Anna Koop

One of the things that kept me from blogging for a very long time was the fear of being open. I am still trying to keep the cautionary tales in mind: future employers, rabid stalkers, concerned relatives all might someday read these posts. (Sometimes it’s hard to keep this in mind knowing that almost no one sees these posts (hi, Leah!), but nothing every dies on the internet, so what I say here is public even if it’s drifting in the murky backwaters behind the sandbar under some fallen logs).

But I think I want to be the kind of person who is reasonably transparent. If you want to know what I think about certain things, why not? If you don’t like it, well. At least you know where I stand. If you can’t stand to work with someone who believes X—let’s get that out of the way now, shall we? Because I’m not capable of arbitrarily changing my beliefs and it’s poison to pretend.

If a future employer is going to be annoyed that I have hobbies other than what they’re paying me for and that I spend time on blogging which I could spend on Something Else—well, then. Either I have a record that speaks for itself or I don’t. Avoiding things I enjoy and that help me get better at things I love for fear of a hypothetical cranky future employer with an attitude problem and a morality that I am fundamentally opposed to? Maybe not such a good idea.

The random targeting of outspoken bloggers, particularly members of marginalized groups, still gives me pause. I have some very strong opinions, some guaranteed flame-war bait. I haven’t quite decided what to do about those. I think they’ll out eventually, but those posts will likely require drawn-out editing and careful thought. I want to be able to stand by them, even when I change my mind.

Obviously I’m posting now, and eventually I’ll be forwarding my official department page here. I might rearrange things so that the research posts come up by default, but these others ones are still going to be there. Here I am. What you bother to read is up to you.

Not that I’m encouraging family members to join Ravelry, mind. One step at a time. But if you’re on there and want to know what this knitter has to say in a less public place, feel free to PM me.