These people put accounts of their lives on the web, for better or for worse. Some are chatty and bland, others push the limits of the medium. In the best journals there is no attempt to convey the impression that everything is going just fine.As I discover journals on the web I might add a few of them to this page, both good and bad.
randomly ever after-shameless self promotion.
Anita's Book of Days-Anita used to attend James Madison University in nearby Harrisonburg, Virginia. Now she works for an evil dork named Bill.
Aries Moon-Lucy focuses on one narrow topic or time frame with each entry and explores it with enviable lucidity.
Blue Skied-a guy from Richmond who attended the University of Virginia here in Charlottesville.
Nitt-this guy reminds me a little of Elly's old cyber-squeeze Cardigan, without most of the annoying traits.
Ceej's Battered Black Book-Ceej pays attention to interesting issues such as free speech on the Internet and the piggish behaviour of acquaintances and her Jehovah's Witness father.
chuck'stake-another wacky fucker-upper of shit.
Core Dumps from my Brain-occasionally manic, even at times lapsing into meaningless words, then directly turning and lucidly explaining the core mechanics of social situations and his undigested place within them.
Cut While Shaving-is he a retarded Nazi or is it all some kind of subversive mischief created by Karawynn?
The Daily Epiphany-this journal lurches between tranquil domestic family life, mid-life crisis and opinionated vitriol, often (though always somehow alarmingly) straying out of the mainstream. This is one of only four known journals that has been updated daily for over a year.
Deb's Daily Dose-a sexually-frustrated wife with a bleak white collar job and two entertaining little boys tells all with an unexpectedly wry matter-of-factness.
Down the Rubabdub in a Terry Nutkins Stylee-the biggest sociopath of Leeds, England, Rory, unleashed for an extended time on our tranquil soil. I knew this guy in person.
Elly's Slice of Cyberpie-This woman is obsessed with her web site and writes endlessly about it in the ultimate act of self-reference. Don't get on her bad side; she's promised me lawsuits and has flamed me big time. But if you want to get inside the head of a manic depressive strung out on Prozac and polyamoury, I can't think of a better place to go. I have assembled a compilation of links to classic Elly entries.
Enter the Tomorrow-the life and times of a young black man in Jackson, Mississippi.
Exist-it's what Isaac does. He also has a keen eye for the failings of various online types.
Facing the Mask-Truisms as life-altering revelations, poorly-considered leaps of logic and addictively cloying online journal sycophancy make this a reliably entertaining metajournal experience, though surely not in the manner intended.
Fragment (Gabby)-it might be a fairly ordinary Generation X life, but Gabby's attitude towards it is anything but ordinary. One thing I just realized: her mom on booze is like Matthew Hart on heroin.
Going Through the Motions-this guy has an amazing ability to string together choppy little sentences full of simple, bland observations seemingly calculated specifically not to enlighten. There is something vaguely surreal going on here, I'm only now realizing.
Then there's Eric's mother's journal too.
Htrrl Fts,s-a spunky goth girl who knows how write an engaging journal while showing off her bra to great advantage.
Grinder: Lifestyle Tips for the Dead-Grinder doesn't suffer fools easily as he endures the remaining days of his thirties. His opinions on contemporary music occasionally influence my CD purchases.
heinovision: h i r o s h i m a d a y s-this guy is a careening mess of intense emotions, from love to rage to nostalgia and back again. It's all very familiar; indeed, Alan has an enviable capacity (and perhaps more importantly, lack of inhibition) to articulate things that all of us feel but few of us can or will express. An older version of this journal was called kingoftheska. The earliest, most stream-of-conscious variant of this journal was Message Du Jour.
see also All About Eve by the person referred to as "Girl" throughout the Fall of 1997.
Ja-Dissolute life among college kids in the midwest. Join their anti-frat, hang out at "the Compound," and remember to bring your own tussin.
Javina/Jain/J-this girl is the ultimate bitch diva with a checkered past. She gets ticked off at me fairly regularly, but she's fairly forgiving. Past journals include Javina's Journal and Plain Jain.
JEL: an Interview of Decadence-big words wherever a small one would have worked just fine. I have trouble following this guy, which probably means he's a genius.
Justin's Life-Justin is a pioneer at putting the details of his private life on line. There's stuff in his journal about anal sex with his girlfriend, for example. His casual publicity of his private life affected the candor of this glossary, and its descendent, my musings.
Like Sands Through the Hourglass- from Boston, plays with white lab mice, and evidently does diary for both herself and Jay of Mu.
