tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28133718.post6965056578138391728..comments2023-06-28T22:58:28.247+10:00Comments on Sixth In Line: Letters as 'fossils of feeling'.Elisabethhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04015624747225433940noreply@blogger.comBlogger3125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28133718.post-14796658716627496842015-02-19T04:35:28.876+11:002015-02-19T04:35:28.876+11:00Yes, I enjoyed reading this. Yes, I still read you...Yes, I enjoyed reading this. Yes, I still read your blog. Yes, fewer and fewer people are blogging or commenting or responding to comments. <br /><br />I do the same as you in groups like this and I wonder the same things. I tell myself I must not be a total narcissist if I question my intentions.Kasshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05233330248952156754noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28133718.post-14379473310469859652015-02-15T14:12:21.720+11:002015-02-15T14:12:21.720+11:00So enjoyed your introspective wondering here. I re...So enjoyed your introspective wondering here. I remember when, as a true introvert, I dreaded as much as wanted to become part of the conversation. When older I think even true introverts are less quiet, less concerned with appearances maybe, maybe more impatient too.Anthony Ducehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17476865809734682418noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28133718.post-85322267182780831352015-02-15T01:13:56.866+11:002015-02-15T01:13:56.866+11:00Is ‘unmediated’ different from ‘unedited’? The imp...Is ‘unmediated’ different from ‘unedited’? The implication here is that letters are more honest than other forms of writing. I suppose they can be but I still suspect people hold more back than they imagine when they write to their nearest and dearest. They choose their words so as not to offend or reveal too much; there’s much I don’t discuss with my friends. Part of my problem is I regard a letter as a serious piece of writing. I treat a comment like this as seriously. I doubt I spend any less than an hour on any comment. (I started this at 12:30 and we’ll see when I’m satisfied with its content and wording.) Were we to meet for a coffee—wouldn’t that be pleasant?—we’d prattle on about all sorts of stuff we never get to talk about normally, films and TV shows we’ve seen, new music we’ve discovered, and, as happens with my daughter, we’d find a moment or two for any serious stuff that requires attention. Completely different ballgame. I know I’ve 4096 characters with which to respond to you today and I’ve already used over a thousand in what still feels like my opening preamble; I’ll have to cut this down once I’m done. I like the constraints. It means I have to choose my words carefully. I generally have to cram a lot into these… I’ll be honest I do think of them as letters. This is where we have our weekly chat but because time and space are against us we omit asking after our families, complaining about the weather and sharing anecdotes from our busy weeks. No, we cut to the chase. So, Jim, tell me about you and letter writing.<br /><br />Well, Lis, for starters I can’t imagine ever going to a class to learn how to write a letter. I marvel that such a thing exists but trust you to find it. I’m not sure I’d be any more comfortable attending a class like that than I would a creative writing class. I suspect though I’d be much like you and have too much to say. I’m not a natural leader and yet so often I end up as the guy in charge or the spokesman for the group. I’m articulate and intelligent and so I swallow my natural inclination to fade into the background, roll my sleeves up and do the necessary. I talk too much. (I’m sure it’s nerves.) I share too much. (Always intend to hold back but never do.) I inevitably go home feeling I’ve embarrassed myself and don’t want ever to go back or attend another. But duty wins out in the end.<br /><br />I say I’m an introvert and certainly every time I sit any psychometric test designed to measure psychological preferences that’s what I get told I am and it’s true I’m not naturally outgoing but that doesn’t mean I can’t fake it for an afternoon. Once I get into my stride, I can actually enjoy it. I start off with good intentions, to hold back, to be reserved but as soon as I get asked a question the babble burbles forth. <br /><br />Did you take examples of your letters to read aloud? I’d dislike that somewhat less than having to cobble together something in the space of a few minutes. I’ll probably post this comment in a few minutes (I’ve been writing for 45 minutes so far) but in the past I’ve let comments lie for a day so I can reread them with a fresh head and a few times I’ve decided not to post my initial response and I prepare a more considered comment. Or decide to stay schtum. I do that more and more realising that over time I’ve already said all I have to say and I’d simply be repeating myself. (3500 characters. Need to think about summing up.)<br /><br />I sent an e-mail to a friend a while back. I know I’ve mentioned this before but maybe not to you. It took me three hours to write and the subject line read ‘9 words per minute’ because after all the editing and rereading that’s how little I’d said but every word was carefully weighed and was, I hope, the right word. So I don’t think I’d have done too well in any class that only lasted three hours. The pressure would upset me. <br /><br />Beckett used to destroy all letters sent to him once replied to. I can’t imagine doing that which makes me wonder why I own so few letters. Where did they go? (2:15. Need to stop. 8½ wpm for the record. Feels rushed. Much unsaid.)Jim Murdochhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12786388638146471193noreply@blogger.com