I’ve always said it never ceases to amaze me where I show up on peoples’ blogrolls. Most of the time, I just find out by accident. Occasionally, someone may leave a comment on my blog to let me know. Less so the case, they may email me and let me know. Even less so the case, I may find out from a referral via my stats.
I am always very flattered when someone blogrolls me. I never say no! I find it most flattering that anyone reads me! 99.9% of the time, I feel this blog is tripe anyway.
I suppose I shall start with this one. I found it via my referrals. And by the way, I always try to swing by my referrals and commenters if they have a blog; take a look to see what they have to say, what they are all about. But these days especially (and even since starting Blog365) I am left with little time. That does not mean that any non-reciprocity is intended. Even with regular folks I know! Also, blogrolls can be…well, personal things. Some people blogroll everyone they can find, know etc… some are more particular. I still haven’t figured out how I decide whom to blogroll. Good grief, my blog itself is still a bloody mystery to me and I am it’s damn author!
So, this place somehow found me: it’s an AD(H)D site called ADDitude. Okay. They have a lot of blogs. And well…erm…a lot of stuff? They did not email me. It is run my a couple of folks with Degrees and some other people as well.
This place found me too and I have to admit, it was a bit of a shocker. It’s…”larger?” It’s run by a lot of M.D.’s, Therapists etc… It is mentalhelp.net.
I had to do some legal checking as in their “License” Section within their Terms of Use Policy they had some information about Third Party Content that I wanted to confirm. The first site’s Terms of Use Policy was fine. The reason for both is they do make a profit from things on their sites. However, the latter’s policy stated things in a more detailed way (and amongst other things than profit) should it affect my blog–not good.
I had expected that my blog as Third Party Content would not fall under these terms as it was an external link. I was correct.
However, the latter is, again, a lot larger and has fewer blogs. I am under the ADHD section and the Bipolar section. They also mentioned I had mature language and may not be suitable for some readers. That made me giggle a little but well, it is true. That also told me that they may have done a fair bit of checking and reading of my blog? Or perhaps not. I am trying to think of how much I use profanity. Maybe a lot? *laughing*
Since the latter emailed me, it was more formal and also because it was larger, it may indeed act more as a Corporation. I do not know. They did suggest a reciprocal link but it was up to my choosing. Indeed, this is proper protocol.
Now, I don’t link to any sort of “Self Help,” “Support” or Resource blogs/sites in my blogroll, whether they are run by a group of people who share something in common who are all there to mutually hash it out or ones run by professionals. There are too many out there. I do not feel that I am qualified to make a suitable critique or even “judgment” as to whether they will help people or not. We are all different and I think people should be able to seek out sites of this nature that will help them on their own. And certainly with the more “professionally” run sites, not being a professional I feel even less qualified to review the content. This is just my perspective on the matter.
Nonetheless, I suppose I have given some reciprocity here within my post, simply because it is relevant to the content of my post. And, indeed, I am flattered or should be due to the size of these sites? I will say I was certainly given lots of flattery from mentalhelp.net in the email they sent to me! Not to mention they were very prompt in answering my questions about the legal issues.
Also, these are not “Sploggers” which seem to be increasing in my world as well. If you are not familiar with the term, they are these bizarre “poachers” that pick up on your posts and link to them for no apparent reason–well, perhaps profit but I will get to that. Many times your post isn’t even relevant to anything else on their blog! There is no information about who runs it and if anything, they may try and pick up revenue by Google Ads but that is a very difficult thing to do. You get peanuts for your click-throughs unless you are a massive site with lots of traffic.
Fuck me. My Sploggers now are not even referring to me as “PA” or “Patient Anonymous” anymore! I’m getting called some name that may not even be a word or “Penis,” “Dick Head…” something like that so perhaps the Sploggers are becoming more sneaky in trying to obtain more “peanuts” for people searching dirty words. Which really makes no sense because if you were to Google something like “Penis” or Dick Head,” you’d get 1,000,000,000 results!
There is a way of reporting them although no one seems to care. Perhaps I should start “signing the petition” as well now?
So, continuing on with people finding me such as these larger sites and also, a woman who wrote a book that was praised by celebrities and wants me to review her blog also! Not that I am tooting my own horn, believe me. I am just saying that this is freaky. Let’s move on to the emails.
When I started this blog, I received a request from some stranger to write about a genetic link re: the Autistic Spectrum. Well, I read the material and again, I am not qualified to take a stance on this! Not to mention, nothing has been proven; this was a hypothesis based upon research but still…I simply tossed up the link and said: “Discuss.” I have my own feelings on the matter but I certainly wasn’t going to say “yay” or “nay” on what was given to me.
Not long ago, I received an email from a Book Publisher wanting me to…well, not so much “review” a book but look at as much information as I could and basically “promote” it on my blog. Erm…okay. Now how did this person find me? I was curious and asked another popular blogger if they received the same email. Nope. I wondered if it was some kind of, “find every mental case blogger and send it out!” situation. I have no clue. I still have the email. I am really not in the business of promoting things on my blog. I don’t “endorse” things. Who am I to judge?! However, I researched and it was all legitimate. I am rather afraid to do it. If I do, it may very well open the floodgates, don’t you think?
Now, what I received last night just about made me fall over in a paroxysm of sheer hilarity and uncontrollable laughter. I received an email about how wonderfully I write, my blog is great etc…
…and would I review…
…some type of a pair of glasses!!!
And also provide a link to their site.
I’m sorry. Wha…?
I won’t even proceed further to the blogger that is regularly sending me articles regarding his stance on being anti-med and anti-psychiatry. I do believe in freedom of speech to the core but I’m not going to link to him or blog about that!
I know this is long. I hope you got through it all but I just had to share it. My blogging life just seems to be getting more and more bizarre these days.
