#30in30 Day 1: The Story of Streetztalk 2.0

My favorite symbol of rebirth

We’ve got to stop meeting like this…

I’ve heard rumblings about the #30in30 series before. I’ve witnessed as random bloggers took on the task to write 30 posts in 30 days, and admired from afar. For those that don’t blog, writing weekly is difficult when you have to deliver fresh, original content. When you turn that into a daily grind, the difficulty and stress levels are compounded 100 fold! Some people find this effortless. The more human people like me can see this as an arduous task. That’s probably why I never took on the challenge until now…

I saw my homie SBG take on the #30in30 challenge, and earlier witnessed my SBM Co-Defendant Slim Jackson do the same. I saw versatility in their writing, the difficulties, the missed days, and the fun that they had. Yes, for all the setbacks and hair pulling (well not Slim); they actually enjoyed what they were doing. They took on the task directly, and in my mind succeeded. So why would I, a man who admittedly has taken this site for granted on many occasions, want to take on this same challenge? The answer is simple: I want to have fun writing again.

When I first started blogging, I was just a dude who was loquacious and verbose in real life, and translated that into typed words. I have opinions and the ability to elocute those opinions in a unique manner. I like to talk sh*t, evoke conversations, and spark minds. From Facebook notes to MySpace blogs to WordPress, I made it happen. I spoke about whatever I wanted, whenever I wanted, with no restrictions. I posted videos that I liked, my favorite music, the latest video game dropping, all that. I didn’t care. Well, I cared about the writing, but didn’t care about who read. I was just talking. You could feel me, and if you didn’t like it then fine.

I was expressing myself in written words. My artistic side craved a new outlet after I went into semi-retirement with graphics design (translation: No one needed flyers from me anymore and I didn’t feel like playing around on Photoshop without a care in the world). So blogging became my new outlet. A funny thing happened after I started typing my heart out. People started reading and following what I wrote. I thought this was pretty cool, but it did bring an added pressure to my hobby.

Now more eyes were on me, so I wanted to impress a bit. Yeah, the same dude who “didn’t care” about readers, now wanted to impress the ones that showed up. So, I started writing for different sites all over the Internet. The more people read my stuff, the more my audience grew, and the more in-demand my keyboard precision was requested. It was a blessing and a curse, for now my hobby was becoming a chore.

I got on the SBM team in 2008. All the relationship/dating/male-female relationship stuff I wrote here got me that weekly spot. It was one of the biggest writing accomplishments for me to date. So with my weekly spot being dedicated to Sex/Relationship blogging, I stopped doing that here. I shifted to Hip-Hop and entertainment. Soon, people like Blogxilla and Necole Bitchie came around and wanted some digital heat from the kid. Those types of posts slowed down here. Once I got on my fitness kick, I posted more of those types of articles here, but soon my site was looking like an aggregate for Men’s Health, and that’s something I didn’t want.

Life soon got in the way, as I was looking for new work, and my responsibilities at SBM increased. I simply had no more time to “play-write” here, so I stopped. I fell off my fitness kick a bit, so stopped posting weekly updates. Streetztalk turned into a virtual ghost town! As much as I hated it, it was within reason. This was a shit in my life and Streetztalk had to roll with the punches. A funny thing happened during my hiatus. I wrote my e-book. It took about 8 months, but I wrote it, and enjoyed every minute. Finally, I was writing for fun again and writing with passion!

This isn’t to say I don’t enjoy my writing on SBM or anywhere else. This is more an appreciation for the days when I could type my random thoughts and be happy. This is very therapeutic for me, and helps me shine creatively. It’s fun too! Writing requires motivation also, and I knew I had to be super motivated to do this #30in30. So I got genuinely excited. I caught the blogging equivalent of the Holy Ghost. For those that know me in real life, you know I’m super hype, and when I’m locked in, I’m FOCUSED! So focused in fact, that I once again changed the design on the blog! Let me know what you think (I designed that logo up top too!)

DC comics last year came out with “The new 52” initiative. They rebooted a majority of their franchises, changing the mythos and origins somewhat in order to give new readership an easy jumping-on point, and provide something fresh for existing readers. Marvel is currently doing something similar with their “Marvel NOW” plan, where big things occur and the status quo changes in the Marvel universe. That’s what I see this #30in30 series as: A Rebirth. A rebirth of my passion for writing, a reboot of this site, and a renewed commitment to me and for you all who have read my articles for years and who I know would love to see more here.

Will I miss days? Possibly. Will I quit? Nope. Will I write mad posts in advance to make sure I’m good? You already know! The most important thing I’m going to do is have fun, speak to you about whatever I want, and finally find the purpose of this space again.

Enjoy the ride, send your support and words of encouragement, thank you for being patient, and welcome to the 2nd volume of Streetztalk.net

Streetz