Sorry, I'm Not That Kind Of Guy

This is a conversation I had with a cashier at the Washington D.C.- L Street Borders last weekend:

Me: [Handing him a copy of Naked Conversations] Good book.

Cashier: [Looking at the cover] Hmm.

Me: Have you read it?

Cashier: [Looking at the cover] No, but I've seen it on the shelf.

Me: It's really good.

Cashier: [Just looks at me]

Me: Do you have a blog?

Cashier: I'm not a blog kinda person.

I'm not a blog kinda person... what does that mean?!

Comments

[Josh Hallett]

You should have said, 'Neither do I, I'm just a nudist' and then watched for a reaction/response.

[Andrea Weckerle]

Josh: Good one -- next time!

[John Wagner]

Maybe he doesn't own a computer??? :)

[Keith R. Pillow]

Andrea: I think it means, "I am completely clueless, and I'm only working at Borders here for the discounted lattes."

One would expect most Borders employees to have a basic working knowledge of the publishing world, especially fiction and non-fiction best sellers, but I must admit that I am not all that surprised by the cashier's response. The other day, a Barnes & Noble employee pointed me to the self-help section when I asked him where I could "The World Is Flat." Sigh...

[Sam Smith]

Easy to forget we're not all bloggers isn't it? Technorati's listing over 31 million of us now but there's still a perception outside the blogosphere of bloggers as either political campaigners, self-obsessed diarists or web geeks with too much time on their hands.

Wonder how long it'll be before we see http://boredatborders.blogspot.com?

[Andrea Weckerle]

John: I *suppose* that's possible... nah!

Keith: I love Borders (and the cashier was otherwise polite), but his apparent misconception of what blogs are -- at least to the extent that he didn't seem to want to be a part of them -- made me cringe.

Sam: So which are you, the first, second or third? I love the new blog idea!

[Ryan]

Andrea - congrats on the temp gig at Media Orchard. I'm looking forward to reading your stuff!

[Andrea Weckerle]

Ryan: Thanks. Bill and I hope readers go easy on us in out attempt to live up to Scott's high standards :-) Actually, we think it's going to be a lot of fun (as well as a lot of work) and will look for heavy interaction from readers.

[Phil Gomes]

Should've just answered "Oh, that's what *you* think!" *8-)

[Mack Collier]

Scott has standards?!? ;)

[Andrea Weckerle]

Phil: I wish I could think that quick on my feet!

Mack: Are you're trying to make trouble already? Consider yourself enlisted as an idea generator for posts (to be e-mailed to me directly) :-)

[makethelogobigger]

Andrea, you did FAR better than I would have. Those are the situations I live for.

Somehow I picture one of the Geico cavemen behind the counter: "I’m not a blog person. For you see, your electricity, like the blog, is both frightening AND amazing at the same time.”

[Kami Huyse]

I am catching up, so am late to this conversation, but most people think of blogs as online diaries and they are "the kind of person" to write about themselves like that. Maybe that is what he meant. Also, a lot of the younger set think of blogs as MySpace. I have no idea how old your cashier was though.

As for your blogging gig with Scott, holy cow, have fun. I tried to get Scott to trade with me so I could go on vacation in July, but he wouldn't do it ;-) So, I guess I will have to blog from our DC Blogger Meetup in July when I am there.

[Andrea Weckerle]

Kami: The cashier was definitely older, so perhaps he did take the "online diary" view. Either way, he obviously had only a partial (although fairly common)understanding of what blogs are. But, to his credit, at least he'd heard of the word "blog."

With regard to the little gig Bill and I are doing, we have one goal in mind: Make sure Scott's Technorati ranking doesn't nose dive while he's gone :-)

Regarding the July meeting, if you already know the date, please shoot me an e-mail so I can put it on my calendar. Thanks!

[bart]

hi andrea,

i can understand some people's confusion and misunderstandings... i encounter them daily...

so many people don't know what a blog is, don't understand it and even if they're knowledgeable enough they just don't have the personal need to do so... i can figure that...

the comment, "i'm not a blog kinda person" can be interpreted in so many ways, i don't even dare think of what's meant by that comment...

i let people be, just in the way they are... i love blogging, being silly at the moments i like and just being the person i want to be (within reason :P ) but i can accept that so many people just don't understand or just don't want to understand, for whatever reasons...

people are different, motivations and perceptions can be light-years apart whilst not being overly apparent... it's sad, strange but a worthwhile challenge..

keep well...

[Serge Cornelus]

Wow, stop: so much conversation on one blog? That is not how some (thinking of certain people at the Euroblog conference in Stuttgart last week) see the blogosphere ;-)... Talking about Stuttgart: somebody mentioned the fact that according to some studies only 9% of Americans read blogs regularly, and over 60% never read them at all. So the guy you met, is just part of the majority. But I am sure that's only because he has never read yoyr blog before, Andrea...

[Andrea Weckerle]

Bart: To think of all the fun they're missing out on.

Serge: Even 9%, if true, isn't insignificant. Yes, had the cashier read my blog, I'm sure he'd come around :-)

[Jeremy Pepper]

Maybe he has a life? Maybe he sees no reason to blog? Why does everyone need to blog?

Let's take off the blinders - most people don't know what a blog is, nor do they likely care.

[Andrea Weckerle]

Jeremy:

I’m sure he has a life. As do I. And you. Certainly there’s no social obligation or legal requirement to blog, thank goodness. But the way he said he wasn’t a blog person made me think perhaps he mistakenly believes we’re all like the newest PR blogerette on the block. And that’s a misconception I’d like to immediately correct.