Still here....
It's monthlydiaryday so I shall write up today in more detail later. However Lj is still here and I'm pleased. I belong to a comm who held a Gay Rights Day and the moderator received Russian death threats as a result. When they contacted Lj support they were incredibly helpful and supportive. In their words the people running Lj are 'good people'. I'm glad and I'm hoping it's slipping under the radar for the Russian people who don't want this war.
Anyhoo - I managed to fully back up my Lj entries on Dreamwidth as they've been working to support the migration for those who want to. I'm just doing it for a backup and it's a bit wonky because there are some years with two identical entries one with and one without comments from Lj as the process didn't work the first time for comments. I don't mind too much as it still means I can read old entries and the comments that go with them. As it's 17 years worth I doubt I'll go back and delete the entries without comments LOL! I also have the BlogBooker download and I'll keep that going as well as that saves all comments (not is a particularly nice format but still....). I wish Lj archive was still available as that was so good.
I'm not going to delete my Lj as this is still my home, but I will cross-post as lots of people have left here and it makes me sad to think I won't ever interact with them again :(
I'll stick the question of the day in this entry as that way I can just have a monthly diary entry in the next post.
12. How do you think travelling to a lot of different countries changes a person?
I think it's good to see how other people live, but I would add that if you are travelling as a tourist you don't get to see what a country is like if you only stick to the tourist spots. There's nothing wrong with the tourist spots, but they are the shiny bits of a place and perhaps not always true to the country itself as the country wants (not surprisingly) you to come back. I think people forget the tourist industry is just that - an industry that wants to make money (and sometimes of course that's essential to the economy of the country!).
I found living in a country that wasn't mine was more instructive - we lived in Bergen in Norway for nearly two years. It really brought home to me that I was the outsider, and I found it invaluable to realise that I was clinging to my English heritage. It helped me understand more deeply what it's like to be an immigrant in any country. It must be even worse for someone who is forced to move because of a dangerous situation in their homeland where they have to move and leave everything behind. I knew I could go home again - lots of people can't do that. It certainly made it easier for me to teach people about equality and opportunity in my lessons as I felt I had a much better insight.
Anyhoo - I managed to fully back up my Lj entries on Dreamwidth as they've been working to support the migration for those who want to. I'm just doing it for a backup and it's a bit wonky because there are some years with two identical entries one with and one without comments from Lj as the process didn't work the first time for comments. I don't mind too much as it still means I can read old entries and the comments that go with them. As it's 17 years worth I doubt I'll go back and delete the entries without comments LOL! I also have the BlogBooker download and I'll keep that going as well as that saves all comments (not is a particularly nice format but still....). I wish Lj archive was still available as that was so good.
I'm not going to delete my Lj as this is still my home, but I will cross-post as lots of people have left here and it makes me sad to think I won't ever interact with them again :(
I'll stick the question of the day in this entry as that way I can just have a monthly diary entry in the next post.
12. How do you think travelling to a lot of different countries changes a person?
I think it's good to see how other people live, but I would add that if you are travelling as a tourist you don't get to see what a country is like if you only stick to the tourist spots. There's nothing wrong with the tourist spots, but they are the shiny bits of a place and perhaps not always true to the country itself as the country wants (not surprisingly) you to come back. I think people forget the tourist industry is just that - an industry that wants to make money (and sometimes of course that's essential to the economy of the country!).
I found living in a country that wasn't mine was more instructive - we lived in Bergen in Norway for nearly two years. It really brought home to me that I was the outsider, and I found it invaluable to realise that I was clinging to my English heritage. It helped me understand more deeply what it's like to be an immigrant in any country. It must be even worse for someone who is forced to move because of a dangerous situation in their homeland where they have to move and leave everything behind. I knew I could go home again - lots of people can't do that. It certainly made it easier for me to teach people about equality and opportunity in my lessons as I felt I had a much better insight.