The Story Sponge Through The Ages~ In Which Holy Moly, It’s Been Three Years And I Wonder How My Blog Is Still Alive

Salutations, my dear bloggerly chums!

It occurred to me the other day that my Blog’s Birthday is at the end of June. Which, is alarmingly soon.

By the time I post this in the beginning of July, The Story Sponge will be THREE YEARS OF AGE.

I know. I am still in shock about it.

On the one hand, it feels like it was only yesterday that this blog sallied forth into the world, with no clue what it was doing, and on the other hand it feels like:

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(Three, three thousand- it’s essentially the same.)

Since my brain died and I recently put all my creative juices in one basket, the said juices all drained away (baskets aren’t meant to hold juice) and I have been left with no choice but to give you a post of recycled glory…

…Essentially, a post full of stuff that I’ve already written, so that I don’t have to come up with something new using my non-existent creative juices.

Since this is a post commemorating my dear blog’s birthday, I think it would be fitting to shower you with things from the past- namely, quotes from past blog posts that I remember with embarrassment  extreme fondness.

We can see where this blog has been through the years, and celebrate all the profound things I have said in the past three years! I see no downside to this!

(Internal nervousness builds)

Hopefully this trip down memory lane is a pleasant one, and not something of a nightmare.

Let’s do this.

The Story Sponge Through the Ages:

2017

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Quote the first (newborn sponge)

Fiction supposedly means “stuff that did not really happen,” but anyone who enjoys fiction to any degree knows that this is a lie. If fiction is not real, that means hobbits are not real and I refuse to believe that. –An Ode to Stories, June 29, 2017

My very first post. An introduction to my obsession with stories. And hobbits.

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Quote the second (why I write)

I keep writing because… it would kill me to stop? (Too drastic?) Even when I have no ideas I have this strong desire to put words on paper. I need to write. Sometimes I feel like I will explode if I don’t. There is something inside of me, I think, that needs to come out, and I have to keep writing until I find the right words to express it. This will probably take the rest of my life.

(Okay, mate, enough with the melodrama). –Beautiful People #26-Author Writing Process Edition, July 17, 2017

My first ever link-up post. I was concerned that I wouldn’t do it legally. To this day I don’t really know if I did or not. But it was fun!

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Quote the third (ah, metaphors)

The tricky thing about storytelling though, is that the tools often get mistaken for the stories themselves. It would be like someone getting so excited about the knitting needles that they decided to incorporate them into the sweater. Not a pleasant prospect. –How Do Stories Get Told? And What Is A Story Anyway? (A Very Informative Ramble Written By A Very Informed Sponge), December 11, 2017

I don’t do Story Rambles nearly enough. But that’s because they take way too much brain power. Which…I don’t have.

2018

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Quote the fourth (ah, MORE metaphors)

This character is a coconut. They are tough and maybe nasty on the outside and will probably hurt you but on the inside they are a puddle. –10 Types Of Book Characters~Including Cardboard-Cut-Outs And Food Metaphors, January 17, 2018

Characters are my FAVORITE THINGS. I think I talked about glue and yarn in this post as well.

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Quote the fifth (trying to sing)

When I say “range” I refer to your vocal range, not your stove-top or a large field full of cows that you happen to own. –Five Types Of Showtunes That Are Very Difficult To Sing (But Naturally We Attempt To Sing Them Anyway), April 15, 2018

I relate to this post way too much. Tune in to hear about  me feeling like a dying alpaca.

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Quote the sixth (obligatory cake)

Also I deserve cake and ice cream and a blimp full of presents because it is MY BIRTHDAY. –Sponge’s Birthday Interrogation! (In Other Words: I Have Survived My First Year Of Blogging And I Made You Ask Me Questions So I Could Talk About Myself), June 29, 2018

My blog’s first birthday!

Now I have graduated to talking about myself without needing anyone to ask me anything.

2019

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Quote the seventh (profound question)

Are fairy tales unrealistic, an ideal that we’ve fabricated to make life more bearable, or are they the manifestation of a truer world that we can just barely see? –Reflections On Cynicism~ In Which A Sponge Shares Her Safety Blanket With The World, March 29, 2019

Look, it’s me being deep and philosophical again.

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Quote the eighth (featuring my parenting skills)

So WordPress helpfully reminded me about my blog’s birthday. Otherwise I would still be oblivious to the fact that it recently turned two years old. I AM SUCH A GREAT PARENT. –Two Years Old~In Which I Totally Forgot That It Was My Blog’s Birthday, July 5, 2019

Yeah…not much has changed actually.

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Quote the ninth (singing is totally normal)

I mean, if newsboys in the 1800s and American founding fathers and ex-noble Russians express their feelings through heart-wrenching ballads and dance routines, why shouldn’t we? IT MUST BE NORMAL. –Books That Should Be Made Into Broadway Musicals~In Which We Encounter Emotional Turmoil And Smoked Salmon, October 11, 2019

I thought we needed more musicals in the world. I still do.

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Quote the nine-and-a-halfth (helpful writing tips)

Plot twists are all fine and grand, until someone breaks the believability. –Ten Easy Steps To Becoming An Effective Writer~In Which The Steps Are Maybe Not So Easy After All, November 8, 2019

I was going to just do three quotes from each year, but I think we all know how good I am at counting by now.

2020

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Quote the tenth (me at the beginning of this year)

Even though the passage of time is, in fact, painfully predictable, I still have great difficulty comprehending it. For a sponge like me, this whole 2020 thing is going to take some getting used to. –Characters From Yesteryear~ In Which I Haphazardly Try To Introduce My Children, January 3, 2020

HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA.

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Quote the eleventh (Yup, more metaphors)

Writing Tip (in metaphor form): Instead of thinking of the writing itself as a generic subway train, taking you from one stop to another in a streamlined fashion, think of it as a living, breathing, creature (like your own personal dragon or unicorn or giant salamander) with its own unique gait, its own rhythm- a creature that can take you anywhere, and show you perspectives on things you never noticed before. –The Four Basic Story-Telling Ingredients~ Another Story Ramble From A Sponge, January 31, 2020

More writing about writing. Such fun.

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Quote the twelfth (movie flailing)

There is a quest. There is a van. There is groovy music. There is air conditioning. There is a 90% chance of tears and a 100% chance of hugs. –Five Movies I Saw Recently And Actually Liked~ In Which I Flail About Phenomenal Acting, Accents, And Doughnuts

My summary of Pixar’s Onward. Essentially.

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Epilogue

That wasn’t actually too bad.

I’m really happy with all the craziness this blog has allowed me to process and there are several posts that I am marginally proud of. Not that the embarrassing ones aren’t out there of course. But we don’t need to talk about them.

And lastly but not leastly…

I want to sincerely thank all of my faithful readers and bloggerly comrades. You have been fantastic and you make the blogging world a beautiful place. Thank you for your consistent encouragement and support of my blog. YOU ARE ALL LOVELY.  I look forward to enjoying your bloggerly brilliance in the future. You have made the last three years a blast!

Here is some cake.

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How long have you been blogging? Do you have a hard time keeping track of birthdays? How has your blog evolved over time? Do you ever reread old blog posts? I hope you are all having spectacular blogging years!