24 Days of )en 2021

 Well, guess what. I made a goal to do 25 Days of )en this year. And I thought and thought and got ready. I even started a project where, hoping to get my writing "out" more, I selected and printed 25 stories from my blog and made physical paper chains for friends to read their own 25 Days of )en leading up to the day.  And then the 1st came and went and i was like, whut? oh yeah.   The fact that I missed it and am starting it on the 2nd sounds about right for 2021, though. And I consider it a win that I even remembered at all.  

I've got an hour before midnight. I tried to write earlier but Sean and Julian were behind me having a conversation first about black holes and spaghettification which led to aliens which is basically the opposite of the kind of environment I need in order to write.  And now I'm tired and need to sleep but I AM GOING TO PUBLISH THIS, GOSH DANG.  And kick off this tradition with a bang,  smack, jab, poke, high five, quiet whisper.  Get ready. 

Here is the message I wrote for people with their paper chains. 

I am a writer. I'm a writer because I write, and that's what makes a person a writer. Right? 

I feel like if I say things like that enough, it will be true. But I also believe I have to do more 

than just say it. One might not consider themselves a writer unless they were published. 

My hope is to get there. But for many years I have self-published my work on my blog.  

You remember blogs. They were invented in the mid-90's and then got really popular in the 

mid-0's where I was first in line.  I started mine in 2005. It was gifted to me for my 25th birthday 

and I have loved it deeply ever since. Jenslog is 16 years old and I have used it to document, 

to comment, to report and retort, to observe and preserve. Above all, it's been an invaluable 

vehicle with which to hone my voice and my craft. It is precious to me. I have made a goal to 

just get my writing out more. And one way I'm doing that is by GIFTING it to others. That's right, 

I consider my words a worthwhile present. Or at least something to help while away the days 

until Christmas. One writing tradition I have for myself is 25 Days of Jen where I write every day 

in the month of December as a way to practice and also celebrate the season. So that's what I've 

made for you in fun paper chain form. I have selected 25 blog posts all written in the month of 

December over the years.  Some of the essays are nonsense to amuse myself. Some are funny 

dialogues, one of my favorite things to document. Some have a more serious, reflective tone.  

It's a vulnerable thing to say "here, I made this, please don't hate it." It's very personal. And that's 

what I'm doing. Because I believe that only when you share a thing does it become real.  I am a 

writer. Here is some of my writing. 

Merry Christmas, dear friend.