My first month on Micro.blog was amazing. I found that it was a community full of people who seemed calm and in control. Any hot takes were constructive, and conversation was civil. It wasn’t noisy and I could walk away for a few days and not feel like I missed something.
I like the “micro” aspect of Micro.blog, but I also like the fact that if a longer blog post is necessary, there’s an option to create it. That long post is also hosted on the user’s blog.
Micro.blog gives me what I’ve been wanting: a small blog that is easy to update, simple to manage, and the best part of all, what I post is my own. There are no corporations, no algorithms, no contending with curated content. It’s a small corner of the internet that I can call my own.
Building my blog was a challenge, as it jumpstarted my journey into relearning web development. Some things certainly have changed in the 10+ years that I’ve been away from it. I still have a lot to learn, but it was a good jumpstart. Building the blog helped me feel accomplished.
Micro.blog also helped me understand that there is a better way to engage in the social aspect of the internet, without the ugliness that is automatically accepted on places like Twitter.
My migration from Twitter to Micro.blog (and Mastodon) was in response to the downward spiral that Twitter has become. A lot of people are happy with watching Twitter die. I’m sad for its demise. I refuse to use the Twitter app because it was always unusable. I used a third party app, but now that they’ve restricted the use of third party apps, I can no longer use Twitter in the customized way that I prefer.
I’ll miss the shared experiences and real-time reactions to national and world events that came with using Twitter. I’ll also miss being one-step away from my favorite writers, artists and other interesting people. I’ll miss using Twitter to learn from writers who dispensed wisdom on craft and creativity. Over the years I’ve amassed a large collection of micro-lessons on writing and design.
Even though I’m introverted and I didn’t engage much, Twitter helped me feel connected. One aspect of the internet that I’ve loved since the early 90s was the fact that I could connect with people half a world away. Twitter elevated that curiosity.
The purpose of going off the rails for the last three paragraphs was to remind myself of a very important lesson: systems like Twitter can always be taken away. Leaving such a collective was difficult, but I feel better for it.
Micro.blog helped me remember there are better ways to have an online presence and not put my eggs in one basket. I move onward with cautious optimism.
