on being a journal-whore

So I'm thoroughly excited about the fact that I have to do a reflective journal while I'm work placement. Many people hate doing reflective journals/journals in general. Of course everybody knows that journals are a therapeutic exercise, but I seem to feel as though everyone thinks journals are for 'losers' or in other words, introverted intellectual fucked-up freaks like me. I'm happy that blogs have become popular - but the emphasis seems to be on pictures, or cartoons revolving around bagging the shit out of the government of the day. Most bloggers seem to choose a topic or a theme or whatever, and not many just write about one's day & one's feelings etc etc.

The fact is, I'm a chronic diary writer. This begun in primary school after I watched the movie 'Harriet the Spy' with Michelle Tratchenberg



It got to the point where I was hiding plastic mirrors in my dressing gown pockets & running around the backyard with a journal, writing down notes like the fact that the old couple in the house next door to us were watching tv. I should not be admitting this in a journal I post publicly. Anyway. I LOVED this movie, I wonder if I've still got it on video somewhere?

And so I've written journals daily ever since, up to about three years ago. When I stopped it wasn't a conscious decision, I actually felt really really guilty about 'not writing' as I had previously obsessively made time to make sure I wrote at least one page a day. Even if it was just a paragraph. I guess I just let myself off for a few days because I got home late, and then it became a pattern, and I don't feel guilty anymore. Whenever I go through all my stuff/shit I realise that I have so, so many boxes of journals scrambled around my room & I actually can't read anything I've written. But I'll probably never throw them out because they are too special.

And I guess the point of this post was to acknowledge to myself that yeah, I do miss writing journals & reading back on what I felt after a particular event or whatever. I'm much more honest and analytical these days though, so I probably should exercise some level of self-restraint. I've written two days of placement journal and I realised that I was writing things that actually had nothing to do with placement, and quotes people had told me and how I was amused by them. I. miss. being. a. chronic. journal- er.

Quote of the day: "Is it ethical to stalk clients on facebook?"

nb: obviously no names/agencies etc will be mentioned.