tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4693401219959272564.post3546610055568679478..comments2024-03-25T05:49:46.932-04:00Comments on My Name Is Not Bob: Finding and Longing for Community (Life Changing Moments Series)Robert Lee Brewerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03733003865003484352noreply@blogger.comBlogger21125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4693401219959272564.post-44936177036890678712012-01-18T00:26:02.381-05:002012-01-18T00:26:02.381-05:00I had the opposite experience, Jane. I stayed wit...I had the opposite experience, Jane. I stayed with friends and toyed with intellect in secret. I didn't find community until the university and my roommate (a physicist with a 250+ IQ) who is still one of my best friends. As I read your post, I found myself wondering what it would have been like to find real community in another way and at an earlier time. Your post was enjoyable and enlightening!Russell Ragsdalehttp://chowchainthoughts.blogspot.com/noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4693401219959272564.post-14929076731820560052012-01-08T14:14:20.208-05:002012-01-08T14:14:20.208-05:00@Elizabeth - I often wonder about that outcome, ye...@Elizabeth - I often wonder about that outcome, yes!Jane Friedmanhttp://janefriedman.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4693401219959272564.post-45293655642979034672012-01-07T19:35:29.351-05:002012-01-07T19:35:29.351-05:00Thanks so much for sharing of yourself. Life chan...Thanks so much for sharing of yourself. Life changing moments? I've had a few. None so positive and inspiring as yours.Dennis Wrighthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05249889590321565091noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4693401219959272564.post-32410936020711137182012-01-07T11:59:01.752-05:002012-01-07T11:59:01.752-05:00thanks for sharing...:) I totally understand the ...thanks for sharing...:) I totally understand the small farming community thing...since I grew up on a farm near a town of 800 people:-) Love online communities like this where an introvert can express themselves freely. Feel inspired...thanks!Lorna Faithhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00324347592448738533noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4693401219959272564.post-52725489868403089952012-01-07T05:29:05.840-05:002012-01-07T05:29:05.840-05:00I can certainly relate to the need for community. ...I can certainly relate to the need for community. As a writer, we spend a lot of time alone with our computer. Although I developed enough social skills along the way to function successfully in group situations, I am still an introvert with hermit tendencies. I know I need to build and maintain my social media platform but I'm still a little shy. I am grateful for my supportive friends in my read/critique group and in all the classes I've taken on the internet.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4693401219959272564.post-13325977055946147932012-01-07T04:20:12.647-05:002012-01-07T04:20:12.647-05:00I think of a seed that if not nurtured grows into ...I think of a seed that if not nurtured grows into an average or constrained plant. As a parent of another Indiana Academy first year student. I think of seeds nurtured beyond belief who all grew to be spectacular. I still marvel at the good fortune of that school coming into existence. Jane is a perfect example of how far one can go with a life defining moment like that. Have you ever wondered, Jane, what your outcome might have been if you had never attended?Elizabeth Munrozhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05077325324751999863noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4693401219959272564.post-76958391133517652812012-01-06T17:06:37.080-05:002012-01-06T17:06:37.080-05:00What an inspiring story. It's amazing how our ...What an inspiring story. It's amazing how our culture looks down on smart kids (and smart people in general.) I guess that's why most of our doctors and scientists come from other countries. Americans seem to be dumbing ourselves down into a permanent underclass. How lucky you were to have parents who could put you in the right environment to grow.Anne R. Allenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02420000168356370825noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4693401219959272564.post-6827704591435729642012-01-06T12:35:36.006-05:002012-01-06T12:35:36.006-05:00Jane, Thank you for sharing yourself. We would hav...Jane, Thank you for sharing yourself. We would have been best friends in either school! I recall sitting on the black and white checkered linoleum floor in our brick apartment in Cleveland reading "The Book of Knowledge" just for fun. My mother banished me to the outside to 'play.' I snuck back in to read. That social awkwardness issue plagues so many of us because we have an uncommon litmus test. But rest assured, you have hundreds of friends-in-waiting.Rita Ashleyhttp://www.ritathinks.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4693401219959272564.post-63228526657942447112012-01-06T12:06:04.451-05:002012-01-06T12:06:04.451-05:00After reading this post, I understand why I took t...After reading this post, I understand why I took to Jane so quickly after meeting her at a conference. Jane, you share a background and a number of experiences with my husband. He could have written this post, with a few minor changes. Robert, thanks for posting this. Now that I've found this blog, I'll be sure to stop by and read more in this series. <br /><br />Warm regards to you both, <br />PatriciaPatricia V. Davishttp://www.patriciavdavis.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4693401219959272564.post-65270570052210356022012-01-06T11:34:43.943-05:002012-01-06T11:34:43.943-05:00Jane,
