My blog is mostly secret. I told Paul and my parents about it after a few months because I kept slipping and almost telling them, and plus I wanted to be able to tell them happy or funny blog-connected things. All three have promised not to go cruising around the blog on their own, and they read only the posts I send to them. Nobody else in my life knows about the blog, because I don’t think I can trust anyone else to be so good. I think I have mentioned before that my mother was the kind of mother who could be trusted to walk past an open diary. I don’t think that’s common in the general population, do you?
This blog is anonymous, so I say things that I might not even say to my best friends. Or I say things that I might say to one best friend but not to the other. Or I say things that otherwise I might not have said except in my own head. This blog is technically public, but because it’s anonymous, it feels private.
Well. Today. I left a comment on a friend’s blog. While I was logged in as Swistle. I deleted the comment, but it still says “Swistle said…” with a link to the Swistle blog. Also, then I tried to re-leave my comment, and I accidentally used the Swistle name A SECOND TIME. I’ve emailed my friend, begging her to delete the link and then forget she ever saw it, but I haven’t heard back from her yet. She has three children including a very young baby, and so who knows when she’ll get back to her computer? I am DYING here. Her family is friends with my family. Her family is very dear to me. Her family can NOT read some of the things I’ve written.
I am so mortified. At any moment, one of those dear people could be thinking, “Huh. I wonder who this is, who wrote a comment and then changed their mind TWICE? I’ll just click and see.” And then they will be here. And THEN what?
It was bound to happen, I suppose. I’m so very, very careful, but even “very, very careful” isn’t one hundred percent reliable. Exhibit A: fifth child. Exhibit B: leaving comment while logged in.
Yikes! Maybe you could take your site down or remove some of the info until the link is gone.
Just a thought. Good luck!
doh! busted!
maybe you can set your profile to private and hope she doesn’t think to go directly to swistle? :)
PLEASE don’t take down your site….maybe just move it? I love reading your posts. I would call your friend and explain the situation. If one of my friends were in that situation, I would protect their privacy; maybe she will too. Yes, I think you should call since who knows when she will get to her computer.
Good luck! BTW, I would never think to check the link of a deleted comment, but maybe that is just me.
Just reading this made me break out into a cold sweat.
Ever since my family found out about my blog, my MO has been to assume that everyone I know will eventually find it and I need to just be prepared for that. Man if the thought doesn’t make me cringe though.
It looks like probably I’m okay. My friend wrote back to say that she deleted the comments without even looking at the link name, and that she happened to be on the phone with the person most likely to follow the link between the time she posted the blog entry and the time she got my email and removed the comments. So probably I’m safe THIS time. But gosh. This is bound to happen again.
Yikes!! I am so worried that my mother-in-law could find my blog that I refuse to write about her at all, even though she drives me nuts. Hope all is well, sounds like you’re okay.
Take it from me, you should always assume anyone can find your blog at any time. It’s just the safest way to go. You can’t control random Google searches (my father found my journal by typing the search term “marionberry margarita”), nor the 495728 other ways someone could find you.
Oh jeez. This post makes my feet sweat. I can totally relate. But please dont hide. I just found you last week an you crack me up.
I was found by my nanny! Because she google’d the email address I mistakenly emailed her from, one time…
All was good though…but still…EMBRASSING.