8 Tiny Stories commemorating my 8 Years of Blogging

In 8 years, everything can change. The people you know, the way they are with you, the places you call your own, the situations you think are challenges, the thoughts that you have, the priorities in your life, the worries and joys of life- all of it. This is to the ONE thing that has remained unchanged in my life for the last 8 years. It is the one thing that has given me peace of mind when everything else has failed. It has only improved, inspired and helped me more and more.

13^th of June 2016 marks the completion of 8 years of blogging for me. It’s that one day of the year which has consistently seen a post year after year. Here I bring to you the journey of eight years in 8 tiny stories; it’s happy 8^th birthday to the blog after all…

1. The One where it all Began

I have told and retold this story to everyone who ever asked me ‘How did you get into blogging?’ Here it goes again, concisely: One fine summer afternoon on the 13^th of June 2008, I sat at home in Delhi and Googled ‘what is a blog?’ Moments later I stumbled across BigB’s BigAdda blog and was amazed at how he could get hundreds of comments on his posts within minutes of posting his daily life situations. Minutes later, this blog was created. Of course, it looked nothing close to how it looks now, nor was the content anything close to what might interest you. But I never cease to get tired of repeating the inspirational story that the one man was for me.

(Read: First post: What a Dream)

2. The One where I met the Inspiration

Two years ago, I was in Mumbai for the first time. It was for a short internship. My friend took me around the city of Bollywood and I proudly got a picture clicked in front of the house of my inspiration. It became the 13th of June post for that year. 8 days later, I was on a Bollywood-movie set standing face-to-face with Mr. Amitabh Bachchan, working with him on the same film, too nervous to tell him ‘Thank you for being my inspiration to start blogging’.

(Read: One Day as an AD on a Bollywood Film Set)

3. The One with the Domain Story

Well, if you haven’t noticed the change in the URL of this site, check now. It had been a long standing wish. I knew the domain wasn’t difficult to get, there were no other takers for this one. I kept checking its availability for years. I was just too lazy to click the purchase button and go through ‘the technical hassles’. Less than a month ago I bought www.antarikanwesan.com, and the blog finally had its own domain to rest on the internet- a long-delayed, yet important update, with hardly any technical difficulty.

4. The One with the Business Cards

The purchase of the domain led to another important update. I designed and printed my blog’s business cards. No longer would I be spelling out my blog’s URL to other bloggers at events. Giving out these cards feels absolutely wonderful (and professional?).

5. The One with Travel Blogging and FAM trips

In last year’s 13th of June post I talked about FAM trips and how I wondered bloggers got to be part of those. The last year has seen me reviewing products (here), getting invited to press events, and even going on my first FAM trip recently for a stay at Jakson Inns Phaltan along with some other professional travel bloggers. And I am certain this is just the beginning.

6. The One with International Trips

Recently I participated in a month long blogging contest and won an all expense paid trip to watch the Wimbledon at the centre court. The trip to London is scheduled for later this month and will be my first overseas trip. Thank you blogging!

Thank you @allensolly! Really looking forward to this now! Time to fly to London #playitfair #sollysportcentrecourt pic.twitter.com/hPOre63bRT

— Antarik Anwesan (@antarik) May 31, 2016

7. The One where Blogging isn’t Just a Hobby

Going by my present state-of-mind, the year to come is going to see me focus on the travel blogging part a lot more. I might just take it up as a profession, although the financial aspects haven’t figured into my thoughts yet. What’s for certain is that the coming months will see a lot more travel in my schedule and of course, more travel stories on the blog.

8. The One Commemorating 8 years of Doing One Thing

I have often wondered how people tend to do the same work for years and years without getting bored. It’s been eight months since I joined my first job and I confess that I am bored and want a change. When would I find that ‘one thing’ that I can do forever? Is ‘blogging’ that ‘one thing’ for me? It’s been 8 years and I never realised that I was doing this. I never thought of this as anything more than fun. It has never been a compulsion. I have loved doing it regularly. But yeah, only time will tell what’s for the future.

For now, let me go out and cut a cake or a pastry or a donut and celebrate. It’s Happy Birthday to my Blog! Thank you for being part of this journey spanning over 325 posts and 8 years. Keep reading and be there, always.