Janathon Day 10: Walking 9.4km, Time 1hr 55min, Weather back to grey
After 10 days I think I have finally done it. I might have managed something outside my rather grumpy world view, which takes a stern line with sentimentality, and taken a cute animal picture. Others will have to judge whether it is successful but surely I must get some points for: large dog - small dog; black dog - white dog; looking at camera - looking away; and a girly pink dog coat with matching lead, which must say something about the owner.
Instead of completing this post with an account of today's walk I want to take time out to put the shared Janathon adventure in an historical context. This is the opening to 'How to live: a life of Montaigne in one question and twenty attempts at an answer' by Sarah Bakewell:
The Twenty-First Century is full of people who are full of themselves. A half-hour's trawl through the ocean of online blogs, tweets, tubes, spaces, faces, pages and pod brings up thousands of individuals, fascinated by their own personalities and shouting for attention. They go on about themselves; they diarise, and chat, and upload photographs of everything the do. Uninhibitedly extrovert, they also look inward as never before. Even as bloggers and networkers delve into their private experiences, they communicate with their fellow humans in a shared festival of self…By describing what makes them different from anyone else, the contributors reveal what they share with everyone else: the experience of being human.This idea - writing about oneself to create a mirror in which other people recognise their own humanity - has not existed forever. It had to be invented. And, unlike many cultural inventions, it can be traced to a single person: Michael Eyquem do Montaigne, a nobleman, government official and wine grower who lived in the Périgord area of south western France from 1533 to 1592.
So if anyone questions the amount of time you spend writing your blog, and reading and commenting on other people's. The answer is that you are sharing the experience of being human and continuing the work of Montaigne
7 comments:
I knew there was a greater purpose in all this Janathoning! Thanks for that. :-)
We're all travelling the same great Janathon journey, but all taking very different routes to get there! And that's the first (and possibly the last) time that I've ever been asked to consider myself being "uninhibitedly extrovert".
PS. Loving the cute animals...
Oh yes, that's a very cute picture! I do prefer the snuffly cows though.
- wanders off to look inwardly -
Hurrah for Janathon and it's greater purpose.
And I like the dog picture.
great blog - I am amused, educated and supplied with a witty riposte to all those pi$$takers all in one. Thank you!
Great use of the quote. In my job I spend my time justifying this sort of thing, so it's a great illustration.
Thanks for sharing.
Phil aka Oscar Mike / The Red Rocket
Interesting post not heard of Montaigne before. I am not sure I would agree with Sarah Bakewell on this that talking or writing about oneself had to be invented. It sounds quite negative - I prefer an explanation that people have always wanted to be liked and to be involved in a like minded community. Through each age in history we just use the tools that we have around us to do this so going back in time this would have been by travelling storey tellers or theatre players.
Good post
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