by sharing a bit about myself. Indeed, social media in general has helped me a lot in that regard, enabling me to overcome some of my inate shyness. So the next time you see me being a bit withdrawn or aloof, just know that I'm in observation mode, and more importantly, thinking about what I'm taking in - which may appear sometime in a blog post. You have been warned!!

I'll leave you with the names of some 'famous 5s':

Isaac Asimov, Samuel Beckett, The Buddha, Agatha Christie, Daniel Day-Lewis, Albert Einstein, T.S. Eliot, Greta Garbo, Bill Gates, Jane Goodall, George Lucas, Sam Neill, Al Pacino, Michelle Pfeiffer, John D. Rockefeller, Jr., Jean-Paul Sartre, Scrooge, Sister Wendy, Jules Verne, Max Von Sydow.

Make what you will of that list!!