Excuse the cheesy Jim Croce reference. The purpose of this post is to say that I'm giving up the CJ pseudonym. My name is Jamie.
Almost five years ago I started a different blog, where I poured out more of my heart than I do here. My kids were younger and I wrote more about them and their escapades. I put a lot of time into writing thoughtful essays. I didn't reveal very many identifying details: my first name, my hair color, and the fact that I was an IBCLC. Still, people kept finding me. Every few months I'd get an email saying, "Hey, I know you!" That was kind of weird. After I took it down I found out that even more people from my real life had found the blog, realized it was me, and just never told me that they'd uncovered my little corner of cyberspace. That was even weirder.
That's why I hesitated to use my actual name this time around. When it comes to privacy on the web it's hard to figure out where to draw the lines -- it's inconsistent for me to post a zillion pictures of my kids while using pseudonyms for them, but I do it anyway. I wanted to be able to write about my doctoral program without surfacing in a colleague's Google search. (Maybe if I used a pseudonym she'd think it was one of those other redheads pursuing a PhD in our little field with four -- now five -- children. There must be lots of us, don't you think?)
Anyway. I'm still planning to be vague about which part of the Midwest I'm in, still planning to keep my kids' names off the blog. But you can call me Jamie. Say hi, won't you?
Recent Comments