To Segullah readers

I always seem to wait until the furor dies down before addressing increased traffic to my blog. Having strangers read about my rather unusual life is always something that causes a little bit of insecurity. However, for the most part the readers who have commented have been kind and supportive, which I appreciate. Let me back up...

A fellow blogger in the Queerosphere has been the topic of conversation on a Mormon Group blog, Segullah. In a comment following the post, he linked me, hence, the increased traffic to my site. Naturally, for a blogstalker such as I, having new blogs to read has been fun and I've enjoyed visiting them. It gives me hope that someday people in the church will recognize that faithfulness comes in all shapes and sizes, and that I'm not defined by the people I want to look at more than once. However, I noticed that when I left a comment on Marilyn's blog, she promptly deleted it. I respect her right to delete comments. It is, after all, her blog. But I'm a little disappointed because in my eyes that means she feels shame at being associated with me, and it prevents me from commenting on other related blogs for fear that they would feel the same. So just in case you feel a visit from me would be an intrusion, I'm answering your comments here.

Moon is a friend of a blogger I follow. She stopped by, no doubt, because I left a comment on his blog. I actually answered her comment on her blog, but will also answer it here. She mentioned my habit of posting dialogue, and said something about not being able to remember conversations with her therapist after leaving the office. I believe I've mentioned this before, but it takes me a long time to forget conversations--especially if I find them particularly meaningful. I post in dialogue form because that's how I recall it.
Katrina and Jared are married. One left a comment, the other an email. I've not had time yet to respond to the email, but thank you for your comments. It's really wonderful to encounter church members who understand that life usually doesn't follow expected norms, despite myths to the contrary purported in church meetings and within families. And I love the fact that they are open to learning about how others live with challenges and work to build faith daily. And you should visit their blog just because Katrina is adorable (AtP backs me up on this).
Emily, thank you for your comments (I'm assuming both comments are from you, even though only one has an embedded link). It's really nice to know that my words are understood and appreciated. Also, I love your grapefruit picture, which is a really random thing to say, but I happen to love the way that fruit tastes and smells (Softsoap makes Grapefruit Splash moisturizing body wash that is amazing!).
Zannah is another lovely redhead (I'm so lucky!!) who lives in Paris, France. She has some great pictures on her blog, and an interesting story to tell. And she wrote a post about shoes, so of course, I'm now a fan forever! Zannah, thanks for visiting me, and for commenting. You're welcome anytime.
I have no link for Claudia, who commented anonymously, but she said, "It is so great to know there are people like you in the world!" which is something I think anyone would like to hear. It's especially important to me because I'm often posting things I feel are negative or self-serving--so it's nice to be forgiven for my short-comings. Thanks!
Kate Benson spent three hours getting to know my blog. That's a little nerve-wracking. But her end analysis was complimentary, thank goodness. She's a professional photographer and has a delightful blog that mingles her professional and everyday life. And her frustrations with her daughter are very similar to the ones I encounter with Tabitha, which makes me feel less like an alien mother.

And now I can no longer complain that very few women have visited my blog (and I'm incredibly grateful to Ambrosia, Salad, Stephalumpagus, FoxyJ, Marmoreal, Boo, Kim, JB, Becca, Jay, Katherine, Mabupi, Mary, ~T, Latter-Gay-Saint, and any other female lurkers that visit me with an attempt at regularity, because you help me remember that I have friends of the female persuasion to balance the testosterone that seems to be ever-present in the Queerosphere).

If you sent me an email--look for an answer in the near future. And once again, thanks for visiting and providing links that have allowed me to learn more about your lives. It's been lovely to meet you!