before there were bloggers there were diarists

people who would take the technology of their day, which for some were pens and for others, pencils, and write in notebooks, or blank books, or lockable books called diaries.

there were no comments sections, or ads, or pictures (usually), just words, about that person’s life, as dull as it might be.

everyday on the blogosphere you can read people say that their lives are boring and they have nothing to say and theyre not important and what they think doesnt matter.

however, anne frank lived in a one-room attic for over two years with seven other people. most of the time they had to be silent. when you visit amsterdam you have to go, the place is tiny. as in tiny. you dont think that would stifle the writing process of todays average blogger? well it didnt stop miss frank who knocked out the most popular and important diary of all time.

here are some exerpts from her offline journal:

On the Deportations

“Our many Jewish friends and acquaintances are being taken away in droves. The Gestapo is treating them very roughly and transporting them in cattle cars to Westerbork, the big camp in Drenthe to which they’re sending all the Jews….If it’s that bad in Holland, what must it be like in those faraway and uncivilized places where the Germans are sending them? We assume that most of them are being murdered. The English radio says they’re being gassed.” – October 9, 1942

On Nazi Punishment of Resisters

“Have you ever heard the term ‘hostages’? That’s the latest punishment for saboteurs. It’s the most horrible thing you can imagine. Leading citizens–innocent people–are taken prisoner to await their execution. If the Gestapo can’t find the saboteur, they simply grab five hostages and line them up against the wall. You read the announcements of their death in the paper, where they’re referred to as ‘fatal accidents.” – October 9, 1942

“All college students are being asked to sign an official statement to the effect that they ‘sympathize with the Germans and approve of the New Order.” Eighty percent have decided to obey the dictates of their conscience, but the penalty will be severe. Any student refusing to sign will be sent to a German labor camp.” – May 18, 1943

On Writing and Her Diary

“When I write, I can shake off all my cares.” – April 5, 1944

Describing her Despair

“I’ve reached the point where I hardly care whether I live or die. The world will keep on turning without me, and I can’t do anything to change events anyway. I’ll just let matters take their course and concentrate on studying and hope that everything will be all right in the end.” – February 3, 1944

“…but the minute I was alone I knew I was going to cry my eyes out. I slid to the floor in my nightgown and began by saying my prayers, very fervently. Then I drew my knees to my chest, lay my head on my arms and cried, all huddled up on the bare floor. A loud sob brought me back down to earth…” – April 5, 1944

On Her Old Country, Germany

“Fine specimens of humanity, those Germans, and to think I’m actually one of them! No, that’s not true, Hitler took away our nationality long ago. And besides, there are no greater enemies on earth than the Germans and Jews.” – October 9, 1942

On Still Believing

“It’s a wonder I haven’t abandoned all my ideals, they seem so absurd and impractical. Yet I cling to them because I still believe, in spite of everything, that people are truly good at heart.

“It’s utterly impossible for me to build my life on a foundation of chaos, suffering and death. I see the world being slowly transformed into a wilderness, I hear the approaching thunder that, one day, will destroy us too, I feel the suffering of millions. And yet, when I look up at the sky, I somehow feel that everything will change for the better, that this cruelty too shall end, that peace and tranquility will return once more” – July 15, 1944

anne frank center + anne frank museum + anne frank stuff on ebay

i was up till 6am last night

trying to figure out what the hell. but i fell asleep before i got the answer. fortunately i had posted two deals by then. i wanted one more but whatevs.

woke up to my cell phone chirping. did what i had to and there i was, awake. so went to it. im not totally prepared organizational for world dominance just yet but a few trips to staples and some well placed emails will get me there. i hope to have a better timeline come next tuesday. developing.

as for the writing. i can do this. as for the pace. i can do it. i like it. im in. i dont have an office to go to. i dont have someone to run things by. ive got this new audience that im not sure about and im sure theyre not sure about me. my momma sent me a good luck email today. how nice is that.

right now im writing on this blog because we were overwhelmed with traffic over at laist. maybe it had to do with my first story, “angels win, still suck”. hope so. maybe a pearl jam message board is trying to spam the comments because i said that sonic youth shouldnt have to be opening for them, that it should be the other way around. maybe its the dave chappelle web sites that linked to us after we announced a secret dvd signing today.

im about to write something called “warning: leno might be watchable tonight” about how ann coulter and george carlin will be jay’s guests.

all day i just wanted to go to the south central farm because i know someone down there and i wanted to see if he got arrested this morning. hes a really good hip hop rapper and producer. white dude if you can believe it. anti turned me on to him.

anyways today the replacements greatest hits cd came out and i want to go to amoeba and pick it up and maybe interview someone there so as to put some video on that shit.

my directv is broken. i might actually have to put my dish in a reasonable location.

martini republic + dude on larry king defends ann coulter + blogging.la‘s sean was very kind to me today

things are always different than before you do them

i think the busblog will have a good purpose. it will be the place where i can be sloppy and stupid and not have to worry or think or stress about.

ive had the best conversations lately. ive had the best phone calls. ive had the best emails. ive been busy though and i wanted to post three things on laist before i went to bed but i could only knock out two. i didnt know what to write about. of all the plans i made this weekend, what i was going to write on my first day wasnt one of them so its amazingly anticlimatic. but good things sometimes are at the begining, what with columbus discovering some weird islands before discovering america.

plus that shit was discovered before he even got there.

which means today i discovered that i can use moveable type and i can write two posts before i go to bed. sadly bedtime is 532am and i dont think i like that. but maybe thats the way its gotta be. which means maybe i should get the papers delivered and read them as i go to bed at 535am.

i talked to a girl who asked me for a castle in the clouds and ive been to one before, the hearst castle. and the only thing that impressed me at that place wasnt the view, it was the pool. but that was it. still, if old hearst had a woman that he was bound to, and if she asked for a big ass castle in the clouds i bet thats what he built for her.

ive had the weirdest few days. i wish i could tell you about them but i cant really. top secret. top sexy. top shelfy. right before i won all those nickels i was thinking about how when i go to vegas i hardly ever gamble. gambling does nothing for me. its fun to get drunk and play for like ten minutes but there are people down there all night. and the old ladies in their wheelchairs smoking and drinking and slot machining kill me.

why would those ladies do that in the hooters casino?

the band was pretty bad, the gift shop in the back was pretty bad, they had no hbo. but all in all i really liked it and i would recommend it. i paid 99 on friday and 129 on saturday, which is pretty below average for decent hotels in vegas on the weekends.

i know that kos was having his convention there and i support blogging and all, but im not a democrat and i dont like politicians so even though some cool people were there like henry copeland and gen wesley clark, i barely had time to do the shit that i did, i had none allotted for that nonsense.

heres what i think of american politics – its time to have far stricter punishments for corruption in politics. some cruel and unusual shit. public servants? what happened to a servant in the day of the framers if the servant got caught stealing or lying to his master? cruel and unusual shit happened thats what.

i get it that we will probably be stuck with the two party system for a little while, and i get it that most politicians are going to be dirty and theres nothing we can do about the culture of representation that will lead to phony baloney senator sons of senator’s sons. but we can do something about manditory minimums for people who rape the public’s trust.

i ate the best food from the pantry last night. rib tips and mashed potatoes. they give you so much that its good for dinner and the next days lunch. unless you want to give your leftovers to the homeless dudes across the street in the parking lot. which is what i do with my cole slaw and bread at least.

i watched very little tv today. i drove and talked on a cell phone to karisa today. i got an email from chris today. people are wishing me good luck like crazy.

as if i havent been flooded with luck for a few weeks.

coop + welch + xtx + bill german