Lizzie's Journal-I've decided I dig this chick, and not just because she's drafting a marriage proposal for me. She's also hiding her journal from mom and dad, something I should probably do as well.
The Meyhem Project-inside the mind of a frat boy. I'm serious. I agree with Mr. heinovision; there's a lot of barely-concealed fury in this man.
The Mighty Kymm-This is the best of the over-accessorized flowery girlie journals. The writing is good, the layout is always improving and the "under construction" icons have shrunk to almost insignificance over the months. I've never really known any girls like this personally, but I see and overhear them all the time. This journal is updated every day.
Mu-This guy eats too much sushi, but that's okay. He used to discuss the other end of his alimentary canal a lot more, but recently he's become a little more zen but not any less earthy.
My Head Talking-This guy is full of good ideas, complete with the reasons why they are good ideas. For example: spammers won't stop until someone somewhere blows one of their sorry brains straight "to /dev/null."
Nilknarf-When you're an atheist, one way to eternity is the publication of your life's journal on the web. Watch Doug's mortality nip at his heals as he continually fails to give up smoking. There's something about Doug's irreverence that I particularly admire, especially in a man old enough to have grandkids. This is one of only four known journals that has been updated daily for over a year.
Nobody Knows Anything-Diane is a writer in LA. She's more than just a journal writer; she's a lover of journals in general. A must-see is her page about journal keeping.
Nova Notes-Al has several autistic kids, yet life is pretty much wonderful. He frequently talks about the many books he reads and sometimes he expounds on issues of the heavens.
11350-22666-Nancy Taylor is an avid bicyclist with post-punk sensibilities, a love of nature and an eye for design.
Spaceman: In the Land of the 393+-A journal that is often about the process of writing a journal. Other times it lapses into shockingly self-effacing nostalgia. See also Lowing of Cows, which actually had the time-worn vertical format.
Today's Stream-a good combination of mania and humility. A nice guy with an edge.
Walter Miller's Homepage-I really want this guy to be for real, but that he couldn't be doesn't hurt the story in the least. Indeed, this may well be the funniest site on the whole Web, and it's all done with unadorned text concerning the supposed travails of a marginally literate son and his disgusting and virtually decomposing grandfather. My guess is that the writer is well versed in medicine or human biology. He makes constant references to biological arcania through a hail of misspellings, low humour and excellent writing.
Words-Scott lives in Vancouver and if the neighbour isn't playing REM too loud, he might show you his balls.
local Charlottesville journals (read the other side of my stories!)
Amy-"Gothic Amy"; we slept together once.
Meghan-I don't know her at all.
Wendy-more ironic/sardonic/occasionally plutonic than most UVA students.
Other Journal Link Pages
Tracing: Journal History-a consecutive list of journals organized according to the date of their first entries.
Real People, Real Stories-complete with concise descriptions.Diaries and Journals on the Web-both contemporary ongoing and historical diaries on the web. These are named but not described.
Diary Collaboration-journal keepers addressing the same topic on a regular basis.
Is That A Fact?-links to lists of facts about journal keepers.
Open Pages-a webring (an assembly of sites linked in a circle) of online journal-keepers. This webring is restricted to journals that are updated at least once each month.
Membership Criteria | List | Backup List | Stats
Similar Journal Webrings:
Archipelago-a webring of online journal-keepers selected for qualities liked by Lucy Huntzinger.
Membership Criteria | List | Backup List | StatsChapter Two-a webring of newer online journals.
Membership Criteria | List | Backup List | StatsIn His Own Words-male bonding in the online journal world. Again, I'm absolutely serious.
Membership Criteria | List | Backup List | StatsJournal Windows-for online journals that contain more than shopping lists.
Membership Criteria | List | Backup List | StatsLittle Bastard-a holy jihad against schmaltz, emoticons, web divas, and iron deficiencies.
Membership Criteria | List | Backup List | StatsMandelbrot Set-people who have unique images with every entry (among other things).
Also see the Hall of Mirrors, where the members' images for any particular day all appear on one single page.
Membership Criteria | List | Backup List | StatsOften-a webring of journal keepers who update daily or nearly so.
Membership Criteria | List | Backup List | StatsStorytellers- "journals that tell stories of the past, the present, and the future of the person writing."
Membership Criteria | List | Backup List | Stats32 Flavors-a somewhat exclusive webring that claims to be for women who are intelligent and don't have over-accessorized sites.
Membership Criteria | List | Backup List | Stats
Where the Journals Are-a listing of online journals by geography.
Willa's Excerpts-amusing little snippets of journals to lead you in.