My Illinois hometown sounds so much like yo...Jane,<br /><br />My Illinois hometown sounds so much like yours - except we didn't even have a public library. Nor did I have a chance to attend a high school like that. I didn't find my tribe until my 30s. It's a long, lonely journey for us introverted literary girls, but I'm glad to know I'm not the only one who walked that path.<br /><br />MeggMegg Jensenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07186437652660111801noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4693401219959272564.post-22405978540300858392012-01-06T11:23:29.750-05:002012-01-06T11:23:29.750-05:00Thank you for sharing. I'm glad your parents ...Thank you for sharing. I'm glad your parents encouraged you to join this community. And I'm glad you found the intellectual stimulation you needed. Community is crucial. Have a blessed and Happy New Year.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4693401219959272564.post-61972626612546733292012-01-06T09:42:03.826-05:002012-01-06T09:42:03.826-05:00Like "much older" and Jane my town HS wa...Like "much older" and Jane my town HS was 300. No Academy for me, so your writing made me look for what introduced me to smart, energized people. I was lucky to stumble into great communities and grateful for the modeling and inspiration to me and our 5 kids. <br /><br />I feel those achieving friends helped me break a family cycle of intellectual defeat and impoverishment. My adult kids are making real marks in their personal and professional lives. -Thanks for bringing the impact of my supportive friends on these outcomes to my attentionAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4693401219959272564.post-35133562572065643972012-01-06T09:40:49.253-05:002012-01-06T09:40:49.253-05:00Jane,
Sweet, inspiring post. I'm glad you ex...Jane, <br /><br />Sweet, inspiring post. I'm glad you experienced that moment!Pete Dulinhttp://www.petedulin.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4693401219959272564.post-5025687634895843512012-01-06T09:22:26.035-05:002012-01-06T09:22:26.035-05:00Jane, I so identify with your comment about introv...Jane, I so identify with your comment about introversion. I was so shy as a kid that my mom teased me and called me the Mole, as in, you know, those little blind creatures who hide underground? But I didn't want to play with other kids. I didn't understand them, and they bored me. So I read, and read, and read, first every book in the library about horses. When I'd exhausted them, about other animals. A fifth-grade teacher introduced me to biographies and I got hooked on them. Now I'm a writer. Big surprise, huh? Best wishes to my Mole-sister, and thanks to Robert for a wonderful idea.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4693401219959272564.post-37191448368445990552012-01-06T05:56:00.682-05:002012-01-06T05:56:00.682-05:00Thank you, Robert, so glad jane introduced me to t...Thank you, Robert, so glad jane introduced me to this site.<br /><br />Loved this post, Jane. Community and a longing for it when not part of a kindred one, have played such important roles in my life too!Joannahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00633484787634197878noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4693401219959272564.post-17330386110444682092012-01-05T23:42:49.804-05:002012-01-05T23:42:49.804-05:00Robert. thank you for this.
Jane, I just signed u...Robert. thank you for this. <br />Jane, I just signed up for your newsletter, and will be contacting Robert soon with an idea for a guest post inspired by yours! I'm new to the 21st century way of entering publishing as an author; not new to publishing. I was always on the production end. My writing was personal, unfinished and/or only for the businesses I worked for. Now I'm ready to enter the fray as an author. Blogs like Jane's and Robert's give us newbies hope, promise, inspiration and a platform. Thank you both from my writer's heart.Linda Taylornoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4693401219959272564.post-77325281390708205142012-01-04T20:33:17.849-05:002012-01-04T20:33:17.849-05:00Thanks, Andrea! I'm excited about the series t...Thanks, Andrea! I'm excited about the series too.Robert Lee Brewerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03733003865003484352noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4693401219959272564.post-31117351751528395082012-01-04T15:02:14.058-05:002012-01-04T15:02:14.058-05:00I'm excited for the series you've started ...I'm excited for the series you've started this year. Moving post to start it off. I can wholly relate.Andrea (Andee) Beltranhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02200735123058256864noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4693401219959272564.post-22127321952893184892012-01-04T13:56:11.974-05:002012-01-04T13:56:11.974-05:00Thanks, Cat. Jane is rather awesome.
I've bee...Thanks, Cat. Jane is rather awesome.<br /><br />I've been involved with quite a few super communities over the years, Jeannette, and it's amazing how even the best ones change over time--perhaps because they are so good. Being near great people inspires me to be great.<br /><br />Also, I just want to throw out another thank you to Jane for this great post!Robert Lee Brewerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03733003865003484352noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4693401219959272564.post-84975475113164515412012-01-04T13:36:23.140-05:002012-01-04T13:36:23.140-05:00This was wonderful, and inspiring. I am far older ...This was wonderful, and inspiring. I am far older than Jane, but her topic is one that my own "community" discuss frequently. The older I get, the more important being a part of a community of like-hearted AND like-minded people becomes. You have inspired me to kick this whole subject around. <br /><br />Jane has--and you, not Bob. I look forward to your guest bloggers. Thank you so much.JeannetteLShttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13528285846408727632noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4693401219959272564.post-35686544060846072432012-01-04T13:07:22.423-05:002012-01-04T13:07:22.423-05:00Jane, you're awesome. And you're not so ba...Jane, you're awesome. And you're not so bad yourself, Robert. :) Thanks for all you guys do for new writers and building community. -catAnonymousnoreply@blogger.com