The holidays are over, and it’s time to get back to the normal grind. I welcome it. I got sick and fell off my workout wagon, so I need to get back into that mindset. However, I think I’ll do it gradually. As for my blog, I think I will change gears. The past few posts have been pretty deep and dramatic, so I’m going to start off the new year not with a resolution, but with a complaint to clear the old 2015 air.

Several years ago, this thing called a ‘listicle’ became popular on the Internet. It took bullet points to new heights, giving readers everything they needed and thought they wanted to know in digestible, little chunks. You know what I mean: ’10 Ways to Impress on Your First Date’; ‘5 Exercises to a New and Thinner You.’ I admit, they were fun. At that time I was so hooked on the ‘net that I wanted to know everything about everything. There used to be a commercial where a guy on a computer read a flashing screen, ‘You have reached the end of the Internet.’ He’d seen it all. I wanted to be that guy. I was a sponge, and the World Wide Web was my water of life. Listicles were a fast way to reach that goal.

Now I want to leave scathing comments on every listicle I come across. (I don’t because I wasn’t brought up to be rude.) They now are frustrating things that make me want to yell ‘You stupid idiot!’ at the screen. I can’t stand them.

The internet is the true level playing field—anyone can do anything they want, including, God forbid, write. (That and give their opinion. That’s another rant.) As seen on American Idol, everyone thinks they can sing, but—news flash—they can’t. It’s the same with writing. Not everyone can write. They don’t know how to research, organize, write, edit and rewrite an article. Yes, they’re just bullet points, but succinct writing is hard. Listicles may be easy to read, but it takes work to make them that way. Most writers don’t understand that.

They also don’t realize that the advice or information they’re giving is, well, crap. Don’t half-ass it. Don’t waste your time and ours by telling us something we already know. If I link to your article and it’s not worth even the 10 seconds it takes to scan it, you’ve done a bad job. Your work is now ‘filler.’

Now, I really feel bad about criticizing other writers. I think everyone should have a creative outlet, and even if you’re a bad at writing, singing, drawing or whatever, do it if you enjoy it. But can you do it professionally? It’s different when money’s involved. Like this blog. There are probably lots of things wrong with it, but I’m doing this for me.

I ignore listicles now. They are meant to be throwaways, and I will treat them as such. I probably should treat most of the stuff on the ‘net in the same manner, because it’s pretty bad as well. Not my blog, though, right?

Have a wonderful 2016, everyone!