Saturday, June 19, 2010

Accidental Un-Blog

My blog is called an accidental blog because I started it one day without intending to. Someone in my Yahoo group sent an email. I clicked on the blog related to the email and I wanted to leave a comment. I couldn't figure out how to leave a comment without registering for a blog myself. Thus, an accidental blog was born.
Today, I accidentally removed my blog and for a few frantic hours, I thought it was lost forever.
When I started this blog, back in August 2006, a gmail account wasn't required. I began with my own personal email. This spring, I started a gmail for an alter ego account to write some racy fiction under another name. That name immediately became connected to this blog. I lived in fear of my alter ego making comments on other people's blogs. I know, it makes you think, "How unsophisticated is she about technology?" Pretty naive.
Well, the racy fiction was rejected and I was tired of seeing the alter ego's name at the top of my blog, so I decided to delete the Facebook page and the gmail account. When I did, my blog disappeared.
When I clicked on it, the message said, "This blog has been removed."
Yikes! All of those years of posting. All of those visitors stacked up one by one. Gone.
I started searching for answers. I couldn't get on Google accounts to ask questions because I didn't have a google account anymore. I opened another one. Then I found the answer to reinstating the alter ego's account, which should bring back my blog.
I sent the message to the Google elves.
A few hours later, they replied that they couldn't reopen my account because I'd started another one. I deleted the new one and sent another message.
Finally, after about five crazy hours, they sent me an email telling me that I could change my password.
Aaaargh! I didn't want to change my password. I wanted to get my blog back.
I found an old email from my website designer and started constructing an email. I would give him all the details and my emails and passwords to see if he could fix it.
I needed to give him my blog address. I clicked on it to copy the link, and there was my blog reinstated.
All of my stories about my unruly or successful children. My complaints about teaching college. My love affair with France. My resolve to be a more dedicated writer. My gripes about exercise and gaining weight. My stories about friends and families. They were all reinstated.
The only thing different that I could see, was that I am now a "follower" of my own blog. I'm not sure how that happened and I can't figure out how to undo it, so I'll live with it.
I promise never to take you for granted again, dear blog, now that you've been taken from me and brought back from the dead.
I still plan to get rid of that alter ego though -- as soon as I figure out how.

3 comments:

Linda said...

That would scare me too and I wouldn't have a clue about what to do.

Sheila said...

you are so damn funny! BTW I love the name of your blog, I always have. I've never told you that so i thought i would mention it. I wish i had been friends with your alter ego on FB, I would have liked to seen what type of mischief she was up to. :) BTW will you start a real FB acct already!

I want to hire a blog designer to help me revamp my blog design. I want to do some things to it that I've seen on other peoples blogs but I can't figure out how to do on my own. But spending money of a blog that doesn't earn money is a tad bit silly, hmm...

commenting from the beach :)

Stephanie said...

Phew!

So glad that you are back!

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