8×2 Reasons Why I'm Starting a Blog

Here’s why I’m starting this blog:

1. I want to be popular. I was never popular in high school. Heck, I really wasn’t that popular in junior high or grade school either, which is pretty sad considering there were only three students in my 8th grade class, and we were all cousins. Anyway, I hope that by blogging I can finally be one of the cool kids.
2. I want to stay busy. I’m bored. As a husband, father,  full-time web applications developer, church-goer and fitness aficionado, I have a lot of down time. I figure blogging would be better than catching up on missed episodes of Survivor or Lost.
3. I want to be rich. I have this idea in my head that by blogging and adhering to all recommendations on ProBlogger I will be make lots of money.
4. I want to share my brilliance with the world. Really. I’m a genius. On a daily basis I only speak to a handful of people and email with a few more. With a blog, however, limitless people (ok, well people with electricity and a computer and internet access) will be able to partake in my intellectuality any time they want! See, I can even make up words that sound smart.
5. I want to be like Carlos Whittaker. Let’s face it. He’s the man. Honorable mention goes out to Anne Jackson over at FlowerDust.net and Jon Acuff at Stuff Christians Like. Technically, since she’s a woman, Anne wouldn’t be considered the “man”, but she’s still a superstar! Isn’t it sad that I mention their names and link to them on the near impossible thought that they would actually read my single-post blog. I’m sure my link will push their Google ranking off the charts.
6. I want some free stuff. Along with the money I’m sure I will make on this blog, I’m sure Steve Jobs will personally be sending me new Apple stuff before it’s released hoping I will give it stellar reviews.
7. I want to be edgy. Bloggers seem to be right in the middle of controversy all the time. Whether it’s politics, religion, sports or what Britney Spears is wearing (or not wearing) you always here about bloggers and the blogsphere. Seems like bloggers are the new hippies. Speaking of being edgy, Amy (my wife) the other day said “suck” a few times which is quite unusual for her and I said something to the effect of saying “suck” won’t make her any edgier. This leads me to reason number 8.
8. I want to get in trouble with my family. I don’t really want to get in trouble with my wife, but the previous 7 reasons all had “I want” as the start so I figured I better stick with that format so as to not break any blogging faux pas in my first post. I am sure at some point I will write something I probably should not have and it will get me in the dog house. Then I’ll blog about being in the dog house for sharing something I shouldn’t have and then I’ll be in trouble for that. Maybe I should re-think this blog thing!

Now that we got the silliness out of the way. Here are the real reasons:

1. I am a husband. Amy and I have been married for almost 15 years. Marriage is a very fragile establishment in our society, with over 50% of them ending in divorce. I have made many mistakes in our marriage, Amy would probably say the same. But despite our mistakes and shortcomings, we are committed to each other. In this blog I want to share some of the things we have learned in hopes that other couples will learn from both our successes and failures.
2. I am a father. We have three awesome boys: Joshua (10), Nathaniel (9) and Andrew (7). Just like our marriage, we have had some struggles and triumphs in parenting. And again, I hope that by sharing some of these we can help other parents that may be going through the same things. Also, I am sure I will use this blog as a refrigerator of sorts for the world to see, because we have some great boys!
3. I am a Christ Follower. This takes precedence over all other areas of my life. I have grown up in the church. I went to a Christian school. I used to think that was enough. It’s not. It’s about Jesus. Finally, after all these years I’ve begun to realize this. I’d like to share that with you.
4. I am a Web Applications Developer. What’s that you ask? I have a really hard time explaining it myself. It has something to do with the Internet I think. I’ve been doing it for over 10 years though, so I guess I do it fairly well. I will be sharing some tips and tricks I have learned over the years working with the web, both as a web designer and web programmer.
5. I am a fitness fanatic. In 2002 I weighed 285lbs and had a size 42″ waist and I had finally had enough. At that time I committed myself to changing my lifestyle. I ate better and became more active. Nine months later I was down to 175lbs and a 32″ waist. I have been in a 32 ever since (and no, not like Seinfeld did when he cut the label off his 31′s and stuck them over his 32′s). I made it a lifelong goal to study health and fitness. I really want to share my experience and knowledge with those of you that want to take the steps toward a better life.
6. I am learning how to live a debt-free life. I’ll be honest. This one seems like it is taking forever! Losing weight was much easier! Several years ago Amy and I set out to take control of our finances. With the help of Dave Ramsey and a close friend from church who has served as our personal mentor we have made great strides with our finances. We pay cash for everything. We have not used a credit card for several years. We have a few more years to go until Sallie Mae is kicked to the curb, but we have learned a lot about money managements. We also have much to learn. I hope to share our journey with you through this blog.
7. I am kind of a nerd. “Well, duh!” you say. I am sure I will feel compelled to write about new software and gadgets and that sort of thing. Maybe that will get me my free stuff!
8. I am a sports enthusiast. At times you will no doubt find me writing about the Stl. Cardinals, Notre Dame Fighting Irish (football), Indianapolis Colts, Purdue Boilermakers (basketball) and LA Lakers, depending on what time of year it is. I’m not really much into hockey, car racing or soccer all that much. Just so you know.

Thanks for hanging in there with me!